Dear Muyiwa,

Shaggy.

That name still makes me chuckle today because that was your original nickname,coined from that ridiculous fellow in Scooby Doo,similar scraggly beard,word in Lagos was there was this acapella group in the school formerly known as OSU(Ogun State University) called Harmony.A quartet that epitomized that whole BoyzIImen vibe from back then,you,Smith,Sheni and that fourth dude.You guys could sing the pants off a nun so admirers said in Lagos,so when we were looking for a group to work with that was fresh,talented and unknown,we drove from Lagos to Ogun State in search of you guys,you were shocked we tracked you down,practically driving around the whole state until we found you,you cracked a few hilarious jokes,introduced us to your girl-friend as at then(nice girl) and the rest is history.

I cannot believe you are gone,last time we saw,you had scored from that Durosinmi Ette gig and copped that big assed Jeep with the 20 inch rims and life was good,your mum was still alive.Your mum,another sad story that breaks my heart,the world should know Mrs Oshinuga was a beautiful woman as in literally quite stunning,petite-light skinned,soft spoken and virtually ageless, whether it was me or Smith or Cimion or Micheal whom the world would come to know as Ruggedman,it was a open house and she treated us all as sons. Your mums death broke me bro,some stories just can't be told...

What can be told is funny but truthful anecdotes like the origins of the name Nomoreloss and the fact,it's actually nomoloS which is Solomon spelt backwards,so Solomon became Nomolos and it became Nomoreloss,you always wanted to be a singer,Pops didn't exactly agree,not surprising,a lot of our fathers from back then were very antagonistic to their scions pursuing any artsy ideals,fulfilling your dream came at such a steep price bro,you were organizing those raves on the Island and gone from school ever so often,your relationship with your girl-friend buckled under the pressure,there was that night -cultists were doing a meeting or was it a celebration right outside of your apartment in school and she was scared out of her wits and so mad at you for not being there,but you were even then learning the ropes of the entertainment business,gate takings from club events:organizing shows on the Island,K's Place and the like,Biggie from OSU was a partner,Smith was your wingman, short but mighty Mr Smith-always dependable,a deep voiced titan. Although a 'jew' man,'confirmed' men loved you all the same.

Sometimes I wonder if the price was a little too steep,OSU Economics lecturers were pretty brutal,you were gone more often that you were around,sacrifices had to be made and you made them.Girl-friend couldn't take it any more,she upped and left.Harmony broke up,the 'real' world was encroaching and the world of television beckoned,if we ever got a do-over I would have said-do your songs but stick to the comedy bro,cos you were funny for real,I heard Ololufe seven years before it got recorded,Ehen launched Micheal's career and way before his beef with Modenine,that song...probably Abounce and Cimion can tell this part of the story better although Modenine hinted about it in his beef track with Micheal,all that B.S seems pretty stupid now though.It's funny how you, like Micheal and co had a head start on Tuface and the Plantation boys back then,peops wouldn't know that all of the names that eventually became famous used the same studios and sound engineers and as Eldee and his crew were leaving the digital studio(Isioma and Daniel Unaam on the controls),you had next.

Your chess game was tight but your brother was a beast,your hustle was the real deal bro.

Never had the pleasure of meeting your missus or your daughter,last time we spoke was when I called Paul Play and you happened to be there but then Paul has been strangely reticent since his cancer scare in SA and everyone has been on some grown man ish, one read the dailies but one can't reach out solely because Lindaikeji said xyz,I was going to see you next week and had something planned for all the guys from back in the day and then I got the news yesterday and I was like WTF,no not Shaggy.Nomoreloss is for the public-you will always be Shaggy to me bro.

The reason why everyone is genuinely upset is because even from a TV screen,you genuinely came across as a nice guy.Yes that includes when you and Smith would smoke La and have your kid brother on look out so your mum doesn't catch on.Dude,I can tell you now she always knew because she once asked me if I partook of the herb,that pastor from the church you didn't like was there looking disapproving and all righteous and I'd have liked nothing better than to say-'occasionally' so he'd try to pontificate,alas none of us guys liked upsetting your mums-may her soul rest in perfect peace,she was a phenomenal mother Muyiwa. Shaggy,the loss was ridiculous,it was more than a little bit,you are the first one among all our peers to go to the great beyond.OJB was a close call but youCan't handle...!!!

I don't do social media,I'm crushed.I'm trying to eulogize you but that 'teary eyed,dudes all in their feelings persona' hasn't caught up with the African male yet,if I feel awful,I wonder how Smith feels or your brothers or your wife and daughter?a lot of water under the bridge in the making of a lot of careers or lack thereof,a lot of hard feelings by people I won't want to mention about this or that person not giving a brother( or sister) a leg up,like I said everyone was on some grown man ish but this is hoping we all can pull together to give you a befitting send off,a tasteful one and build on your legacy of trying to make good music,meaningful songs.Very few artistes make the cut when it comes to good songs nowadays but I'm still stuck in the days of Mobb Deep and Enter the WuTang so like you frequently reminded me-my musical tastes are quite biased.Agreed.(TrapRap movement sucks eggs!!!)

This was cathartic on several levels,a sad post script to the tale of a beautiful life.Rest in peace my brother,friend and comrade in arms.See you at the cross roads.

D.

Deep
Nomorelos was a great musician
Dunno him one on one but I liked him

Rest in peace Solomon
Your loss actually came as a shock to me

We love you but God loves you more
Sleep on

Saw your PM. My email: kemeticphilosophy@gmail