'Concussion', a movie about a Nigerian Doctor who made a significant discovery on the impact of multiple concussions on the health of Rugby players. The role of the Doctor was played by Will Smith. Nigerians were quick to condemn Will Smith for not interpreting the role effectively because he did not speak in Nigerian accent, considering that the character he was playing was born and bred in Nigeria. They said he did not make efforts to learn how Nigerians speak before playing the role. The trailer of the movie was catchy and I made efforts to watch the movie ASAP. Indeed Smith did not speak in an accent that is similar to what I know as Nigerian accent.

But it occurred to me that alot of us don't really know how a true Nigerian accent sounds. We hear it less and less everyday. The Banker that attends to you does not sound like it, neither does the flight attendant on your local flight, nor the school teacher or the Pastor in your church, or the presenter of your favorite radio program,the list is endless.

Indeed Hollywood has a very fallible portrayal of the Nigerian sound,but also our Nollywood has proved to be misleading as well. Our actors and actresses mostly the young ones believe that the more foreign or more precisely the more American you sound, the more polished you appear. This further confuses the general populance on what the Nigerian sound truly is like. When you watch Ghanaian movies or a movie from Kenya, you hear their sound, a sound that is unique to only them, a sound they choose to retain, a sound they choose not to polish away.

If you watch 'new generation' Television channels or programs, you will almost be confused. You will wonder if the broadcast is for Nigerians or some other populance that only understands foreign accents...... hence the need to strive at it. I will forever be endeared to the voices of Ruth Benemesia Opia, Cyril Stober, Shola Atere, Frank Edoho, etc. They do not speak too fast nor too slowly, we need not strain our ears to hear them clearly and most importantly they(still) sound 100% Nigerian.

Somehow we have the mentality that you speak good English only when you sound foreign. Chinua Achebe and Wole Soyinka are internationally recognized grammarians . With rich knowledge of syntax, phonetics and all the rules of English Language but when they speak, you still hear the Nigerian in them. You may say they are old school, but even our 21st Century Chimamanda Adiche still retains her Nigerian sound.

If these English Language gaints still 'speak home' why does the 19 year-old girl from Mbaise feel the need and pressure to cultivate a fake accent as soon as she is admitted into the University or the 28 year old dude who suddenly echos British accent just because he is trying to chat a lady up.

Accent is the crust of a language. It is a form of identification or signature that you carry around everywhere you go. It reveals where you are coming from, how far you have come and how rich your experience of life is. Everywhere we have them different, the thick crust of the Russian tone, the loose rhyme of the American flow, the guarded sound of the British, the heavy wordings of the Yorubas', the high pitch of the Hausas' and the peculiar tone of the Igbos'. None is more beautiful than the other. If we continue to erode our accents, how would we know whether we are close to a brother or sister when we are in a distant land.

Indeed we should remain in awe of our different accents, but a person need not strive to sound like another, such attempts are hardly ever successful. You may succeed in eroding your home accent but you may never fully pick up another, you will still sound different from them.

We are Nigerians, we should show our pride through the way we choose to sound and groom our children the same way.

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