Nigeria’s music legend, Onyeka Onwenu, popularly dubbed as the “Elegant Stallion”, has died at the age of 72.
Onwenu reportedly collapsed after performing at the 80th birthday party of Stella Okolie, Chief Executive Officer of Emzor Pharmaceuticals, on Tuesday.
She was said to have been rushed to Reddington Hospital, where she reportedly passed away.
A source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said, “It is very sad. Onyeka Onwenu just performed at the birthday of Mrs. Stella Okoli of Emzor Pharmaceuticals tonight. After performing, she slumped. She was taken to Reddington Hospital but couldn’t make it.”
Onwenu was born in 1952, in Obosi, Anambra State and began her music career in the 1980s and released her debut album, “For the Love of You,” in 1981.
She has since released numerous albums and singles, including the hit song, “One Love”. The musical legend used her music and its timeless messages to promote Nigeria’s culture.
Her music duet with King Sunny Ade entitled “Wait for Me” has remained evergreen. It is remembered always as a song with deep lyrical message which was put together to help the government of that era fight seriously against the outburst of population explosion while also regulating it with the different family planning programmes put together by the government.
Her song, “African Woman’’, helped greatly in projecting the innate exquisiteness of the African woman giving them a sense of pride and belonging amid poverty, widowhood, rape, lack of care, hatred, humiliation and abandonment, among others.
Her evergreen classic, “Sodom and Gomorrah’’, is a biblical narrative of the popular story of the city of Sodom and Gomorrah, a city destroyed by God due to their heedlessness and high level of immorality.
Onwenu has also acted in several Nollywood films and won numerous awards for her contributions to music and film.
In addition to her entertainment career, Onwenu has also been involved in politics.
She was appointed as the Chairperson of the Imo State Council for Arts and Culture in 2013 and later became the Director-General of the National Centre for Women Development in 2016.
She was awarded the National Honours of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) in 2011.
