By Ogbonna Amadi, Entertainment Editor
Sam Onyelukwe’s rise to prominence began with the brief stint he shared with members of the defunct Kush, an R&B group that rocked Africa in the early 2000s.

With the demise of KUSH, he moved to America.
“I spent many years in Los Angeles in America and during that period, I worked for Sony Music, Walt Disney and a couple of others. I also worked extensively with The Black Eyed Peas, before they even became as popular as they now are.

We did not record any track  together but we played some show together” he told Saturday Vanguard in an interview. He spoke about his brief stay with MTV base before settling down as Managing Director of Trace TV, the newest music channel in town.
Enjoy;

Sam Onyemelukwe

What inspires your interest in music?

Well I can’t really say what it is but I think it is the Nigerian spirit. I have always

loved music right from my childhood. My little daughter that is just 2 years old too loves music and dances like she’s one of Fela’s backup dancers

What do you think about the recent changes in the Nigerian Music Industry?

The growth that the industry has experienced since 2001, has been nothing short of magical. Kush was the first group to really garner international acclaim but we can see that so many more have since followed. This development can be seen from both the artists and those behind the scene including directors, producers, choreographers and others. They have done incredibly well.

What role did you play in Kush?

I was their producer and did a lot of promotion work for their material. I practically produced most of their tracks.

Why did the group breakup?

Personally I love Kush and I know all the founding members do so too. However, somewhere along the line, we came to a point where we had to move in different directions with our personal lives and it became almost impossible to remain together.

Any chance of you guys returning or working on a project together?

I have spoken to all the members of the group recently and I can tell you we all still love the band with all our hearts. Although there is nothing definite around the corner, we are all open to working together again.

What happened next after Kush?

I spent many years in Los Angeles in America and during that period, I worked for Sony Music, Walt Disney and a couple of others. I worked extensively with The Black Eyed Peas, before they even became as popular as they now are. We did not record any track together but we played at some shows together and I really do know them personally that if I met any member of the band, we will hug and all that. Now I am happy to be the MD of Trace Urban in Nigeria.

How did you bring Trace to Nigeria?

The answer is so simple, people do not believe it. The truth is that I simply went on the website for Trace Urban and clicked on the contact. I approached them in a way that was sensible, reasonable and thoughtful. It was also the right time for our music to get on a global platform. I am happy to say that the people at Trace felt the same way I did and today as you can see, the rest is history.

Why Trace?

Why not Trace Urban? MTV is an already existing brand. There are great talents in Nigeria. Bringing another brand made a whole lot of sense. However, we understood that it wouldn’t be just any other brand but the correct brand. Trace was the next logical thing. So, what we did was take something that was already popular and make it nuclear.

What kind of experience do you bring to Trace?

I have what you might call a varied and colourful background. I started my career at Walt Disney. I also worked at McCann Eriksson and have an MBA in information systems. I also spent a few years as the country manager of MTV before Trace came up. This is my corporate, black-suit-and-tie side. However, I’m a musician and music lover.

What will the content on Trace look like?

It is our vision is to make Trace a reflection of what the world of music is. You can see this in the content of our programming. We do not say this is only for Nigerian audience, let us segment it. What we do is a sprinkling of the biggest and the best. We do this on our programme caIled ‘Playlist’. On playlist, we play the biggest and the best videos in the world, you will see Beyonce playing before Tuface, and Kanye and then Flavour or P-Square and the show is replicated on all Trace TV channels worldwide.

For the up and coming artists, we

have created ‘New Age’, a show that gives voice to new and rising stars. In essence, what we do for them is to help them branch out and provide a massive audience for them.

What would you say Trace has done for Nigerian music?

It has promoted African music internationally. 2face, Jay Martin – it has given artistes an avenue to shoiwcase their works to the world.

Any testimonies to share in particular?

Flavour is a talent, a great talent, an electrifying performer. He is already popular. He made his career but we’ve raised his profile and he is on a level that is high.

What is the strategy for Trace?

To become a key part of the industry, every group we deal with, we do right by them. We want them to be excited. Advertisers and brands; they are very key, we need productions. We have to be able to create.

Can you say that Trace Urban is set to change the face of music?

My instinctive answer to this question is a resounding yes. But there are two facets to this; we are set to change it in a very little way, and the second angle to this is that we are set to change the face of Nigerian music in a grand, dramatic way. We’ll change it little because we are not the first, so the idea that we’ll change is not a goal of ours, we want to be more like a part of what’s happening.

Yet while we do this, we will do something dramatically different because we are the only international music channel that promotes African music abroad. We play Nigerian music in heavy rotation across the globe and P Square for instance is currently number one in terms of requests in the Caribbeans. We are getting a lot of requests for them from the Carribean. Because of Trace they have a lot of fans over there.