How Nigerian super guitarist, Uwaifo got ‘blessed by a mermaid’

How Nigerian super guitarist, Uwaifo got ‘blessed by a mermaid’

How Nigerian super guitarist, Uwaifo got ‘blessed by a mermaid’

The Nigerian entertainment industry has lost a genius and old-timer, ‘the guitar boy’ Sir Victor Uwaifo, known for his hit songs, ‘Joromi’ and ‘If you see mammy water’.  

Uwaifo died on Saturday in his home in South-South Nigeria after a brief illness. He was 80 years old.

In 2015, Uwaifo told local newsmen a story of his encounter with mermaid and how that encounter changed his fortune. He had sung: If you see mammy water, never you run away…but play it a music.

Fielding questions on his inspiration for the song, the Nigeria’s great guitarist confirmed that he actually saw and met with a female marine spirit popularly called “Mammy Water” among Africans, even though others still believe that the mermaid is a myth.

The following is the confession of Sir Victor Uwaifo on how he met a mermaid at the Bar Beach of the Atlantic Ocean on Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria. Excerpt from the interview below:

Tell us about your encounter with the mammy water in Lagos

That was also true. I was the Head of the graphics department at that time. We used to close late and had to be on set to organize the back drop. Because of the traffic, I used to deliberately stay late and go to the bar beach to strum my guitar and get inspiration. That particular day, I stayed really late till everybody had gone. Not long after, I observed that each time the waves advance towards me, I would move back, but the farther I moved the closer it came. Suddenly, I observed a figure coming towards me and before I knew it the figure was right before me. I wanted to run away. I screamed, which I later transposed into strumming the guitar, which has become a trend nowadays. She just said, ‘if you see mammy water, never you run away’. I just thought the mermaid loved music, otherwise it would have harmed me. What was the reception for the song after the incident? It was an instant hit. It was after Joromi which gave Nigeria the first gold in Africa….

What was the reception for the song after the incident?

It was an instant hit. It was after Joromi which gave Nigeria the first gold in Africa.

Would you say its success was a bit spiritual in nature?

I call it esoteric, a privileged knowledge not for everybody. From that time till today, I have been very privileged. I am a spiritual person, I have a chapel in my house. I am not only an artiste, I am an engineer. I have invented a sports car that I invented 20 years ago and I still drive it round in Benin. I have also invented guitars, I wanted a new octave on the normal guitar that would go as far as the ones that are found on a grand piano. I also invented a guitar that had a keyboard embedded in it and many more before the latest one that spins round faster than the speed of sound….ENDS.

Uwaifo,  served as Commissioner for Arts, Culture and Tourism in Edo State of Nigeria between 2001 and 2003, was born on March 1, 1941, in Benin City.

He attended Western Boys High School in his hometown and later, St Gregory’s College, Lagos.

He subsequently proceeded to Yaba College of Technology, Lagos from where he obtained a National Art Diploma with distinction and shone as an outstanding athlete.

He received a B.A Hons, First Class, Fine and Applied Arts from the University of Benin and a Masters’ Degree in Sculpting from the same university.

He also obtained a Ph.D in Architectural Sculpture from the same university where he has been a Professor for several years.

In March, he marked his 80th birthday, which was turned into a carnival of sort, to celebrate his contributions not just to music, but also to creative arts.

Uwaifo had a Doctor of Letters (D.Litt) Degree (Honoris) by the University of Benin; the Benin National Merit Award; the University of Benin Distinguished Alumnus Award and the National Honour of Member of the Order of the Niger by the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In 2010, Prof. Uwaifo was one of the select Nigerians awarded the fellowship of the Nigerian Academy of Letters at a grand event at the University of Lagos.