9ice has confirmed that he is preparing a new album for a March release and not just that, there will also be four other albums to follow before the year runs out. Is it a grandeur plan?
Contrary to the impression that his album is doing poorly, 9ice said in a telephone chat that his album sold over 750, 000 in its first week of release and in this week alone, another 1.5 million units have been pushed meaning that approximately 2.5million copies of ‘Tradition’ have been sold in CDs. And the next line of projects is the ‘Versus’.
He said, “a lot of people have been saying ‘why don’t you sing with this act? Why don’t you work with that act and all that. ‘Versus’ is a concept we’ve (Alapomeji Records) had for a long time and its just time for us to carry it out now. It’s a five album project and its going to be released one after the other but all this year”
The singer explained that the coming albums are so titled to accommodate their features. The first body of work is nearing completion having recorded songs with Mode 9, Da Grin and soon there’ll be a 9ice versus P-Square. The first ‘Versus’ will contain 12-tracks.
Curious about why the artiste is willing to commit hard-to-find revenue to recording five new albums which might or might not have full returns, the singer repeated that it’s (Versus) been a long time dream and the fact that he owns a personal recording studio will help cut cost.
Explaining the economics of the music business, 9ice confessed that the highest royalty paid to an artiste on every unit of CD sold is, N10. “The street hawkers get it from the marketer for N45 and sell it for N120, N150 and the cost of production of a CD is N35″, he educated.
Commenting on the terms of trading between marketers, distributors and artistes, he said, “ no marketer can give N50m on any album, even to those who sell out their album rights outrightly to marketers. Forget about anything you have heard before now or been told in that direction because it never happens.
As for me, I’d rather be paid royalties”.
9ice’s ‘Tradition’ is being distributed by Soforte distributors, an independent distribution company managed by Gbenga Goerge (gospel singer Lara George’s husband cum manager) and operating outside the famous Alaba market.
On what his experience, doing business with Soforte is like, the ethnic singer said, “there are lots of difference.
For once you can know exactly how much you’ve sold. My marketer (in Soforte) can call me up and show full statistics of distribution for my CD.
With Alaba, you don’t get that. The marketer will be afraid that if they show you the record of sales, you might do your own calculation and then find out that he (the marketer) has robbed you and then you (the artiste) will start making demands”.
Overall, the talented father of one expressed optimism for the new year. And even though ‘Tradition’ isn’t heavy on radio, music pundits believe that a good album grows on people with time. Hence, ‘Tradition’ just might settle in as soon as people get to assess and enjoy the album as a fresh body of work and not viewed comparatively with ‘Gongo Aso’.
