Armed robbers can never rob me, they
respect me -

Daddy Showkey declares
In an interview with Tribune,
popular dancehall
star Daddy Showkey said no armed robbers in
Lagos can rob him because they respect him too
much. He said he's encountered many of them on
the streets, but they immediately let him go and even
apologize when they recognize him. See below...
You were said to have been attacked by
those alleged to be gunmen in your
Lagos home shortly after you returned,
could you tell us what happened?
Yes, they were assassins. They came to my
house and killed one of my boys. Thank God I
was lucky. Those guys were not armed robbers
because in Nigeria today, no armed robbers
can come to my house. It can never happen.
Why?
I grew up in the street of Ajegunle. I have
always been a street boy. Armed robbers can
never rob me. I have met a lot of them on the
streets of Lagos several times and they will tell
me Showkey Baba, we didn't know it was you.
Please, no vex, dey go. That respect is always
there.
Armed robbers respect you? Do you
have any connection with them?
That is a story for another day, Mr reporter.
So who were the people that came to my
house?
The people that came to my house saw my son
and asked him about my whereabouts, he said
I was not around. My son went back inside
and told one of my boys to go and attend to the
guys at the gate, when he got there, they
thought he was my bodyguard, so they shot
him. They were inside my house for hours and
they did not take anything away. Armed robber
won't come to my house and start asking of
Showkey, they will face what they have come
for and leave. But these guys were asking for
me and when they didn't see me, they left. I am
sad because they killed one of my boys.
You were said to have been shot few
months after that incident at your
house, is that true?
Yes. I was shot inside a filling station in
Lagos.
Why would anybody want to kill you?
I don't know. I can't even explain what could
be responsible for that but I thank God that I
have overcome that now.
Before you had that accident that kept
you out of active music for almost ten
years, the impression people had about
you was that you had reached the
eclipse of your career. Many people did
not even know you had an accident until
you came back. What do you have to
say?
First of all, let me thank God that I am back
again. Because If I had died before, during or
after the accident, this interview will never
happen. Talking about my career before the
accident, you will agree with me that I have
come a long way in the music industry. Myself
and other old generation musicians set the
ground rolling for today's musicians and I am
proud to say that.
But you will agree that at some point,
Showkey's name was not as pronounced
as it used to be?
You can't remain on top of your game for the
rest of your life. There will be a moment when
you will be forced to take the back seat and
observe things, but that does not mean you are
no more relevant or music has nothing to do
with you again. The mistake most people make
is that when they don't see or hear about you,
they quickly conclude that your life in music is
over. I am not surprised that people didn't
know that I had an accident because I didn't
come out to tell Nigerians that I am down ooo,
please help me.
Why? Are you saying that because you
have the wherewithal to handle your
predicament?
It is not about having the resources to handle
my problem, it is more of my decision not to
bother people with my problem. Why should I
disturb them in the first place? Because they
are my fans does not mean they should know
about every step I take about my life. I asked
myself one question which was, would
Nigerians not have known if I was arrested for
drugs or something capable of tarnishing my
image?.
It seems you are sad that despite your
popularity, Nigerians did not know that
Daddy Showkey had a life-threatening
accident...
No. I am not feeling any sadness in my heart. I
am even happy right now. I can't be happier. I
am not bothered whether they know or they
don't. What matters to me is that I was able to
handle my predicament through the help of
God and some people who God used to help
me. I am grateful to these people and I wish
them well in all they do. They are my people
now and they are my friends.
You have new friends now?
I didn't say I have new friends. What I am
saying is that I have learnt new lesson about
life and I now know what friendship is about.
So none of your friends in the music
industry came to the hospital to look
after you?
The fact is that how many of them knew that I
had an accident? How many of them knew
which hospital I was admitted to?. It was not
the matter of who was there or not, it was the
matter of how I was able to handle my
situation and managed everything very well.
Another thing is that even those who would
have come didn't come because of one reason
or the other but I am not bothered about that.
Life goes on my brother. You live to learn and
you learn to live. When on my sick bed, I read
a report about my accident published by one
national newspaper in Nigeria, I wept. I wept
because that was the only newspaper that
reported it.
What single lesson did that experience
teach you?
Not a single one but many lessons but the chief
of them is caution. I have learnt how to
approach life with extreme caution. You know
why? If Showkey had died in that accident, I
am sure that by now people would have
forgotten about me. Perhaps when they listen
to any of my songs, they may feel like ouch!
that was Showkey's song. We missed him so
much. The bitter truth is that life goes on.
What was running on your mind when
you were on that bed? Did you at any
point remember music and your
dreams which could have gone
unfulfilled?
How do I start to describe the experience to
you? It was a very bad one but I thank God that
I am lucky. The only question on my mind was
will I be able to walk again? I was so
particular about that question that my doctors
would tell me, Mr man you will walk again.
The doctors told me I would not have been able
to work again if I had delayed the operation for
few more weeks. I still don't believe I am
walking again because what I saw in the
hospital gave me a different impression about
life and I am grateful to God.
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld from Glo Mobile.