Veteran Nigerian singer and actress Onyeka Onwenu has passed away. She reportedly collapsed after performing at Stella Okoli’s birthday party on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. She was taken to Reddington Hospital in Lagos but sadly didn’t make it.
Onyeka Onwenu was a renowned Nigerian singer-songwriter, actress, journalist, and human rights and social activist. She was also a politician and previously served as a judge on the X Factor series.
Nicknamed the Elegant Stallion by the Nigerian media, she once held the position of chairperson for the Imo State Council for Arts and Culture. In 2013, she was named the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Centre for Women Development.
Acting Career
Onwenu made her acting debut as Joke, a childless woman who adopts an abandoned baby, in Zik Zulu Okafor’s film Nightmare . She has since appeared in numerous Nollywood films. In 2006, she won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance in Widow’s Cot. That same year, she was also nominated for the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Rising Moon. In 2014, she starred alongside Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandiwe Newton in Half of a Yellow Sun, and she appeared in Lionheart in 2018.
Politics
Onwenu was affiliated with the People’s Democratic Party. She ran twice for the position of Local Council Chairman of Ideato North Local Government Area in Imo State but was unsuccessful in both attempts. However, she was appointed Chairperson of the Imo State Council for Arts and Culture by former Governor Ikedi Ohakim. On 16 September 2013, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan appointed her as the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Centre for Women Development.
Activism
In 2000, Onwenu protested against her former employer, the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), for not paying royalties for her songs. NTA 2 Channel 5 had used Iyogogo, a track from her album Onyeka!, in station idents without her permission. After the then-director general, Ben Murray-Bruce, banned her from appearing on air, she started a hunger strike outside the station.
Onwenu’s activism garnered significant support from other artists, including Charly Boy, who criticized Nigeria’s failure to pay royalties for songs broadcast on TV and radio. The NTA eventually agreed to resolve the matter amicably, although they denied blacklisting her. The protest ended after six days when an agreement was reached regarding the royalties.
Music Career
She started her music career in the 1980s and released her debut album, For the Love of You in 1981. Since then, she has released numerous albums and singles, including the popular song One Love.
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