Afro-Juju music legend Sir Shina Peters has exposed an unusual strategy his record label used to rehabilitate his public image. This followed his controversial departure from Prince Adekunle’s band.
The veteran musician faced severe backlash after leaving the band. During an appearance on ‘The Honest Bunch’ podcast, Peters revealed his label orchestrated a shocking publicity stunt. They deliberately portrayed him as mentally unstable to garner public sympathy.
“When I left Prince Adekunle’s band, people accused me of abandoning my father figure for money. My record label owner Tunde Savage developed a plan with newspaper editors to change this narrative.”
Peters explained how label executives designed the elaborate scheme. The goal was to reshape public perception through manufactured empathy.
“The label owner instructed me to plate my hair for three days without loosening it. I tore my old clothes as directed. After three days, they unplaited but didn’t comb my hair. Dressed in rags, they took me to Oyingbo Market to buy ewedu. Unbeknownst to me, they filmed the entire performance.”
The staged performance extended to Badagry. Peters was taken to a Julius Berger construction site. There, he was instructed to mimic mentally unstable behavior in public view.
“They made me eat like a madman. This was necessary because fans were furious after my departure. These tactics aimed to shift public opinion and generate empathy.”
The ‘Ace’ crooner emphasized these extreme measures were necessary. Public anger threatened his career after leaving the influential band.
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