A song on Climate Change, Mother Nature, has won this year’s Unified Filmmakers award in the category of Best Music Video.
Produced by Salvage Beats, Mother Nature was sung by Willie Workman Oga, an award-winning Filmmaker and prolific songwriter who was previously named Global Goodwill Ambassador and Global Conscience Ambassador due to his blend of art and activism.
Oga was the brain behind African Queen, the hit song by prolific singer, 2face Idibia, which was originally conceived as a soundtrack for TV series until Oga started managing plantation Boys and passed it off to them. 2face was later accused of appropriating the song to himself by his former colleague, Blackface.
A news website, DDNEWSonline.com spoke with Oga on the award. Excerpt…
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What award did you win recently; how and when did you get involved in such an endeavor?
The award was given by UNIFIED FILMMAKERS FilmFreeway International Festival held in Germany and the category is Genre Award Best Music Video. I am a humanitarian and climate change activist. Actually, I did a song entitled ‘Mother Nature.’ It is about the dangers and effects of climate change and suggesting some possible solutions to avert a climate disaster.
Being a global citizen, I got inspired as a creative artiste and a song-writer. I decided to use my art forms – music and film-making – to push the narrative of the dangers and effects of climate change caused by human activities.
It’s also my way of expressing my displeasure by the ways humankind handles environmental matters as they affect our Mother Earth – our only planet.
But who are the actors ignorantly or recklessly destroying the Earth or actors refusing to acknowledge the reality of climate change?
Some of these actors are CEOs of fusil fuel corporations. Individuals also contributing are those manufacturing plastics or those dumping toxic wastes into oceans and rivers affecting aquatic lives.
Also, we have the issue of deforestation – depleting the forest – especially the Amazon Forest, which aids in replenishing our eco-system. There are several other factors contributing to the destruction of the environment.
Talking about winning an international award with a song, are you a musician?
Yes.
How long ago did you discover you’re musically talented?
Over 25 years.
Had you ever had a release before this?
About three years ago, and the album was entitled ’Virtuous Woman’.
Why that title?
It is because women are just like Mother Earth. They multiply, care for us and nurture us. They take all the pains as mothers for us to live, just like Mother Earth is pummeled with various aggressive disruptive environmental activities, scientific and man-made.
What was your first attempt before three years ago at releasing a song or songs in an album.
I had been at the background writing songs, doing back-up vocals for some artistes. And I had also been doing radio and TV commercials. I sing on commercials, doing that on the side. And I had done performances for a few concerts here and there.
Can you remember any song you had written for a topnotch musician?
I was the brain behind the concept ‘African Queen’. I actually gave them the concept of the song because I discovered them (Plantashun Boiz) and was managing them.
With the international acceptance of the award-winning song, did you regret giving out the ‘African Queen’ song.
No, I felt so good that I am part of that global success of TuFace.
And did TuFace ever acknowledge you as the originator of ‘African Queen’.
No, only Blackface acknowledged me as the brain behind the song
Was there any monetary attachment to your award in Germany?
No. but of course, it will definitely open doors. That means that in the climate change advocacy around the world, the song can be used in schools and the world in general as a tool to keep spreading the danger of climate change, and why we as humans must change the ways we handle our planet.
Any parting shot
As a climate change activist my sincere advice to climate change denials is that if we don’t act now, when mother nature eventually vents its anger, it will destroy everything everyone in sight including them, the sceptics. We only have one habitable planet which is Mother Earth, we most all ensure to nurture and protect it by promoting bio-diversity, clean energy and greener eco-system.
