Eran ife: Decolonizing the Vocabulary of African Celebrities Studies
1,2,3. Tutu! Mic testing! 1, 2, tutu testing mic! Nibayi, ape iya Egbe Rhoda, awon mama wa Prophetess (Mrs) E.A. Ololade Popoola ati awon omo egbe won ki won wa dupe aseyori ajodun oni. (now we will invite the matron of RhodaGroup and her members for the thanksgiving of the success of today's anniversary). After nearly 5 hours of different activities, the previous sentence was the announcement of the MC at the church Maami' attended in the early 2000s. By this time, my patience was almost worn out. I sat down with a look that only a few people in my circle understood. My Aunty later said I looked like bread drowned in water. I expected this to be brief since they still have ere mi or Ariya for the woman who fell into trance days before later in the evening. In my head, I was asking kini gbogbo sherere yi bayi? I have not to wash my school uniform, not alone iron.
After the announcement in the opening of this post, Maami the Iya Egbe Rhoda in her one million stone lace white sutana with the blinking blinding us, her Amure (ephod) crossed to the side and shoulder to indicate her rank with her omo egbe starting dancing towards the altar. Then MC said, ema jo wole ni o( you will dance into the church). Ha! Ha! As if trying my patience, the lead singer added, "Iya Adura sha ma gbe se ni konkon (Mama Adura one step at a time). Then he began with one of Maami's favorites.
Iya Adura, Mama Seyi , Olorun Prophetess Ololade Popoola
Ohun mo fin wu o, (2ce) (God what you find admirable about me)
Ki esu ma ba be je. (Don't let it be ruined)
Ijo ji jo ni mo fi wu o,, orin kiko ni mo fi wu o (is it my dancing/singing you find admirable)
Ki esu ma ba be je. (Don't let it be ruined)
For the next 1-2 hours, they were still singing and dancing, from sunny Ade, and Ebenezer Obey songs to other popular songs and artists, with instrumentalists subtly inserting appropriate and "inappropriate" fuji, juju, apala strings; everyone forgot time exists. All the elders on the altar, where only men sat, came down to spray Maami money. Even one of my Aunties who lived with us went and spray Maami with money she was supposed to use to buy ice blocks for the drinks reserved for after church party. I was looking at everyone like they were unserious. Next, I started my internal prayers that all these dancing and singing should stop so that I could go home and God/god/ancestors answered. When we got home, two aunties were "contesting" who knew mum the best. One of the Aunty knew us way from KD, and the other Aunty had just met Mum less than 2 years before we moved to this satellite town in Abuja. One said, look how the church was filled (church of less than 300 o). Another Aunty noted the crowd was small and that if it was when we were in KD, there would be no space. One Aunty said what is at the core of my post. "Iya Adura ni eran ife lara ni o. gbogbo church lo wa ba Mummy jo".
As I learn more and more about celebrity studies, it occurs to me that while "western" concepts have their utility and have made a significant contribution to cultural studies, specifically celebrities' studies, they have several limitations, many of which are related to language, context, history, location, religion and translation among others. For instance, over the years, I have read about affective labor. I am trying to figure out how to align it with Eran ife, which suggests that you are intrinsically a lovable person from, let's say, Ogun awure. I don't think people do any labor to have Eran life. Ogun awure indicates a labor influenced by a magical concoction or mixture to enhance likability and attraction from the public. Eran ife is natural and has no such influence. Along this line, My Yoruba is not strong, but I think that ogun awure may parallel the phenomenon of "cut soap for me." I am not saying they are the same, but there could be similarities. As we extend the field of African celebrity studies, I hope that we can separate ways of being known and liked beyond publicity, public relation, virality, and social media architecture.
Notably, while I honor significant scholarships that have been done, my goal is to use them to illuminate what needs to be done. I do not aim to dislodge existing works but to contribute, open new pathways and vistas of thought, account for gaps, and shift how we research celebrities. At some point, I may research African celebrities by doing autoethnography.
By the way, celebrity study was an aspect of my doctoral dissertation that will not stop following me everywhere, even when I was done with it nearly five years ago. It is like that toaster from high school that wants to follow you into marriage, but what can I do?
Posted on Facebook on August 3, 2022
In picture: My Mum
