{"id":997,"date":"2026-10-24T23:15:47","date_gmt":"2026-10-24T23:15:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/24\/salawa-abeni-marks-50-years-on-stage-with-star-studded-event\/"},"modified":"2026-10-24T23:15:47","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T23:15:47","slug":"salawa-abeni-marks-50-years-on-stage-with-star-studded-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/24\/salawa-abeni-marks-50-years-on-stage-with-star-studded-event\/","title":{"rendered":"Salawa Abeni marks 50 years on stage with star-studded event"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Veteran<\/strong> waka musician, Salawa Abeni, was celebrated by music stars, Nollywood actors, government representatives and other dignitaries as she marked 50 years on stage at a ceremony in Lagos on Sunday.\n<\/p>\n<p>The event, held on October 18 at the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, brought together personalities from different parts of the entertainment industry to honour Abeni\u2019s contribution to Nigerian music and her role in preserving the traditional Yoruba genre, waka.\n<\/p>\n<p>Among the musicians who attended were fuji stars, Wasiu Alabi, aka Pasuma; Saheed Osupa, Sule Alao, aka Malaika; and Sefiu Alao; while Nollywood actors such as Faithia Balogun, Saidi Balogun, Yinka Quadri, Foluke Daramola, Afeez Owo, Madam Saje were also present at the event\n<\/p>\n<p>The ceremony featured live musical performances, tributes and an exhibition of archival materials documenting the singer\u2019s journey from her early years in the industry to her emergence as one of Nigeria\u2019s most recognisable traditional music performers.<\/p>\n<p>Abeni also took to the stage to perform some of her popular songs, taking guests back to the early years of her career.<\/p>\n<p>The performances highlighted how her music has served not only as entertainment but also as a means of documenting events, celebrating individuals and preserving Yoruba cultural traditions. <\/p>\n<div class=\"read-also\">\n<header>Related News<\/header>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>A goodwill message from Nigeria\u2019s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, was delivered by the wife of the Lagos State Deputy Governor, Oluremi Hamzat, who represented her at the occasion.<\/p>\n<p>In her message, Tinubu acknowledged Abeni\u2019s resilience and dedication to indigenous Nigerian music, noting her contribution to preserving history and promoting societal values through her songs.\n<\/p>\n<p>The anniversary provided an opportunity to reflect on the singer\u2019s journey, which began in 1976 when she released her debut album, Late General Murtala Ramat Mohammed, at the age of 15.\n<\/p>\n<p>The album, dedicated to the late Nigerian Head of State, helped establish her as a prominent voice in Waka music.\n<\/p>\n<p>The celebration was not only a recognition of Abeni\u2019s longevity but also an occasion to acknowledge the importance of indigenous music in Nigeria\u2019s cultural heritage.\n<\/p>\n<p>Fifty years after the beginning of her professional recording career, the singer remains a prominent figure in Waka music, with her anniversary bringing together different generations of entertainers to celebrate her contribution to the industry.\n<\/p>\n<p>Source: <\/p>\n<div class=\"nSourse\">Punch Newspapers &#8211; Latest News<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Veteran waka musician, Salawa Abeni, was celebrated by music stars, Nollywood actors, government representatives and other dignitaries as she marked 50 years on stage at a ceremony in Lagos on&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=997"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/997\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}