Media personality Chude Jideonwo has expressed his admiration for the deceased singer, songwriter, and actress Onyeka Onwenu.
Sharing his sentiments on his Instagram platform, he conveyed that he had dedicated an entire day shedding tears akin to an infant due to the profound shock, astonishment, and speechlessness stemming from the news of her passing. Jideonwo articulated that the intensity of sorrow he experienced was unparalleled in recent memory.
In his words:
“Aunty…
I have spent the whole of the day crying like a baby.
I am still shocked.
I am still stunned.
I am speechless.
I cannot remember the last time my heart broke this hard”.
In a subsequent extensive narrative, he reminisced about his interactions with the departed individual and his deep fascination with her persona.
Chude disclosed that his initial encounter with Onyeka Onwenu dates back to his time in Secondary school.
Narrating his recollection, he emphasized that his introduction to her artistry did not originate from her popular tracks like ‘One Love’ or ‘Dancing in the sun,’ but rather from ‘Greatest Love,’ a composition he deems as the epitome of musical beauty.
Stressing further, the media figure remarked that his enchantment with her was solidified upon witnessing her portrayal in a music video sharing a testimony about discovering Christa and the ensuing tranquility, a scenario that ignited a profound admiration within him.
Reflecting on his sentiments, Chude Jideonwo confessed to being completely captivated, imprudently infatuated, and profoundly enamored with her. He revealed that he zealously acquired all her music recordings, implored his relatives to accompany him to every performance, and diligently viewed every available interview featuring her, owing to his profound reverence.
His encounter with her materialized during his tenure as a producer for New Dawn alongside Funmi Iyanda in 2002, where she graced the show as one of the inaugural guests. Despite acknowledging her reserved demeanor, he appreciated her courteous and professional conduct, a trait that resonated with him.
Chude continued:
“I was in secondary school when I discovered Onyeka Onwenu.
I didn’t discover her from ‘One Love’ or ‘Dancing in the Sun’, which my parents, like everyone else across Nigeria, loved. Even Ekwe, over which my father and I often bonded, came later.
No, I discovered her with ‘Greatest Love’, which I still consider to be the most beautiful song I ever heard. I saw her in the music video telling the testimony of finding Christ and finding peace, and something about the woman on the pulpit made me fall in love.
I fell hopelessly, recklessly, abundantly in love with her. I was obsessed with her. I bought every tape of hers, begged my aunties to take me to every concert, I watched every interview I could find. I adored her.
I was besotted.
When I became the producer of New Dawn with Funmi Iyanda in 2002, she was, of course, one of the first guests I invited. She wasn’t warm, but as always, she was polite and professional. I didn’t care. To just be talking to her on the phone was a dream come true.
When she arrived at the studio in NTA Tejuoso, used to huge egos, I asked her: ‘How should I address you, ma?’ She said, ‘Just call me Onyeka Onwenu’. Even the way she said it sounded like music.
It is one the greatest honours of my life that I called Onyeka Onwenu aunty, and she saw me as one of hers. It was a great honour to be in her presence, to see her smile, to see her dance, to have her lean on me literally and figuratively, to send and receive gifts from her, to hear her sing, to dine with her, to gaze at her, to watch her live.
To watch her glide through the world, luminous as she was despite Nigeria’s many attempts to kill her light.
I loved her. I love her. I was obsessed with her.
Besotted.
I could never stop loving her”.
