Akeem Shodehinde
When it come to clubbing business there is no gain saying because, Lagos big boy,Akeem Shodehinde popularly called General is the number one in the business. The stylish dude who own popular night club in Lagos, Movida nite club on Idowu Taylor Street, Victoria Island,Lagos that always been the leading club in Lagos with top CEO’s, cooperate body executives,socialites,celebrities and other creme de la creme in the social scene who catches fun in the club.
Recently,we got information about the club been shut down and we put a call through to the dark complexion dude who granted CIVILIANNEWS an interview on the shutting down story of the club, his baby mama and the true story about him given his life to christ. Enjoy.
We heard you are closing down the club,Movida?
Yea,the club was shut down last week to enable me attend to my health and take care of my family. Am closing the club for health reason,to re brand/restructure and give my life to christ.
There is an insulation that you are closing down for debt reason?
No, owning debt has always been part of businesses any where in the whole world,people owe you or you owe people but the good aspect of it is to accept the fact that you have a debt is to show and accept with a reason and believe to pay back the money you borrow or owe but let the people know its just because of the circumstances of life/situation and the way it came after you. I also want to thank my very good friends and brother that really stood by me, I have so much love for them and I pray long life for them and thank them for all the good things they have done for me and I promise I will never disappoint them in Jesus name.
Don’t you think you’ll be disappointing those who you mentioned as you want to pull out of the business?
Really, its not about what people think, for now is what I feel. Actually for now I don’t care about what people think whether I pull out or not its about my health, my life comes first without no health, you don’t have a businesses not because I want to try and please anybody then I should go and kill myself they are sleeping in the house and am standing under the heat and shouting so nobody can tell me about what to do. First of all God comes first then my life follows and tomorrow if God says I should not do night club again so shall it be in Jesus (Amen). I will go back to bible school and say the lord prayers, nobody in this world is bigger than God, I thank him for keeping me alive I don’t care about money or riches, money is something that will come and go but the power of God is bigger than everything, I have been doing a night club business for eighteen to twenty year and I have not heard a gunshot, I have not been robbed. Someone up there likes me very much, He that is in me is greater than he that is in the world, so I thank Him for his mercy, God first before any other persons.
Looking at it you are planning to come back after the election, are you planning to come out with new ideas come next year?.
The most interesting part of night club business is the surprises, its always sweet when you give them something they didn’t expect or believe. For now I can say something then after God can say no, so what I will say is, they just should expect the unexpected. First of all, the first thing I need God to do for me is to give me long life, so that I can build a church and tell him thank you, no matter how small the church may be I will tell him thank you for keeping me alive for the past two to three years of this unfaithful moment of my life. My God is the most important thing, I have realized a lot of thing after the sickness came to me that I need to be closer to God and anybody out there that loves life need to be closer to God after that one, if God say I will live till after election then they should expect the unexpected. God has a reason for my living and I shall prove it out in Jesus name and if it doesn’t happen I will go to the Bible school and give my life to Christ and am happy whatever that comes its God power and I thank God for his mercy even a man that has no Kobo has family, a man that pushes truck has family, If I even sell pure water, I thank God. I will not impress anybody, I will not be a robber or a criminal to impress the whole world, all my staff are wonderful, they have all tried in supporting me, my landlord, my friend, Chief Dimo Bruce , Prince Segun Aremu Oniru, my brother Dele Sodeinde, my cousin Toyin they are been supportive to me for the past ten years and my family that prayed for me during my sickness I said thank you all and God bless you all.
I don’t want to impress anybody I just want to thank almighty God. Rushing into my life causes alot of problem the ability to be successful take a longer time, there is difference between love and hate, people think making money is the first thing in life, the patience dog eat the fattest bone. I have gone down three times and have come back three times, God that kept my life has a reason I will not because of people then I kill myself. I open Movida just to prove a point that I didn’t close it down because am broke or because they chased me out, I close it down because its affecting my health and I don’t have brothers who can manage it because they are professionals in their own choosing career. Actually, after two or three years of running a night club one is suppose to re brand or restructure and I have been running mine for almost five years and more, I thank my customers and everybody who believed in me that I will come back and am back but I will take time to relax take care of my health for now then after the election next year I will come back and re-open again but for now am resting because of my health, nobody knows tomorrow if God says am coming back so shall it be, but I need to take a medical check-up and balance my health because I only have one daughter and I want her to see me on her wedding day and say daddy am happy for you. I want to thank my landlord also who has been there for me and everyone who I didn’t remember or time will not permit me to mention their names for their love and support, am coming back next year after the election because we don’t know what the country will be like, for now am going on free holiday leave to relax and I thank everyone who has been there for me by praying for me during my sick time I really appreciate everyone of you, I pray to God that the wedding luck should come before next year ending, and anyone I find I will take my time and pray to God to give to me the right person as a wife and if God says it will be my baby mama also so shall it be in Jesus name.
After the doctor’s warning, why did you chose to still smoke and drink?
That is an illumination, I pretend I do something extra ordinary to the whole world but I don’t do it. Meanwhile, in my house or anywhere I don’t drink but when I get to club by 12:30am I just take pure champagnes and many people now think I drink because if I don’t do that it will affect the business. When I put water or coke in my front and costumers come and see me drink it,they will also go for such because they may believe that is what they sell here and I’ve seen a club shut down base this.
But to be honest the smoking is an addiction,I can’t lie to God because if I lie am just deceiving myself not anybody. But I have been praying to God to stop which I believe I will stop soon. And the habit of drinking and smoking is the more reason I need to shut the club down because its really affecting my only one working kidney which is not good for my health at all. Am shutting down the club because of my health and when am fully ok, I will re-open the club again and I don’t want people to judge me because they see me drink and smoke in the club even when you see me playing with ladies in the club,it is just the nature of my job not my sex or personal life style because I don’t do it at home or anywhere. I’ve given my life to Christ for all he has done for me, for He is the greatest.
At this period that you want to relax and shut down the club,how do pay your bills?
No business man can put his two eggs in one basket. There are some little things one can feed on not just like the mega one. I still have what I can live on and mind you my expenses will not be like before but I will still live well and pay my bills. I have things that can still keep me alive. If I remember that there are people who sells Akara and Tuwo to survive I believe I will survive because I can go and beg for shoes or clothes, am not too greedy neither am I desperate and If God says there is live, he will send the deliverance to me, God’s time is the best. Starvation is never my problem. You know what, people has went through a lot in the bible like Lazarus and Abraham, and they shared testimony so who am I. First of all, let me take care of my life and after my life I will think of what to do.
People see you as the first in the clubbing business who has been fulfil, how true is this?
I used to see myself as leading in the business because I never lost any battle in the business and I always make things happen in the business but after my sickness within one year and Seven months, things have really change and made me realize I have a lot of work to do. One thing I don’t do is looking or taking focus to look other people’s business because when you do that you have taking one percent of your business to other person which make his/her own 101percent while your own is left with 99percent. Am closing down to replan and restruction because what I love is challenging when some think is the best and I will come out to show or tell them am more stronger or better. I don’t beef or backbite any club because opening a club business in this country is no joke and I respect people in that business and its not easy dragging people down to come and spend money there. I pray that everybody who invest in business should always get profit. Am going to come back to be the best and the number one as usual when God give me life, there is no one who is inevitable and that is why they call some people general and some retired general. You do a business and it will get a stage you have to surrender for the young ones to grow, my age time is coming and I have to rest and train some new young ones but before then am going to prove my last point that I have reason for leaving when I reopen next year.
You sound more religions, are you really looking forward to being born again?
Our God is an awesome God, in 2009 before opening Movida when I was running Insomnia with Lolu and Joseph Yobo I made a promise to God that I will never gamble again when and if I did, He should strike me dead or punish me. God gave me 77Million Naira to open Movida and I made so much money there and I never pay tithe to God but I was giving money to everybody around me like beggars, girlfriends just mention few but God that gave me life, I didn’t give him one Naira. And today I have went through a lot which I and people believe am going to die and He still kept me alive with one kidney which means He still love me after making covenant with him not to go back to gambling and I still went back.
But I’ve now realized that gambling means life itself is a gamble,whatever you do in life is a gamble, so I’ll never make any covenant never to gamble in life but I will gamble anything in life but never gamble to kill or wreck myself. I will build a church for almighty God before the age of 50, give it to somebody and thank God for keeping me alive.
Also,if the club business not really in me anymore I will go to bible school and praise the lord, I have seen what God has done in my life in different ways. I have a kidney problem and diabetics but am still eating Gari,Rice and so on and am still living. I don’t know what he keeps me for, if Lord says am going to serve him let it be done,I will do anything to praise his name because am very a prayerful man who had seen that God has the ultimate power to live. No matter how powerful or your position in the society, I know God is the most powerful and he will always be with me and my family always in Jesus name
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