You cannot demand loyalty from someone whose services you have never subscribed to.
In life, relationships often create loyalty. But politics operates differently, particularly when it intersects with the creative industry. For creative professionals, the reality is simple: you can do your work for anyone who engages your services, provided the terms are clear and the service is duly paid for.
No politician should therefore expect automatic loyalty, exclusivity or political allegiance from a creative professional simply because that person has once attended their event, interacted with their team or produced content around them.
Nigeria has a long history of politicians engaging musicians, actors, media practitioners and other creatives during political campaigns. The relationship between entertainment and politics has become increasingly visible, with music, celebrity endorsements, campaign songs and concerts playing significant roles in political communication.
But there is an important distinction between professional engagement and political allegiance.
Take Fuji musician Taye Currency as an example. He has openly discussed his political affiliation and loyalty to Governor Seyi Makinde, explaining that he followed Makinde from the SDP to the PDP and subsequently to the APM. He has also acknowledged his son’s political involvement. That is a different situation because he has publicly established a political relationship and personal commitment.
That kind of loyalty is understandable because it is based on an established political association, not merely on a transaction.
My own experience illustrates the other side of the argument.
At a point, I had an understanding with some friends who were media practitioners working with Senator Sharafadeen Alli. They indicated that they wanted to bring me on board their team.
Once that understanding began, I started paying attention to Senator Alli's activities and creating stories around him. I followed his engagements and published several positive and palatable stories about him on my blog, partly because of my friends who were working with his team.
Then came an engagement post that I published specifically to generate feedback. The original story remains on my blog and, importantly, it was actually positive.
However, according to what my friends told me, handlers of Senator Alli contacted them and questioned the situation: “But your friend said he is working for us.”
They reportedly referred to the engagement post and concluded that I was a mole working for another political party.
That left me wondering: Had I been formally commissioned as their blogger? Was there a contract? Had they subscribed to my services? Were they paying me as their media consultant?
If none of those things existed, on what basis could my professional activities be interpreted as political betrayal?
The result was that I was effectively removed from their plans. I was no longer wanted around their activities. At one event that brought together members of the creative industry, where Senator Alli was invited alongside other political leaders, I was avoided despite my longstanding involvement and leadership within the creative community.
This is precisely where politicians need to understand the difference between support, patronage and ownership.
A creative professional is not automatically owned by the last politician whose event they attended.
The same principle became evident around the BoyeNation concert. Some of the creatives and musicians who had been invited to the Young, Bold, Creative programme also performed at the BoyeNation concert, which was associated with a rival political platform.
Names such as Wale Waves, Jayru, Sade Blaq, Real Young and several live musicians were among those involved.
The question I asked myself was simple: If politicians interpret every performance as political loyalty, would another party not conclude that all those artistes were card-carrying members of the party hosting the concert?
Obviously, that would be an unreasonable conclusion.
Indeed, recent political events in Oyo State demonstrate how closely politics and entertainment now intersect. A September 2026 political convergence and concert organised in solidarity with the APM featured several Fuji artistes and other performers. APM had also formally adopted Bimbo Adekanmbi as its 2027 governorship candidate in May 2026.
Yet a musician performing at a political event does not, by itself, establish that the musician has permanently transferred political allegiance.
Creative professionals have bills to pay, teams to maintain, businesses to run and careers to build.
If you want loyalty, demonstrate commitment. If you want exclusivity, subscribe to the service. If you want political allegiance, build a genuine relationship.
Do not expect a creative professional to reject legitimate opportunities merely because you once invited them to your programme.
Creatives should be allowed to work across political boundaries unless they have voluntarily declared themselves partisan or entered into a formal exclusive arrangement.
The creative industry should not become a political battlefield where every gig, performance, article, photograph or appearance is interpreted as a declaration of allegiance.
Show interest not merely by making promises. Show it by acting.
Because ultimately, you don't ascribe loyalty to a service you have never subscribed to.
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