Here is the highly anticipated interview with the successful Femi Ogundipe. After talking to Femi, I had to interview him. His story is the meaning of success that has to be told.
by Kadrolsha Ona Carole
Q 1. You have so much going on, not sure where to begin. So, let’s go back to the beginning. Tell us in brief about your childhood and growing up in Nigeria.
A. I come from an upper middle-class family in Nigeria and enjoyed a wonderful African childhood. Even though my parents were not extremely rich I had a very rich upbringing, by the time I was 13 years old I had travelled to multiple countries and had been exposed to multiple cultures. I went to school in the United Kingdom for secondary and university, and returned home in 2006 after getting a degree in Business administration ready to get stuck in. The pressure to succeed was a major driving force as i come from two very old and successful families, the pressure to succeed has always been immense. My grandfathers were both very influential, one a chief justice, and the other a general and defacto military president, vice president and ambassador to the UK. My father one of the most successful and respected lawyers in Nigeria and my mum a successful interior designer in her own right.
Q 2. You have a string of successful businesses. Tell us about a few?
A. I realized early that i was going to be entrepreneur, after a one-day stint at a Nigerian tech company. I started my first company in 2006. I realized early that I was going to be entrepreneur, after a one-day stint at a Nigerian tech company. I started my first company in 2006. It was a marketing company called Dojoes management. I was the CEO of my own company, and we found success pretty much immediately. Once I had started to make some money, I decided to start my own record label, a rap label called Show Dem Camp (SDC) with four of my friends. it was difficult to break SDC in an afrobeat dominated industry, but we persevered and eventually we made our way through, and developed a very cult like fan base who were heavily invested in our lives. It was during this period that I would get my most valuable business lessons. At the time there were hardly any digital platforms and Nigeria’s music industry was run by bootleggers and pirates. in a bid to get the music out there I decided to create our own platforms. I became a bootlegger myself and started selling CD’S in the home of nigermsn piracy, Alaba international market, and started Industry nite, a networking company that hosted live events featuring established and upcoming artists. Eventually I closed up Dojoes management, started a new company OGZ limited and moved away from the entertainment industry completely. With my new company OGZ limited, a transaction advisory company in Nigeria I began to work on international transactions, serving as a mediator between international companies and African governments or companies. Over the years the company grew to become a holding company with interests in many other companies that I have created in response to trends and evolving technology. OGZ limited owns an esports team and annual competition called raver International, and gaming application called cashee app which is a mobile application for a gambling game similar to blackjack.
Q 3. Success in any business is hard to come by. What is your secret to success?
A. Success is very hard to come by, even though I enjoyed success early in my career i learned valuable lessons from the business that didn’t go my way and applied them to my new business. To answer your question, the truth is that if you believe, you can achieve but I don’t think that it explained enough. I really believed in myself and what I was doing even after being disappointed by previous companies and relationships I refused to fall when I was down and kept going. so, I think when I talk about visualization, I need to reinforce the fact that you have to truly believe in yourself without any doubts, and have a dogged perseverance through the lows, and the highs as well. It’s easy to get carried away and have your vision distorted by ego.
Q 4. I am the founder of the New England Music Hall of Fame. I love music. You are a co-founder of a record label. I want to know more about Dem Camp.
A. I am actually the original founder of show dem camp. Also, along with my farther its only investors for the first almost 7 years, show dem camp is by far my favorite company because it taught me a lot about business. It was my first experience dealing with a lot of consequences of not setting up your business properly. I had to deal with all sorts from embezzling managers to misappropriation of funds. It was a learning experience, and I developed my passion for staying out on the periphery of the limelight and never getting too involved with fame. Now I prefer to operate from just outside the spotlight and prefer for my companies to get lime.
Q 5. I read you have a gaming App. That is exciting news. What does your gaming App. Entail?
A. I mentioned it early Cashee app is a real time peer to peer gambling game with its routes in Nigerian subculture. a famous Nigerian Fuji artist made a song about it. It’s very similar to blackjack, but it’s played a different way. It’s much faster than blackjack and more addictive. we are looking for your launch next summer and the American version is in the final stages of development ready for the international release.
Q 6. Let’s talk Dark Comedy and your movie “Nigeria Skull Obey”. Without giving out too much information please give us a few scenes to tease us with.
A. Nigeria skull obey is a movie written by Francois le couer a talented writer and director that i have had the pleasure of discovering and working with. Nigeria skull obey is a dark comedy that highlights some of the goings on in Nigeria’s capital, we are partnering with 360 films to shoot a fast-paced Hollywood style action comedy with American production but shot in Nigeria. With the emergence of Nigerian music as one of the more popular genres of music, we think it’s time that we told the world some of our stories but in our own words. Nigeria skull obey will showcase Nigeria in a very different light, far from the narratives that we are used to. it will show Nigeria in all of her glory and show case some of the sights and scenes of the African Giant. It features a kidnap scene, after which it’s all action from start to finish. This is the first film that I will be executive producing, and OGZ limited and Francois le couer have multiple films coming.
Q 7. You have words of encouragement for the young trying to break into the entertainment industry?
A. As a matter of fact, I do. Don’t give up, believe in yourself, and write everything down, contracts, and business plans. if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
