Burna Boy, the Grammy-winning Nigerian singer, has been praised at the Canadian senate for the “huge impact” he has made in the country’s entertainment space.

Speaking at a recent sitting, Marcel Lebleu, director general of the west and central Africa bureau in Canada, lauded Burna Boy for selling out the Bell Centre twice when he came to perform in Montreal.

The Bell Centre is a multi-purpose arena in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. For concerts, it can hold almost 35,000 people.

Lebleu also applauded the growth and global expansion of the Nigerian entertainment industry.

In which foreign-affairs committee chair @SenBoehm reveals himself to be a Burna Boy fan: pic.twitter.com/aosvhAexBS

— Dylan Robertson (@withfilesfrom) April 18, 2024

“I don’t know if you know Burna Boy. He is an Afrobeats singer. He was in Montreal three weeks ago, sold out The Bell Centre twice. That’s about 35,000 people,” he said.

“He was also in Toronto. We don’t think about the culture industry a lot but this is an important industry. For example, Nollywood.”

Being tall, I continue to enjoy listening to @burnaboy “Twice as Tall” (2020) on my playlist.

— Peter M Boehm (@SenBoehm) April 18, 2024

On his part, Peter Boehm, the senate committee chairman, said he is also a fan of Burna Boy.

“I was listening to Burna Boy the other night,” he added.

When asked on X about his favourite songs by Burna Boy, Boehm said he enjoys the singer’s 2020 album ‘Twice as Tall’.

“Being tall, I continue to enjoy listening to @burnaboy ‘Twice as Tall’ (2020) on my playlist,” he said.

The praises for Burna Boy come a few weeks after his last performance at the Bell Centre.

Zack Orji, the ace Nigerian actor, has shared an update on his health — after undergoing successful brain surgeries.

The 64-year-old Gabon-born film star slumped on December 29 and was admitted to the intensive care unit of the national hospital in Abuja.

In January, Hannatu Musawa, the culture minister, revealed the actor underwent brain surgery.

Orji also underwent another successful brain surgery and required further evaluation abroad.

Shortly after his second surgery, rumours circulated on social media that the actor had passed away.

The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), however, dismissed the speculations while Chiwetalu Agu, the ace actor, also hurled curses at rumour-peddlers.

In a recent interview with Channels TV, Orji, who is presently in the United Kingdom for post-surgery assessment, spoke about his recovery, adding that “I feel alright. My memories were back”.

He also addressed rumours of his death, saying he received calls from several concerned colleagues and friends who wanted to confirm if it was true.

Orji slammed the people who spread the “fake stories” while describing the rumours as a “lie from the pit of hell”.

“I do not know who originated that lie. I call it a lie from the pit of hell that, not myself, they had passed away,” he said.

“I saw it and I started receiving all kinds of calls, even calls from people I had not heard from for years, most of them were just concerned. They wanted to find out if it was true and all of that.

“I can only say that sometimes social media has made people to be so reckless and callous to the point of spreading fake news just to grow their page. I believe that is what that person did.

“And it happened at a time when we lost some of our colleagues when somebody started spreading this lie about me. Thank God that our lives are not with men. Our lives are with God. It is God that is the keeper and strength of our lives.

“I will just let it go because I have more important things to do with my time.”

Orji said due to the magnitude of the surgery, “it took quite a while to recover” and that he could not recognise the people who came to greet him on his sick bed.

The film star said his wife became sure he had recuperated when he asked about the date they were at the hospital.

“Immediately before the surgery, I could not recognise people. The people who came to the hospital to greet me, even though they came and we were talking, I could not remember them. It was my wife who told me that this person came, this person came. But immediately after the surgery, when they brought me out, the question I asked what day are we today? My wife said ‘New Year’s day’ and I started wishing everybody a happy New Year. She said that was when she knew that I was back,” he added.

“But because I needed some time to recover because there were stitches done all around here (head), bandages and stuff like that. So it took quite a while to recover. But I was feeling alright. My memories were back.”

Davido, the Nigerian singer, has partnered with UnitedMasters, a US distribution company, to launch Nine+ Records, a new label.

In an interview with Billboard, Davido said he aims to expand the label beyond Afrobeats to reach global audiences.

He also cited his passion for nurturing emerging talent and addressing the challenges of young artistes in the music industry as motivations for the partnership.

“Oh yeah, everything. R&B, trap, etc. Obviously, I am going to start in Africa, but I can see us going all the way,” he said.

“There is one thing that I will always love, which is nurturing new talent…Sometimes, you do not have anybody to advise you on how to move and get good paperwork done.

“I just felt like that was one thing Steve Stoute represents, and that is helping the artistes and making sure they know the best option when it comes to business.”

Although Nine+ Records has not yet unveiled any artistes, Steve Stoute, chief executive of UnitedMasters, disclosed that his inspiration for the label emerged during the 2023 UnitedMasters SelectCon, where he and Davido forged a connection.

The music executive also emphasised his commitment to empowering Davido and the label’s future endeavors.

“We are here to bring that structure and funding so he can do what he has to do,” he said.

“If I can get him in the room with the producers and the artistes, and I can get it out the room, that is my job. To get in the room and to get out.”