This year marks the 15th year that ace gospel group, Midnight Crew, was formed. In a celebratory mood, the group takes a trip down memory lane and remembers how they almost broke up about four years after it was formed unknown to them that God had a lot in stock for them.
The spokesperson for the group, Mike Abdul, shared the story of how the group was almost disbanded.
He said, “Sometime in 2005, we felt that we had spent four years together and things were looking tight and difficult for us. We decided that we should do something about it by letting everybody go. We called a meeting which was meant to disband the group but as God would have it, we found ourselves praying and after the prayer session, we did not discuss about disbanding the group but making it better. God helped us. Imagine if we had disbanded Midnight Crew in 2005, we did not know that we were going to receive a song that would make the whole nation proud in 2008. Igwe was released seven years after we formed Midnight Crew.”
He gave reasons why most music groups break up in Nigeria and also shared some secrets behind the togetherness of the group.
“I think it is not just in Nigeria that groups break up, it also happens in the US. I think what has worked for us is that we respect individuality. After ten years as a group we had a meeting and we told ourselves that we can all do individual works and still be in the group. I think the problem that has occurred over the years that has not been addressed when it comes to groups is that we fail to understand that every member of the group is an individual who carries a dream of his own. I think groups should accept and allow individual platforms to thrive. I think that would work because it has worked for us. I think it has been God because it is not easy to keep people together; even brothers fight and make up. In fact, I know of some brothers who did not talk to each other till one of them died over a little misunderstanding. We have heard of divorce cases between a man and a woman after about five children but all of a sudden, they say they cannot stay together again. It is not easy keeping together but it has to do with putting a system in place that would understand the individuality of every member,” he said.
Source: PUNCH
