A couple of years ago Thompson Idemudia embarked on the perilous land journey to Libya. Like many Nigerian youths he was dreaming of life in Europe, and saw Libya as a dangerous but necessary route to his final destination.

Braving the drought and the scorching sun of the desert, and other vagaries associated with cross-border land travels, Thompson had his heart fixed firmly on arriving in mainland Europe. He believed he could work there to finance his dream of becoming a music star.

Idemudia’s Libya voyage didn’t however go as planned. After a couple of years toiling in the North African country, he took a brave decision to return to Nigeria to pursue his dreams. Today he goes by the artiste name PGM. With an R‘n’B album already receiving positive reviews from DJs of renowned radio stations and listeners across the country, PGM’s music career is ascending.

The young artiste sat down with Transport & Business Express in Benin City in an exclusive chat to discuss his burgeoning music career and his tough upward climb. “Life was tough in Libya. There are not many decent jobs for Nigerian youths over there. It was one hell of a period trying to cope with the difficulties, so I decided it was better to come and struggle here in Nigeria than getting stuck in a place where the future looked far from bright,” he disclosed.

PGM has always been passionate about music. With experiences gigging in Lagos and Benin City prior to his sojourn, he felt constrained in Libya.

“There was no way my music was going to thrive staying in Libya, and knowing that I was not looking to change career goals it was a no-win situation staying on in Libya,” he said.

The decision to come back home is one that a lot of Nigerian youths disillusioned with life in Libya refuse to take. For many, such a choice would mean accepting failure and being ready to live with the stigma of a deportee. But, according to PGM, “It is much wiser to face reality positively and return home quickly to rebuild one’s life when the stay overseas is bearing no fruit.”

On his return from Libya PGM settled down to work on his music talent culminating in the album “Chop Knuckle”. Songs off the album are being aired currently on radio stations in Benin and many are beginning to warm up to his name.

At the moment PGM has a contract with a major player in Alaba market, Exctacy International, a music marketing company. He believes that would aid the wider distribution of his songs. “I want to capture the Nigerian music scene. I believe with an aggressive marketing drive from Alaba I can do just that,” he told Transport & Business Express.

His music style bears some resemblance to that of the more popular African China of the “Crisis” fame. They share identities in terms of voice quality as well as lyrics that connect with the down-trodden. In one of his most moving tracks, “Igho”, PGM hammers into the listener the need for hard work and the necessity of money. He also uses the song to tell his story a little, crooning: ‘…inside Lagos city na there me for dey hustle. Na inside Libya city na there me for dey hustle’.

He also has other tracks that deal with messages of love and relationship matters. This versatile artiste could well be the next big thing of Nigerian music, and could be a pointer for many finding it hard to cope with coming back home from abroad to rebuild their life.

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