US-based music duo, Esquare, has narrated their own side of the violent incident involving Nigerian singer, Habeeb Okikiola, a.k.a Portable.
LEADERSHIP reports that Portable, now recuperating in hospital, had stated via a series of Instagram posts that he was assaulted by some persons following his failure to perform at a paid show.
The controversial singer, who was engaged by Esquare for an event, stated that several individuals attacked him, leading to severe injuries, including a broken leg.
Portable disclosed that he had initially been contracted for an event in December of the preceding year by the two black Americans, noting that expenses increased with the onset of the New Year.
He detailed how he had conveyed the exact costs to them, even producing a video to clarify the matter. However, he stated that they requested a refund, expressing dissatisfaction with his performance.
The singer mentioned that he received N2.5m for the production of a song and music video. However, logistical challenges hindered his participation due to his remote location.
But, the duo has dismissed the rumours suggesting that they assaulted Portable in his residence, clarifying that the incident occurred at a music video set.
On the scheduled day of the shoot in Ajah, Lekki, Portable failed to appear, citing the distance as the primary reason.
Subsequently, the organizers agreed to compensate him with an additional N1m. However, tensions escalated when they subsequently demanded a refund of the extra N1 million, leading to an unpleasant situation.
Esquare said, “I am Dr Fortunate and Prince, and we are Esquare. There is a viral video going on where my brother and I happened to be on those videos. I just want to address the public misconception because a lot of false information was given out.
“Sometime last year, in May, our manager in the United States contacted Portable’s manager, and they reached an agreement on the collaboration. We agreed on N2.5 million. When we paid the N1.5 million, the beat was sent to Portable’s manager, and he did his version and brought it back to us, and we made some changes, and everything came out perfect.
“We agreed that the music video would be done on September 23rd. My brother and I made the necessary arrangements on how to fly down to Nigeria to do the music video, and we saw on his manager’s Instagram handle that he would be on tour during that time.
“We decided to postpone it to the festive period in December, which Portable’s manager agreed to. Then we had a change of mind and wanted to do the video shoot in Houston, Texas, where we are based, since he was on tour in the US, but Portable’s manager declined.
“A date was later fixed for September 21st. He failed to show up on time to the music video shoot, and when we called our manager to inform his manager of the appointment, our manager realized that Portable’s manager had sent a message cancelling the shoot as it was too far from Portable’s location which is Sango, Ogun State.
“Through a friend, we were able to reach Portable directly. At first, he denied us and asked for proof, which we sent to him, and he demanded an extra N1 million, claiming that his manager had collected N500,000 from the N1 million they sent to him.
“We gave him the money and even had to drive from Ajah, Lekki to Ogun State to pick him up and when we got to the location, he started exhibiting erratic behaviour and demanded we make it snappy since he has other engagements. When we tried talking things with him after the shoot about the extra money we paid him, he flared up and said he was a member of a cult group and would call Area boys to cancel the event and kill us.”
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