Emmanuel Ntia, the 98-year-old Akwa Ibom State born music artiste and the composer of Ette Ntia Anam Esie Ama, a highlife piece meaning “Ette Ntia has completed his work”, was not expected to last long as soon as the track was released.
His children, friends and even admirers thought, though wrongly, that the exit of Ette Ntia on this planet was near. For more than five years the song was trending and the composer and performer of the popular boogie was still alive.
The lyricist, undoubtedly, understood the mortality of man. He knew no matter how long a man lives, one day he has a debt to pay to his creator- returning to his maker.
When August 21, 2018 berthed, Ette Ntia joined the Angelic beings to sing praises to God in the eternal home. The song, therefore, shows man’s vulnerability as a mere tenant on earth.
On Friday, January 18, the song was again rendered. “Ette Ntia has completed his earthly assignments, glory be to God,’’ it readily dawned on the children and relations even fellow musicians that their father, uncle and colleague was a relic of earth-to-earth rites.
The highlife masterpiece by Ette Ntia adorned the cover page of the biography of the departed highlife maestro.
Born in Ikot Etok Udo, Otoro clan of Abak local government area, Ntia rocked the highlife music scene for many decades, courted many fans and packed home many international and national awards.
Ntia who was a contemporary to venerable highlife geniuses, East of the Niger- the late E.E. Akpan, Etubom Rex William, the late Rex Lawson and the late Inyang Nta Henshaw- was the leader of Ntia Brass Band. As a leader, he released eight pieces.
As a leader of Orchestra, he dropped 10 pieces together with 16 long playing albums including 2009 release and remix.
He added 10 singles to his rich musical library. Among other tracks, koloshop-fish language, truns out to be a hit track that fetched him various awards because of its unique rendition and percussion.
He served as Chairman of Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Cross River from 1982-1988 and Akwa Ibom State from 1988-1998.
Ette Ntia as he was fondly called won Third position in Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC) in 1977, Gold Gong during National Festival of Arts (NAFEST) IN 1988; ECOWAS Concert/Black Entertainment Award in 1994.
He also got an award of excellence COSON (Copyright Society of Nigeria) in 2005.
At the funeral service held at Government Technical College, Abak, Dr. Sylvanus Ukafia, the state chairman of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Akwa Ibom branch advised the living to live Christ-like life so that they could make Heaven a permanent home.
Tony Okoroji, the Chairman of the Copyright Society of Nigeria extolled the good virtues of Ette Ntia and called on the state government to immortalise the deceased.
The well-attended funeral service showed that the departed impacted many lives through the genres of his musical career. He left for eternal home in style.
