Legendary singer and actress Onyeka Onwenu reportedly collapsed on Tuesday after performing at a birthday party in Lagos and passed away. She died at 72.
The singer was later confirmed dead at a hospital in Victoria Island. However, her family is yet to confirm the news.
“It is very sad. Onyeka Onwenu just performed at the birthday of Mrs. Stella Okoli today, and after performing, she slumped.
“She was taken to Reddington Hospital and she couldn’t make it,” TheNiche quoted a witness who was at the party as saying.
Onwenu was reputed to be a song writer, singer, performer, broadcaster, politicians and others.
Onwenu was reputed to be a song writer, singer, performer, broadcaster, politicians and others.
Apart from a successful career in music, she was appointed Chairperson of the Imo State Council of Arts and Culture.
How Onyeka Onwenu wanted to be buried
In a reflection shared three years ago, veteran Nigerian singer and actress Onyeka Onwenu revealed her wishes for how she would like to be remembered and buried.
The iconic artiste, known for her powerful voice and activism, was said to have died on Tuesday night at the Reddington Hospital in Lagos after slumping at the birthday party of Mrs Stella Okoli.
“Do it quickly, quietly and privately,” Onwenu wrote in an opinion piece on Premium Times in 2021, emphasising that her burial should be devoid of unnecessary fanfare.
She urged her loved ones to “mourn, yes but not excessively,” and to instead focus on celebrating her life with prayers and light-hearted moments.
“Celebrate me with prayers, lunch or dinner afterwards. Share some jokes about me and laugh.
“Make merriment and then go about your business. If my friends want to celebrate me, they should do so while I am alive, so that I can enjoy it with them, not when I am gone and have no idea about this. That is me Onyeka Onwenu,” she said.
