Some of the children of the legendary juju musician, and songwriter, Sunday Adeniyi Adegeye, popularly known as King Sunny Ade (KSA), are presently quarrelling over his well-being and whereabouts.
Damilola Adeniyi, a daughter of the master guitarist and singer, took to social media to accuse her step-brother, Dayo, of holding their father hostage, and also booking him for events without honouring the engagements.
In a series of social media posts, she also called for her brother, who she referred to as his manager, to be apprehended for “stealing” from KSA.
“Dad told my brother that he wants to go home. Where is he? Where are his phones? He has not been online or picking his calls. Where is he?,” one of the posts reads.
Another one reads: “I want Dayo (manager) apprehended. I want him to provide all the money they have been stealing from him. He has a UK visa, thinking he can run.”
But, Dayo was reported to have exclusively told Punch in a chat that their father was hale and hearty.
He maintained that he was not the father’s “official manager” but was only helping out his dad in that regard.
According to Punch, Dayo said: “The allegation is false. On Saturday (April 26, 2025), my dad performed at the 60th birthday party of a fan. The event took place at 16 Musa Yar’Adua Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. He still had rehearsals with members of his band last week. He will perform in Akure (Ondo State capital) on May 1.
“She (Damilola) is not in the right frame of mind for her to have made those posts. On Easter Sunday, she called me and said she wanted to speak with dad, because she doesn’t live in Nigeria. I gave the phone to my dad, and they spoke for about 30 minutes. I then told her that if she wanted to see him, she could come to Nigeria.
“The moment she started making nasty comments about dad, she crossed the line. You cannot speak ill of my father and expect me to still reckon with you, no matter who you are. Even my mother wouldn’t do that. Why would you (Damilola) go on social media and call daddy names?
“Kindly ignore all she has said. KSA will release a statement on social media within 24 hours. And if you are free, you can join him in Akure for his performance on May 1. He will be glad to have an interaction with you, and answer questions on what you have heard on social media about him.
“I am not an official manager. I just assist my father. I have my businesses. As I explained to her (Damilola), I don’t have any employment letter, and I am not on the payroll.
“I am just helping my dad, like the Scripture commands. This arrangement was not even planned but was necessitated by some developments. He (KSA) asked me to help him handle certain things, pending the time he gets someone in that position. And, he feels extremely comfortable with what I have been doing, and he said I should continue doing it.
“This is like paying him back for all the things he has done for me. One of the things he loves the most is going on stage to perform, and that is what he has been doing for the past 59 years. We cannot just ask him to stop doing that.”