Waiting For “Beware Of Delilahs” As The Next Title Song -By Isaac Asabor

Since singers and musicians draw inspiration for their lyrics from things that happen around them, then one would not be surprised when an album with the title song, “Beware Of Delilahs As The Next Title Song” would be released into the market. For the sake of clarity, “Title song is defined by lexicographers as “A song that shares its name with the album on which it features; the song from which an album takes its name.

Given the fact that music has long been an effective way to communicate to the masses, and lyrics have played a massive role in sending messages to the people, the visualized album, ‘Beware Of Delilah As The Next Title Song’ would unarguably raise the awareness that there is an increasing death toll of men that literarily abandoned their wives at home and fell head over heels for their side-chicks.

There is no denying the fact that any Casanova that would decide to relax in his sitting room, either alone or with members of his family would in the course of listening to the edifying lyrics become sober and penitent. Aptly put, it will make him to turn over a new leaf. The foregoing cannot be farfetched as studies have explored possible relationships between music and positive social behaviors. In particular, research suggests that three aspects of music, its emotional resonance, its lyrical content, and its unique way of synchronizing groups of people, may have the power to invoke good deeds.

I must confess that I was compelled to express this view after reading a news story published in the online edition of the Source magazine of August 5, 2021 titled, “Two Months After, Another “Chindima” Strikes in Uyo.

To copiously quote the magazine, the news story reads, “Two months after a 21 year old University of Lagos undergraduate, Chidinma, was arrested for stabbing to death, her 49 year old Super TV boss, Usifo Ataga, and thereafter stole his ATM card and made withdrawals from his account, a similar gruesome incident has taken place in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state capital.

“A young lady, identified only as Laurretta, from Ogoja Local Government Area of Cross River State was, Thursday arrested by the state police command for, allegedly, stabbing to death her boyfriend, identified as Chukwuemeka in Uyo.
“The suspect was said to have escaped with the deceased’s N7m, a Mercedes Benz 4Matic and the car papers after killing him.

“Said a Police source: “Chukwuemeka was found in a pool of blood inside his bedroom after all efforts made by his friends for him to come and clear his consignments proved abortive
“She visited the deceased in his Osongoma residence, butchered him to death and made away with seven million Naira, his brand new Mercedes Benz 4matic, and the original documents.

“However, using the vehicle tracker, she was traced to a nearby hotel. Currently, she is singing like a parrot at Ewet Housing Police Station, Uyo” “The Magazine gathered that the victim who was the only son of his parents had promised marriage to Laureta said to be the daughter of a serving police officer. The story ended thus: “More Details, shortly”.

Without doubt, the headline of the story as crafted by the Source magazine is aptly sensational when seen from the fact that the atrocity prompted the news is reminiscence of that of Chidinma who was arrested for stabbing to death, her 49 year old Super TV boss, Usifo Ataga.

This view wouldn’t have been necessary but for the fact that the sad stories of men being killed by their lovers are fast recurring on media space so much that one may not be wrong to conclude that we are in the days of Delilahs.

For the sake of clarity, Delilah, described in this context from the perspective of Judges Chapter 16 in the Old Testament, was the central figure of Samson’s last love story. She was a Philistine who was bribed by her kinsmen to entrap Samson, coaxed him into revealing that the secret of his strength was his long hair, whereupon she took advantage of his confidence to betray him to his enemies. Her name has since become synonymous with a voluptuous, treacherous woman.

Against the foregoing backdrop, it is expedient to recall and buttress that residents of Abak road and its environs were in January 2021 thrown into mourning as a female corps member, Chidimma Odume, residing in the area allegedly hacked her boyfriend to death with a machete.

The suspect was reported in the media to be a graduate of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) and was serving at Bureau of Political and Legislative Affairs.

It was learnt that the corps member, who hails from Enugu State was caught as she was trying to jump the fence of the compound and escaped after committing the dastard act.

She was said to have been stripped naked and beaten to a pulp by an angry mob when the lifeless body of the man she hacked to death was found in the apartment.

An eyewitness, Godwin George said “She matcheted a young guy who she went out with to death this morning. She killed the young guy instantly after several cuts on his stomach and face, but while trying to escape by jumping over the fence she was caught.

She added, “Some bike men there said that she is used to sending them to buy weed for her ever since she was deployed to Akwa Ibom for her NYSC.”

At this juncture, not few readers may have in this context been ruminating over the appropriateness of waiting for “Beware Of Delilah As The Next Title Song” which is invariably the title of this piece.

Be that as it may, the reason for waiting or rather expecting such genre of music that would be lyrically advisory, particularly by Romeos cannot be farfetched as listening to such music would unarguably serves as a resource for actively manipulating the affective states of its listeners so that a positive self-view is maintained and a sense of optimism is provided, and consequently touch their souls to always be at home with their wives. After all, Plato asserted that “Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.”

It is expedient to say that self-enhancement, the process by which individuals modify their self-worth and gain self-esteem, typically takes place in social interactions, and can compel people to do the right thing.

In fact, listening to music can be a quick route to getting oneself into a better mood, but it is becoming increasingly clear that there’s much more to the benefits of music than just a quick boost for anyone’s outlook. Research has shown that music has a profound effect on the body and psyche. In fact, there’s a growing field of healthcare known as music therapy, which uses music to heal.

At this juncture, it is expedient to express this view by citing American Psychological Association (APA) which defined Casanova Complex as “A man’s desire to have a large number of lovers, leading to very active pursuit of women and attempts to seduce or entice women into having sexual intercourse without any emotional relationship or commitment. The complex is named for Giovanni Jacopo Casanova (1725–1798), an Italian memoirist and adventurer noted for his sexual conquests.

Argued from the foregoing, musicians as prominent as Adele, Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen have spoken publicly about mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, and all can attest to the power of music to help with such problems.

Besides, numerous scientific and psychological studies have shown that music can lift people’s moods, combat depression, improve blood flow in ways similar to statins, lower levels of stress-related hormones such as cortisol, and ease pain. Music can improve the outcomes for patients after surgery. A study reported in Nature Neuroscience even demonstrated that levels of the feel-good chemical dopamine in the brain rose by up to nine percent when people listened to music they enjoyed.

Though the idea of music as a balm is nothing new as more than 400 years ago, William Shakespeare said that “music can raze out the written troubles of the brain”. Given the foregoing, it is not an exaggeration that people are today turning to music as a way to deal with the stresses of modern digital-driven life. In the same vein, Matt Haig, the author of the inspirational book “Reasons To Stay Alive”, was noted to have set some of the words of his book to music on an album made with former Razorlight drummer, Andy Burrows. Against the backdrop of the foregoing, it is expedient to urge Casanovas to start waiting for “Beware Of Delilah As The Next Title Song” for them to become healed so that our young girls would no longer be pushed to a cul de sac where in the bid to fight back will inadvertently commit murder, and paradoxically be tempted to steal from the dead.