Edited by Azizi Powell
This post showcases a video of the song "Ada Ada" by Nigerian Highlife singer Flavour. That video showcases traditional Igbo wedding traditions.
This post also includes selected comments from that video's discussion thread about the traditions shown in this video, as well as explanations of some of the Igbo words spoken in the video. The lyrics to Flavour's "Ada Ada" and some explanatory comments from this video's discussion thread are also included in this post.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to Flavour N’abania for his musical legacy. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the YouTube publisher of the video that is embedded in this post. And to quote emecca123 (2014): "Big - up the producers, directors, cinematographers, actors, actresses, and off course Mr. Flavour, you rock as always."
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SHOWCASE VIDEO: Flavour - Ada Ada [Official Video]
Official Flavour, Published on Jun 30, 2013
The video for the most anticipated wedding theme song by Flavour is finally here. It pictures a complete Igbo traditional wedding, starring Uti Nwachukwu, Mr Ibu, KC (Limpopo), Chinedu Ikedieze (Aki) and many more.
-snip-
The people whose names are given above are Nigerian celebrities.
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LYRICS - ADA ADA
(Flavour)
(with English translations & explanations, posted by
Onyemefolu nwasi, 2015 in the discussion thread for the song's official YouTube video]
"Someone was asking for translation of the song, Well the video tells the whole story though
Below is the literal translation of the song
Have you seen my beautiful baby?
Have you seen my tomato baby oh? (iyele)
Baby softly dey cool me temper ada
Baby na sugar sugar iyo..ooo
Everybody dey wait
Come out to the gathering
What is good is beautiful
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya(dance step)
Ada ada (oyolima)(praises)
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Ada ada (adanwa) (praises)
Ada ada (chei asanwa) (praises)
Ada ada (hey ada) (praises)
Ada n’idi ora nma (Ada that is pleasant to All- Praises)
Everybody dey wait
Puta kene na ogbo (Come to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya(dance step)
Ada ada (hey adanwa) (Praises)
Ada ada iyo…ooo
Ada no dey lack ada
Dem get am for everywhere
Ada no dey lack ada
Dey get am for up and down
Baby na tomato baby
Too fresh like morning wine
Ada welele yi (Praises)
Iyooo ko ko ko
Everybody dey wait
Puta kene na ogbo (Come out to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya (dance step- form of dance)
Ada ada (hey adanwa) praises
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Ada ada (adanwa) praises
Ada ada (chei asanwa) (praises- for beautiful lady)
Ada ada (hey ada)
Ada n’idi ora nma – (Ada that is pleasant to All- Praises)
Everybody dey wait (dey wait you)
Puta kene na ogbo(Come-out to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Ada ada (hey adanwa) (praises)
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Ada ada (adanwa) (praises)
Ada ada (chei asanwa) (praises – for a beautiful lady)
Ada ada (hey ada)
Ada n’idi ora nma (Ada that is pleasant to All- Praises)
Everybody dey wait (dey wait you)
Puta kene na ogbo (Come-out to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Ada ada (hey adanwa)
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Pekem pekem pekem iya (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem pekem pekem pekemkem iya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem pekem pekem pekemkem iya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem ya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekemkem ya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem pekem iya pekemkem (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekemkem pekem pekem iya ijawa ije o ka omee (dance step- form of a dance)
Mummy bye bye
Daddy bye bye
In nine months time
We will come visiting
With a boy and girl
A na-akpo ejima (That is called Twins)
Ada ada iyo…..ooo "
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SELECTED COMMENTS
These comments provide some explanation about the Igbo marriage customs, and/or the spoken Igbo words in the script for the official video for Flavour's song "Ada Ada", and/or the Igbo words in the song.
With the exception of a comment requesting translations and two comments about "Ada" and "Ada Ada", these comments are given in relative order based on their posting date with the oldest comments given first. Replies are an exception to this statement. However, these comments may not be in consecutive order. I've assigned numbers to these comments for referencing purposes only.
1. laiomo, 2013
"Can someone please translate the Igbo parts of this song? It's so beautiful, but I have ideas what it means lol"
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2. DemkoStar, 2015
"This song is a celebration of womanhood. In Igbo language (Nigeria), Ada is sort of a title name bestowed on the first daughter in the family. But you can also call any girl Ada, as a mark of affection/intimacy (it would then mean like "maiden"). A man calling an Igbo girl Ada, unless she actually goes by that name (from birth), is almost a subtle declaration of love.* Ada can be coined into various variants. In such cases, it may not necessarily be referring to the first daughter. Some popular examples: "Adaobi", literally "(first) daughter of the homestead"; "Adugo" (compaction from "Ada ugo") = Precious Daughter, or literally Golden Daughter; "Adaora" or "Adora" (from "Ada ora") = People's Daughter; "Adaeze" or "Adeze" (from "Ada eze") = Princess, or literally Daughter of the King; "Adamma" = Beautiful Daughter; "Adanna" (from "Ada nna ")= (Beloved) Daughter of her Father."
-snip-
*The commenter wrote this sentence in bold font.
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3. uzzyvick, 2015
"Ada Ada simply means a "daughter among daughters". By implication, a favoured daughter among others. Even though first daughters in Igbo custom are often referred to as "the ada", the general term for a daughter is ada just as okpara is general for a son but first sons are called "the okpara". Please ignore all these nonsense explanations about ada being a name for first daughters only, as it limits interpretation or other aspects of the word"
-snip-
Another comment about the Igbo name "Ada" is found at #20 below.
Also, as a reminder, a pancocojams post that showcases these comments and other comments about the Igbo name "Ada" from this discussion thread will be published ASAP.
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4. Chijioke Cjay, 2013 [English translation of an early scene in the video]
"Ada!! ogini (whats the problem), Ada: ha abiabero (they havent come yet (the inlaws)), ha ga-abia, okwa agwagom gi ee(they will come, I have told you that), ha gabia naw ha ga-abia oo (ther will surely come).
nne (baby) ha ga-abia ha ga-abia oo bia k'anyi pu (come lets go) bia k'anyi pu, ineediri ikwado (u need to get prepared). Bia k'ikwado (come and get prepared) bia k'ikwado. Biko biko biko (pls pls pls). Bia naw"
-snip-
These comments describe that scene:
5. Diana Adhiambo, 2015
"Why does the girl look panicky at the beginning of the video?"
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6. hyacinthdibley, 2015
Reply
"Because the groom hadn't arrived yet, I believe."
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7. odinese nwad, 2015
Reply
"Yup u right"
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8. Ojay1988, 2013
in reply to blenderella [who asked for English translations of the Igbo words in this song]
"1.Puta kene na ogbo - (Try to come out into the area/public***) [see below]
2.Ife di m mma amaka - (A good thing is good)
3.Adanwa ngwa pekem pekem iya - Encouraging her to dance
4.Adanwa ngwa weluya...ngwa chobiya - Encouraging her to "kill it" on dance floor
5.Ana akpo ejima - (literally = "referred to as twins")
***[commenter's asterisks] Same way people make a circle (ogbo) at a party and take turns jumping in the middle dancing. He is asking her to come into the middle of the "ogbo" and dance for all to admire."
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9. Uncle Ned , 2013
in reply to Ojay1988
"@ Ojay1988 thanks for translating. However you forgot to emphasise "ngwa chobiya" which is "go loook for him"; referring to the husband to be. In our traditional Igbo marriage, the Lady to be married carries the wine and goes looking for the intending husband. Ngwa weluya... ngwa chobiya therefore tells her to go look for him in the most beautiful and wonderful dance style."
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10. Yale Femi, 2013 [explanation for the song lyric "Baby na tomato baby"
"In Naija, we liken our women to the taste of our beloved and much cherished foods plus the fruits (so rich in vitamins and all the necessary goodies) coz of our very rich (food) culture. Sweet tomato, sweet banana,"
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11. Kalle Zulu, 2014
For you to have an Igbo traditional marriage....You would have to be an Igbo woman. The marriage ceremony is done at the girl's parents house not at the Broidegroom's house. If a Yoruba man marries an Igbo girl then they will have an Igbo marriage...Traditional marriage in most of Nigerian ethnic group is done at the girl's place cos a man is going to her side to beg/ask her father/her people to marry her.
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12. Abena Tiwaah, 2014
Reply
"No ...you can still do it whether you are an Igbo girl or not. I have seen it done before."
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13. Briste Belle , 2015
Reply
"If you get married to an Igbo guy, your traditional wedding will be according to YOUR own people's tradition. But if you are an Igbo girl already, then your traditional wedding could be similar to this because it is the Igbo tradition and for cultural weddings, it goes according to the girl's tradition."
**
14. gloria sekhethela, 2014
"what the waweluya waweluya watshopian mean ? momibai bai nati bai bai mean? and anabejima if I can knw this word abeg ooo"
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15. Vee Oby, 2014
Reply
"@Gloria, the word is, ngwa weluya, ngwa chobiya meaning; go on, dig it! (He is encouraging Ada and the dancers to dance harder). The other statement says "in nine months time we will come visiting with a boy and girl (anakpo - called) twins (ejima).
**
16. Vee Oby, 2014
Reply
"@Gloria, the second phrase you wrote is actually "mummy, bye bye" the other word you wrote at the end means "you'll have a boy and girl that are twins". So essentially, he's saying " mummy bye bye, daddy bye bye, in nine months time we'll come visiting with a boy and girl that are twins"."
**
17. Busy Kasanke, 2014
"the Igbo traditional wedding is very similar to that of baganda in Uganda"
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18. Obi Beckly, 2014 [in response to a request from Margie asking about this Igbo saying]
"Margie, better soup na money killam. Meaning dating a beautiful girl or looking for beautiful things, you need money (Pesa)"
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19. King “Lasher” D.S.P., 2015
"Absolutely feeling this. Thanks for the share Empress. Where are they from? And what is Ada ada?"
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20. Uche Orji, 2015
Reply
"+King D.S.P. "Ada" is an Igbo name given to the first daughters of a family. . This song by Flavour illustrates the qualities of "Ada" the song is about how beautiful she is, and that she is worth waiting for, and taking care of..."
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21. King “Lasher” D.S.P., 2015
reply
"Understanding Empress +Uche Orji So is Igbo a language, tribe, and also what countries are Igbo.?"
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22. Uche Orji, 2015
Reply
"+King D.S.P. Igbo is an ethnic group of southeastern Nigeria, and we speak igbo language and dialects."
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23. rockii101, 2015
Reply
"+nnaamen There are influences from other ethnic groups in this video. The hat that the groom is wearing is Yoruba. The beaded head beads that the Bride is wearing are from the Bini people. Nigeria has been a country for more than 100 years and different ethnic groups within Nigeria have lived in close proximity with each other for even longer. You can't say that the ethnic groups have not influenced each other because we definitely have. To me, Igbo wedding look similar to many other ethnic groups weddings from the south south region of Nigeria. There are differences though. I think the drinking of palm wine is a solely Igbo tradition but correct me if I'm wrong. Igbos also tend to have their traditional weddings outdoors in the bride parents' house while other ethnic groups do not mind as much whether their traditional wedding is indoors or outdoors.
If the OP really wanted a traditional wedding that was similar to the one from this MV [music video], there are many ethnic groups from her to choose from."
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24. onyedum Osigwe (Edoyakaa), 2015
Reply
"+rockii101 The beads are Igbo beads, stop talking rubbish,"
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25. rockii101, 2015
Reply
"+onyedum Osigwe Coral beads are worn by many different ethic groups in Nigeria but that particular beaded crown is definitely influenced by the Bini culture. It is one of the things that they are most famous for."
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26. onyedum Osigwe (Edoyakaa), 2015
Reply
"You know nothing about beads, Bini beads got the same color with Igbo beads but they are different ."
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27. Ge MIIO , 2015
"Is it the wedding for royal people or anybody can marry like this? It looks beautiful, but they seem to be pretty rich."
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28. Victory Ekwueme, 2015
Reply
"+Ge MIIO anybody & yeah they seem to be"
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29. rockii101, 2015
Reply
"+Ge MIIO If you search up Igbo/Nigerian weddings on Youtube you can find weddings similar to this one. Regular weddings are less flashy and require only two clothes changing but the general set up is the same. All Nigerian weddings regardless of the ethnic group have many bridesmaids/groomsmen"
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30. Nosihle Gwala, 2015
"so flipping beautiful, I see so many similarities in our traditional weddings as Africans, I am from the Zulu tribe in South Africa and this just brings so much joy to my heart, traditional Igbo weddings are so beautiful"
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31. JOY AMA, 2015
"Ada in Igbo land of south East Nigeria means the first girl born to a family. Once you are the FIRST GIRL BORN, you are automatically 'ada'. Nobody takes that from you. You cannot denounce it. That is your status in that family and your younger siblings respects you. Of course you go by the christain names your parents gave you but your position in the family is ada(first girl).
Besides that ada is also used to refer to a girl. If you see a girl you don't know her name, u refer to her as ada. For instance you greet an elderly person. He replies: Ada how are you? Not because you are the first born but because you are a girl. But in the flavour context, it means the first girl of that family.
Igbo men don't joke with their 'ada'. In that part of the country, parents expect the ada's traditional marriage to be with pomp and pageantry(as can be seen in the video). It's a thing of pride and joy to her parents. So the suitor must not disappoint. That is why you see her pensiveness initially in the video. It looked like the man hadn't come at the time expected of him so ada became frantic. You want to know what was going on in her mind at that time? What if he didn't show up? Men, please be punctual and don't keep ada waiting."
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