A Nigerian actor, Femi Ogunrombi popularly known as Papa Ajasco, is dead.
The death of the actor in the Wale Adenuga’s Papa Ajasco and Company comedy series, occured at 7:30 p.m on Saturday.
Confirming the thespian’s death was a lecturer, Dr. Husseini Shaibu, on his Twitter handle on Sunday.
He wrote,“I have just been reliably informed that the ethnomusicologist, former Music Instructor with #NATIONALTROUPE and one time stand in for the ‘Papa Ajasco character on the popular #waleadenugaprod comic series ‘Papa Ajasco’ Mr. Femi Ogunrombi is dead.”
Ogunrombi took over the character, Papa Ajasco when the former character, Abiodun Ayoyinka pulled out of the show and he carried on with the role while it lasted.
Also, Mr. Steven Osazuwa, his colleague in the music industry, confirmed the death on the Highlife Masters’ Voice WhatsApp forum on Saturday night.
“I am sad to announce to you that Mr. Femi Ogunrombi, passed to the great beyond at about 7:30p.m this evening. May the good Lord grant his soul a perfect rest.”
“Femi Ogunrombi, lived music because the music was his calling. He had unlike his twin brother, switched from the sciences (medical) to study music at the then University of Ife, where he with other talented voices formed the “Ayoro Voices” – a choral group that would become the defining melody of traditional folk songs in the early 1980s.
That group included Ayo Thomas, Jide Ogundipe, Iyabo Omomeji, among others. So accepted were they that they toured the then-western states in performances both public and private gigs. The climax of the Ayoro Voices was the recording of their own radio and TV programmes on BCOS, OGTV and NTA Ibadan.
He was a multi-instrumentalist, Music teacher, composer, actor, producer and consummate director of music and film.
In 2006, Ogunrombi joined the popular TV comedy program Papa Ajasco and Company created by Wale Adenuga Productions, WAP, as Papa Ajasco. He was at the same time the Coordinator of Studies for PEFTI Film Institute.
