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Nigerian singer Timi Dakolo has called out Apostle Femi Lazarus for hypocrisy following his recent claims about the charges made by gospel musicians.
The controversy began after Apostle Lazarus, in a sermon, projected an alleged invoice from a gospel singer outlining a $10,000 honorarium with a compulsory 50% non-refundable deposit, a first-class flight, and accommodations, among other demands. He argued that such financial expectations were excessive for the ministry.
Reacting to the claims, Dakolo dismissed the authenticity of the invoice and urged Nigerians to be cautious of misinformation.
"Nigerians, you should not believe everything you see. Nobody has a 40-man crew in Nigeria. Name the artist in order to justify capping 😂," he wrote on Instagram.
In a fresh Instagram post made on March 24, 2024, Dakolo called the minister out, further questioning his’ stance, pointing out that the pastor himself charges for his school of ministry.
His post contained screenshots of two emails sent to him when he applied to Lazarus' school, charging $150 per student.
He wrote in his caption,
All this was said in love and with respect, sir. I am not a gospel artist but a Christian raised in church. Let’s not shift the goalpost. By your definition, if anyone charges to minister, they are not gospel artists; they are performers. And by that definition, if any preacher charges to teach and minister, they are merchants of hope and motivational speakers too.
Sir, you are charging as low as $150 per person for your school of ministry, teaching and preaching Jesus. Probably having as much as 1,000 students. Let’s do the maths. You even have premium and standard for God’s house? Are you not selling the gift and revelation freely given to you? Again, let’s not keep shifting the goalpost.
He added, "Such hypocrisy, The school of ministry has expenses and Music creation doesn’t. Running cost important, production / promotion cost unimportant. Una well done. Most of you don’t know how much a producer charges, then the marketing, the promotion. The amount of hours it takes to finish a song. Keep shifting the goal post guys."
ALSO READ: 'I love you,' Apostle Femi Lazarus tells Timi Dakolo as they settle