‘She turned Alex Ekubo’s service of songs to a concert,’ Daddy Freeze slams Mercy Chinwo

Media personality, Daddy Freeze, has criticised the musical performances at the service of songs held in Lagos for late Nollywood actor, Alex Ekubo, saying the ceremony was turned into what looked like a concert.

Daddy Freeze, in a video now circulating online, said he walked out of the event after gospel singer Mercy Chinwo mounted the stage and delivered what he considered an unsuitable performance for a solemn memorial ceremony.

According to him, a service of songs should be reflective, quiet and comforting, not a high-energy worship concert.

“We are sitting down minding our business and then Nathaniel Bassey blows the trumpet. Mercy Chinwo climbed the pulpit and turned the place into a concert, and I got up and left,” Daddy Freeze said.

He questioned the choice of songs and the mood created at the event, insisting that funerals and memorial services should be marked by soft music and hymns.

“Do you understand what a funeral is? It’s soft music,” he added.

The comments have sparked fresh debate on social media over the tone of celebrity funerals, gospel ministrations and the line between worship, performance and mourning.

Alexx Ekubo’s service of songs was held on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, at The Monarch Event Center, Lekki, Lagos, between 4pm and 6pm.

The event drew Nollywood stars, friends, family members, entertainers and well-wishers who gathered to honour the late actor.

Ekubo died on May 11, 2026, at the age of 40.

P.M. News had earlier reported on May 13 that details surrounding the actor’s death were disclosed by filmmaker Stanley Ontop, who said Ekubo had secretly battled stage 4 liver cancer since 2024.

According to that account, the actor underwent a liver transplant, but complications later arose after the liver reportedly failed again.

The actor’s family later released his funeral arrangements, with the Lagos service of songs opening the burial rites.

A wake keep is scheduled for Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in Arochukwu, Abia State, while the funeral service and interment are expected to take place on Thursday, June 18, 2026.

Daddy Freeze’s criticism, however, has shifted attention from the tributes at the Lagos event to a wider argument about whether modern Nigerian memorial services are becoming too performative.

While some social media users agreed with him that a service of songs should remain solemn, others argued that gospel ministrations are also a way of celebrating the faith and life of the deceased.

Mercy Chinwo had not publicly responded to Daddy Freeze’s criticism as of the time of filing this report.