She’s been tagged the next best music
diva from Nigeria. Has she got what it
takes to rock our socks? You might think
she’s having it easy but Seyi Shay says
she’s working the ropes just like any other
artiste gunning for the top spot.
In this exclusive interview with Nigerian
Entertainment Today, the rising star
details her journey into music, how the
Nigerian music scene seems pretty
different from where’s she’s coming from,
her current relationship with former
managers Flytime Entertainment and how
she feels she stands out from any other
female RnB singer in the country.
How would you describe your journey back
home?
I left the UK early last year to come and
explore the endless possibilities that this
fertile nation has in store for me as regards
music. When my former girl-band
dissolved, I knew that I wanted to continue
doing music, I packed my bags and flew
back to Nigeria where my parents are
from. It hasn’t always been so easy but
thank God that I met some really great
people that shared my vision and they put
me on. They gave me a platform and the
tool to work with and to continue doing
what I love to do. I started recording
songs and doing shows and put the songs
out and people just started to take to it.
Over the past year I have had really good
experiences and some terrible ones too. I
have done so many shows for free, I can’t
even count. And finally I’m starting to get
paid for my shows now. The transition
from the UK to US and to Nigeria was a
blessed one, I can’t lie because it could
have been worse or harder. I had good
support- Sound Sultan, Flytime, they stood
by me and gave me what I needed to get
this far.
Can you describe the difference between
the industry in the UK/US and that in
Nigeria?
There is a big difference between the
industry in Europe and in the US with the
one here in Nigeria. It is so disorganized
out here. There is no real strategy nor
structure. You just try your luck, if it makes
people dance, then you have a hit,
whereas out there it is very much more
strategized. A really rubbish song has to
really be pushed very well for it to blow
and exceed the popularity of a song that’s
really good. Here in Nigeria, people
appreciate good music a lot more than out
there, but it would help though if we had in
Nigeria more strategy, more engines, ideas
and more brand building so that we can
compete with the Americans, Europeans
and Asians on a music level and bring
home Grammys.
When you arrived on the scene, a lot of
people were concerned that you didn’t
really start from the bottom of the food
chain like everyone else. Do you think that
it has been easier for you being that you
had a lot of support from a platform that
gave you the right push?
I started from the bottom. I started singing
over ten years ago. I have slept in the
studios countless days and nights. I have
worked as a waitress, receptionist and
other odd jobs. Just because I was raised
in London people didn’t really get to see
that side of my life. In a way, you can say I
had it better than a lot of people back
home, and that’s because of the territory I
was raised in. At the same time,
my ‘sufferation’ is different and it’s not like
I didn’t suffer at all. I have had doors shut
at my face. I have worked and struggled
and hustled too.
Coming back to Nigeria, what has been
your most terrible experience?
My most terrible experience in Nigeria is
getting to a show where I’m supposed to
perform and being told that I’m no more
performing after I have changed into my
costume because all the big stars have
taken all the slots and time. That was
really heartbreaking for me. At the end of
day, I have put my work in and done
hundreds of free shows. All this is after me
having an album on an international level
and me touring with Beyonce . After all of
that, then I have to come back to Nigeria
and start all over again. At the same time,
I need to pay my dues, so I did that. I
have been hustling for many years, so I
didn’t just start.
What influences your style of music?
I’m a lover of Soul, RnB, Reggae and
Afrobeat. If you fuse all of these sounds
together, you might end up with what I like
to call Afro-pop. I feel that is the kind of
sound I do-Afro pop, popular African
music. I don’t actually limit myself or my
sound. I have different types of songs. I
just like to sing what my emotions is
telling me to do at the time.
How do you feel being always compared
to Tiwa Savage?
I think the comparison between me and
Tiwa Savage is actually dying a natural
death.
Are you guys friends?
Yes, we are friends.
Have you guys actually sat down to talk
about the comparisons?
Hmmm…have we spoken about that yet?
We don’t really have time. We are both
really busy. If we talk about anything, it’s
more me asking her for advice or her
inviting me to an event or occasion. But
we just talk more about ourselves. We
don’t talk about anything or anybody and
that’s when we can because we are very
busy people.
Back to the comparisons, it’s dying a
natural death. We are both from London.
We both spent time in the US and we both
came back to Nigeria. We both
encountered the same people that helped
us in our careers. So, naturally you are
going to have that comparison. Now I
have rebranded myself, not because of the
comparisons, but because it was time for
me to shift from my comfort zone into
challenging myself more. We have new
pictures and new music now. I don’t
imagine Tiwa singing the kind of music I
sing and I can’t imagine me singing the
kind of music she sings from what I have
heard on her album. We are just different
like that. As time goes on, people will see
that.
A lot of people feel that when it comes to
female artistes, there’s the ‘Big 3’-Tiwa
Savage, Waje and Omawumi. Out of the
hundreds of other female artistes out
there, do you think you are the next one to
join the ‘Big 3’?
I was very honoured when Omawumi
asked me to join Tiwa, Waje and herself on
stage at her concert. I felt like she saw
something in me. The way the three of
them accepted me into their trinity was
humbling. But am I the next one or am I
going to join the trinity to make a
foursome? I don’t even feel like them being
called the ‘Big 3’ is right. I feel that they
are all individuals and they should be seen
that way. At the end of the day, most
people know those three names the most
and I get that, but I don’t think they would
like to be seen as the ‘Big 3’. I don’t want
to be cast under that umbrella. I just want
to be my own person and hopefully
influence people in a positive way in my
own right.
You come across as Soulful singer, but
now you are in the studio and doing stuffs
like ‘Irawo’ and others. Do you think it is
the Nigerian sound that has affected the
way you sound right now?
Yes it was the Nigerian sound that actually
influenced my moving to Nigeria. Before I
moved back to Nigeria, I had the
opportunity to either go to Los Angeles
and sign a record deal or come to Nigeria.
Most people told me I was crazy for not
going to Los Angeles. I have done that
and I know how hard it is. Trust me, the
pool is bigger which means there’s more
fish and sharks in the sea. I did it for four
years. Actually, the ground is more fertile
in Nigeria. We could do more out here as
artistes and I want to be part of that
revolution that takes Nigeria and African
music into the rest of the world. I feel that I
have so much to offer because of the
training and practice I have had for so
many years since I was a child. I can tell
you that my album will be a mixture of
Soul, RnB, Afropop and Westernised pop.
It’s my album so it can be a combination
of anything I like and I’m sure people will
be able to identify with it.
Do you write your songs?
I do write my own songs but also
Harrisong, Del B and other people help. Del
B is the one that wrote ‘Killing Me Softly’
with Timaya . I adore Timaya, everybody
knows that because he’s just like the best.
KCEE and I are from the same production
camp that’s why the collaboration with
him. Vector helped with the remix of
‘Irawo’ . Whoever I sing with or work with, I
always write with them, but the person
that has helped me write songs the most,
the person I always go to first for lyrical
input is Sound Sultan.
Could you shed light on your relationship
with Flytime?
Flytime and Seyi Shay are no longer
working together in the capacity that I was
working with them when I first came to
Nigeria. They gave me some tools that I
needed and have used to get this far.
Without those tools I wouldn’t be here
doing the things I’m doing. I’m eternally
grateful to Flytime. That’s what they do.
They promote artistes and they have done
a good job with me I think. We are not
going to continue our relationship in that
capacity. I’m not a Flytime artiste anymore
and they are not my record label.
You seem to come up as a very
fashionable person. Who are your
favourite designers?
I like and I wear a lot of CLAN . I love Grey
to Mini Lee. These are Nigerian designs
I’m talking about. Toju Foyeh , I started
with her and I think she is elegant and
classic. Her finishing is so perfect. I also
love Deola Sagoe.
When you are not in the studio or on
stage, how do you hangout?
When I’m not doing music, I’m cooking,
I’m cleaning my house because it is very
therapeutic. I like to go shopping too.
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