Why female artistes don’t get enough respect - Seyi Shay

Oluwaseyi Deborah Joshua, also known as Seyi Shay, came into limelight with her hit single ‘Irawo’ and has remained in
the news due to her colourful and exciting performances on stage.

The Afro Pop singer who stormed the music scene last year speaks with JOAN OMIONAWELE on why she left the female group ‘From Above’, which was signed to Matthew Knowles, the father of popular hip hop musician, Beyonce, and her travails in the Nigerian music industry.

Excerpts
TELL us how this all started; your singing career.
I actually started singing at the age of 14, with my school gospel choir, but my first professional hit was a tour to Japan, and I was opportune to go on that tour at age 14. That was the beginning of my journey into that world.


There are reports that you started your career in the United Kingdom with Beyonce’s dad, Matthew Knowles. How did you meet him?
I met him seven years after I started singing. I was already part of a group called ‘From Above’. He came to the UK and got the news that there was a girl group called ‘From Above’ looking for a producer, so he came to us and signed us up.


It must have been a great deal; why then did you leave?
We did fantastic things like going on tour with Beyonce. We had our own reality show on MTV called Breaking From Above, which was aired on TV for the first time last year, and it ran all through the year in over 166 countries of the world. And when I came into Nigeria, MTV Base was running the repeat of the reality show, but somewhere along the line, the group started to have problems and I left. When I left, everybody started leaving.


Is the Nigerian music more rewarding?
Yes it is.

What inspires your kind of songs?
Everyday life. The inspiration might come up when I am on stage performing or even as we are sitting together talking here. I might appear as normal, but when I am in the studio or on stage, I like to try and see things above normal and try to put on an entertaining persona. It is my job, and it comes from a true play because I am singing about things that inspire me.


Lot’s of people say you copy Beyonce’s lifestyle through your stage performances. How do you react to this?
The only answer I have for them is: does Beyonce sing Afro pop?

Who was the first musician you ever met?
I met Sound Sultan, and over the years he has become my godfather and mentor. He guides me to do morally right things like songs that have good stories and meanings. The second person I met was 2Face. I was asked to go on a tour with him in Europe and that started the love for being a Nigerian artiste.


What is it that you cannot do without?
I can’t do without music, my phones and my dancing shoes.


Do you remember your most embarrassing moment on stage?
My most embarrassing moment was when I slipped and fell on stage during a dance routine.


What has been your most memorable moment ever?
At the New Year’s Eve crossover service, I went on stage and was in the highest of spirits. I was doing so many shows that made me feel I was getting across to the people. I got on stage and said ‘if you know you are a star or an Irawo (which is the name of my song), point to the sky’ and everybody’s hand went up. I am talking about thousands of people. That was the moment that I told myself I would never forget. Even after being on stage with Beyonce, that experience remained the highlight for me.


Who are your role models in the industry?
Definitely Sound Sultan, 2Face (for his humility) and Wizkhid (laughs) for his consistency and hard work; and Omawumi because she is a strong woman. She is signed to her own record label – Oma Records. She is a mother and an artiste. I respect her a lot for funding herself.


How has the journey been, really?
It’s been a bumpy ride, from age 14 when I started singing and networking myself; but I am grateful to God because it was not easy moving from the UK to Nigeria, as my management and record label over there would always take our money and leave very little change for five female adults to share. I came to Nigeria and in my first four months, I was making money, because I realised that what I was bringing into the music scene was different and that was the major reason I decided to stay, and endure the challenges that female artistes face…


What challenges do female artistes face?
The first challenge is being a woman. As a woman, lots of male artistes don’t take you seriously because most female artistes are not as fearless as the men. I feel that my whole mission is to change that perception through my next songs. Women get discriminated against; we don’t get paid as much as the men. Almost all female artistes have said the same thing.


What are female artistes doing to change that?
We are becoming more fearless. The quality of our videos is rising. We are sticking together and featuring one another in our albums by doing things that make us stand out.


What has been your experience with love?
Love has never been fair to me; love is never going to be fair. It’s even worse as a musician because in the Nigerian tradition, it is not seen as a conventional or respectable thing to be a musician. Everybody expects you to be seen and not heard. But when you are in the public eye like this, it is not easy to find true love.


What’s next for Seyi Shay?
I am currently rebranding. We have decided to bring in two personalities (the Mainland and the Island girl) which will depict two sides of me. I recently won an award for the Best Female Act. I’m focusing on my next singles.


You recently went to perform for a Big Brother eviction show.
Hmm, yes, it was awesome. I am really grateful to represent Nigeria to the whole of Africa.


Which artiste do you dream of doing collaboration with?
I have done collaborations with almost everyone of them – Wizkid, 2Face, Timaya, Olamide. I am thinking of doing a song with PSquare and Omawumi. Internationally, I would really love to hear Rihanna on Afro Pop and sing with Tina Turner. That’s my ultimate dream.