Yemi Alade is a rave of the moment artiste. She tells Ademola Olonilua about how she came up with her hit song, Johnny, as well as her fashion style
How would you describe the brand, Yemi Alade?
Yemi Alade is an afro-pop Nigerian artiste. People call me a Yoruba-Igbo girl because my father is from Ondo State while my mother is from Abia State. I am a lover of music and I won Peak Talent Show in 2009. I was the maiden edition winner. Since then, it has been an awesome journey.
How has the talent show affected your life?
Before then, I was a member of a girl group called Naughty Spices. As of that time, I was in secondary school. I got involved in the talent show while I was in my second year in the university. That was when I realised that I wanted to pursue music as a career and not just for fun.
Were your parents in support of such decision?
I did not exactly tell them that I wanted to be a musician. I just went on with my life and my studies. I think they saw it coming because in all the schools that I attended, I always represented my school either in music, drama or dance. I was everywhere. So I think they saw it coming.
If music was out of the equation, what would you have done?
I have my degree in geography, so I probably would be doing something in the aviation sector. I don’t know because I have not really thought of that but my degree is enough to do something else.
Have you ever considered acting?
I used to be a kid actress when I was growing up. When I was really young, my parents never allowed me to attend any birthday party. They would buy clothes for me but on that day, all the doors in the house would be locked and there would be nothing I could do about it. I don’t know why they never wanted me to go out but I am sure it was my father that was over-protective because my mum was more outgoing. When I got to school, I got involved in every extra-curricular activity. I was even in a karate group. It helped me later in life because I put all the energy into my music now.
Tell us something about your hit song, Johnny; did you experiment with it?
I would not say I experimented with it. I don’t experiment with my music; I just go with the flow and the way I feel. I was on a nationwide tour when we stopped by in Enugu and met with Selebobo, the producer of the song. That was how Johnny came about. It was not like we strategised. I did not sit down to write anything; we just did it and I went with the flow. Before we even got back to Lagos, the song had already leaked. The response through last year till now has been wonderful.
From the lyrics and delivery of the song, it sounds like a personal experience; is it?
It could have been the experience of anybody. You know the way some guys are, they are wicked. Actually, it is a personal experience. The song says it all already. As I said before, it’s not something that I decided to sit down and write. When I started promoting the song, people started asking me who Johnny was. You know how music is; your lyrics and emotion build up somewhere till you tap into that. I tapped into that part of my life where a guy left me for another girl and eventually impregnated her.
What exactly happened between you and the man?
It is exactly as the song says. The lyric of my song says it all.
What is style to you?
For me, style is attitude. Attitude is my number one style accessory. It is simple like that.
What is your fashion weakness?
I have a very long list but I am trying to pick one. I think the top on the list would be rings, I love rings. I love beautiful, creative rings, not just the ones you see anywhere. I love the ones that look like antiques or really special; I have this ring I call a cool bunny. It is the only rabbit I have seen wearing glasses and it is red.
When you are on stage, how do you come up with your props?
I certainly cannot do it alone. I have a glam squad; that is what I like to call them because they know how to revamp everything and bring out my attitude and turn it into my style. From my head to my toes, I have people that take care of my fashion; so I don’t do it alone. However, the two things that determine what I wear are the occasion and mindset.
Now that people love this song, are you going to stick to the sound and make it your identity or you would keep working on new sounds?
I think people love this side of me. I am really versatile. The songs I wrote in the past were more of English, Yoruba or pidgin. This is about the first song I am doing and putting Igbo language in. I would be playing with my Igbo side for a while and then move on after.
Before now, has using your Igbo root ever worked in your favour?
Yes it is working for me now. I think both sides work for me. It is a blessing in disguise. I don’t think there can be any other Yemi Alade with this type of disguise. It always works. When I walk into some places, I say I am Eberechi and I go to another place and say I am Yemi. That is the sweet part of my life.
When people hear Alade, they think you are related to Dare Art-Alade; are you?
No, we are not related. We are only related music-wise. I have not done any project with him. We might probably in the near future.
What clothes are you most comfortable in?
I am a jeans person. I love jeans and anything that I would wear and be comfortable in.
When you go shopping, how long does it take?
It could take me an entire day, in fact if you can give me a month, it still would not be enough.
You sound like you really like shopping?
I love shopping. There was a time I had a problem with shopping. When I was upset or nervous, I would go shopping. But I had to stop that because it is not really the best, sometimes you tend to buy junks at really high price. At that point in time, you just want everything. Now I have people that shop for me and it works better that way.
Don’t you think that if you go shopping yourself, you would buy things you really love and that suit you?
Yes, I agree. When you go shopping, you see too many things you like but not everything would fit you. When someone shops for you, you get what you like and you probably would also get what fits you. When you go shopping, you get distracted by other things that are not on your list.
People say that when a male artiste shoots a video, he is fully dressed but women tend to be semi-nude, exposing cleavages and other body parts that ought not to be exposed. What is your take on that?
Some guys also expose themselves. Flavour and P-Square do that. Sometimes, they do not wear shirts at all, why don’t people talk about them? I think it depends on the artiste. I feel everybody dresses the way they want to be addressed. If you like to flash something, flash it.
What is it like performing on high-heeled shoes?
It is not easy. Immediately after performance, I just want to get them off my feet. You need to literally walk in my shoes to know what it feels like. We know that it is high and painful but we want to use it to perform. It is a bitter-sweet thing. It just adds to the whole look when on stage. There are some outfits that are made for heels. It is not every time that I perform with heels. Sometimes I take off my heels on stage and that is because of the move or dance step I want to make.
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