She frowned at the manner female artistes are treated in the music industry but encouraged young artistes to be focus in the quest to do music.
Ashwwaju.org stumbled on her in Awka, Anambra state capital and asked her some penitent questions needed to improve the quality of music being shun out daily in the country.
The broadcaster, content developer and rapper , shared her taught to make Nigerian entertainment Industry stay afloat, even in the face of challenges being faced.
Excerpt:
Can we meet, tell us more about yourself?
I have the talent to absorbed different thing am interested in which keeps me active and have the strength to branch into a lot of things, but am first of all an OAP (On Air Personality), an Artiste, a female rapper. Singing is a part of me, I write and a content developer and to cap it up a woman.
How would you Assess Nigerian Entertainment Industry compare to what we have there in the west?
You mean Nigerian Entertainment Industry before and now, the way it was compare to what we have now?
ASSESSMENT OF NIGERIAN ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY
Yes, I mean the way people viewed the industry and what it is now as lucrative venture and one of the celebrated revenue generating industry after oil and gas, to many, we are now there yet?
The best way to describe it is that it is evolving , evolving in the sense that people are now open to new ideas now, Nigerians are more open minded to entertainment, right now, people are braking bars taking entertainment even beyond the shores of this country.
What I can say about the Nigerian entertainment industry is like willingness to explore, which encouraged creativity and the existence of social media right now, the spread is enormous.
It is now bigger than the way it was before, in the old days, you have to record your music for a record label and all what not, but right now you can mail whoever you want to promote your music right from the comfort of your home, you can access communities on the internet.
The new technology has completely changed the way the entertainment industry was in the sense that people are more easily going and relax, not such hard and complicated thing anymore, it shows when your passion is where it is flowing.
Although, the problem of piracy is still an issue, not just theoretical part of it, the piracy we are talking about is that people are repeating each other’s songs, people are photocopying each others’ style of music, but right now, a photocopy will look like a photocopy and original will stand out!
We are becoming more adventurous, we are utilizing more of our space, even Lil Kesh , the Shoki Dance, we all know Miss Elliot, she is a legend; I mean someone that should be respected, this Lady we all know she is a super star too, she went as far as tanking Lil Kesh for Shoki Dance, I mean the entertainment industry is connecting all worlds.
Right now, we are bolder, we are more adventurous and more creative, thinking that there is no box, although, there should be caution and moderation, especially the way ladies are been objectify, making us look as mere object, which is the wrong orientation of what beauty and sexily machine means, in all we are taking chances, it’s a good thing.
What do you think should be injected to re-brand the industry to the taste of many; do you think that certain ideas should be adopted before we get there in the Nigerian Entertainment World?
RE-BRANDING ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY IN NIGERIA
First of all, one has to define why he/she is in the industry for I guess that is why there is so much confusion in it, when you don’t define your why; you mess up your what. Most people focus more on how first when they have not gotten the why, you do not know the what, this is what am saying, are you into entertainment because of fashion or because its’ flashy that you want to be involved, are you doing it because you are looking for the fame and the money, or are you doing it because it pulls you , there is a pull on the inside, you don’t just do music on the impulse, even in Heaven, music industry is considered the highest, because that’s where praise lands.
Music is a language what are you saying? When you know what point you are going to make and how you are going about it. What I think we need to do right now, especially the present generation, it’s a jet age, everybody is flying. Everybody sees the Technos, everybody sees the Davidos , they see the Whiz Kids, everybody sees the Burna Boys, everybody sees the Lil Keshis, but they do not go deeper to find out what the beginning was and they did not go deeper to find out why are this people so passionate.
Don’t just want to be on YBNL, because you know how to sing all their songs, Olamide knows what he is doing and why he is doing it. So does Korede, Rekado Banks and everything under Marvin Records, but Don Jazzy knows why he is doing what he is doing.
Everybody should have his or her clear cut reason why is going into music, there is no problem in the industry but the problem is on individuals. You need to know why you are doing this, you need to understand that you need to move with the right team and am sure In that form you will spread in the right way.
Would you say, the economy or the governments are in anyway encouraging the entertainment industry to grow?
ENCOURAGEMENT FROM GOVERNMENT & INDIVIDUALS
Before, I would not say, but right now I will say YES, but for selfish reasons, because there is more money in it now, If it was not as marketable as it is now, nobody will look at it.
There were times; if you say you are a musician, people will look at you like someone that came from another planet.
The economy really never been a limitation or an addition whatsoever because, the economy is part of the environment, we see the economy as how the environment is been treated, the mentality, that is what I mean.
Whether or not the Nigerian government wishes to support or not, music is music. Right now they are fully involved because it is lucrative.
Come what may, music will stay!
Whether the economy supports it or not, music will stay. I want to encourage the young artistes to study the environment before they jump into something and try to know how it all started.
Let us into some of your works you have right now, tell us the one you are working on, perhaps your collaboration works with any bigger artistes in Nigeria as a promising upcoming musician?
COLLABORATION
For starters, in 2014 I was nominated for an award, my video was actually nominated for an award by the Nigeria Music Video Award (NMVA) in 2014, I was nominated for the Best main Stream Hip Hop Video, I was nominated alongside Olamide and Eva, but Olamide took the award home, but the nomination to me is a blessing, so you go check out my video “Stubborn Girl” on youtube. That was the one single I ever released actually and am blessed with it, because it has brought me more fame and favour .
Apart from that, I also have some works with Professor Victor Uwaifo, I did something with him, it’s an honour, you can also check that out.
Recently I released two tracks, I release the GROWN & BELEFULL, STUBBORN GIRL is a long time ago single, because I went under the raider to work on my craft, so I believe my sound has matured and it will continue to grow.
Later you can find BELEFULL, though BELEFULL has not been officially released, you will find GROWN, when you check out my twitter handle @queenmoda1 & on Instagram @queenmoda_1 you will find every way you can link up with my works . Facebook.com/chito Akwueh, once you connect with me on that platforms, you get some of my works and updates and you can get my updates also on MRSHUSTLE MAGAZINE NEWS blog.
I have so many links, 360 nubs links, that is why I put my information first, because I do not want to confuse anybody.
Where would you want to be in the next five to ten years, would you still be doing music to keep contributing to the development of music industry in Nigeria or go the way other have by venturing into other business ?
PROSPECTS IN ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY
Permit me to sound a little churchy here “the gift of a man maketh a way for him” that’s what I believe. In the next five, ten years, what I do know is, I always give chances in life for the unexpected to happen and for man to propose and God to dispose, I hope with Gods’ willing in ten years, I think I should be a partner and on my way to owning a media house, that’s my vision in the next ten years.
I always want to make sure I am a bridge for other people to practice their passion as well, so in the next five years, I want to make sure my spread is beyond Nigeria musically.
Also, my career in broadcasting, I am taking that to the next level too, at most in the next five years, I want my music to go beyond the shores of this country, I mean it needs to go farther than this. My plan is to continue to spread , by the time is ripe for me to owning a media house, by partnering with some group of people with like minds, I will have enough background check on it.
Basically, in the next ten years, I want to own my own media house or be in partnership with someone else, at the same time, my music career; I want it to go beyond the shores of Nigeria. Spread! Spread!! Spread!!!.
Lastly, I have a twofold question, one on entertainment and second is on Valentine, do you think Nigerians are celebrating Valentine the way it should be and the second leg is that, do you think Nigerian youths should be done with education before going into music, the youths now do place their career before academics?
ENTERTAINMENT & EDUCATION
Education and entertainment, of course you can marry both, it is completely unadvisable to wait till are done with education before you start activating that talent of yours, because the truth of the matter is that by the time you are done with schools and you are ready, you will stagger a bit, about what you know of being active in the field, compare to what you know already.
If you have two jobs and still function well, you can marry both. You can do both education and music together again depending on what you are going to study an depend on how bad you want it and you have to check yourself, not everyone has the same memory strength, because they have to have good retentive memory, its’ about knowing what you are been taught. Not everyone has the ability to absorb things that are complicated and still make wave in the industry.
Yes, you can marry education and entertainment together but it has to be carefully strategized and have targets, there are situations that you have to choose to know what you are doing. I say YES, you can combine education and academic pursuit and still make positive impact in the society.
VALENTINE
To be honest with you I really would not say that Nigeria is celebrating Valentine in the right way, I know Nigerians are loving people until you get on their nerves, I don’t think we are up to the world population of about 20 per cent of those who really understand Valentine and celebrate it the way it ought to be, so it’s not just about Nigeria, a lot of people have a miss guide aim of what Valentine is all about .
This misconception was borne long ago before the generation you see now, so it is something that has come to stay, it is something that has rested and own is own root. So not celebrating Valentine is a phenomenon that everybody is guilty of even as little as one’s thought and your mind set about it.
Let’s not go pointing finger that Nigeria is lagging, I want to say that we are all in the world of decadence, where you have to understand, otherwise, you would not know how to change things, so nobody pretty celebrate Valentine right, it’s a truth that only the Holy Spirit can reveal to you and you have to , you have to really know what it is, or you may know what it is but might not be convinced within you to interpret what Valentine really means .
Here are some of her works:
MH FRESH: QUEENMODA – BELLEFUL + GROWN https://t.co/o8JQrUFdgE
Cc @QueenModa1
