Aituaje Iruobe, popularly known as Waje, is known for her vocal strength and how well she deploys it. In this interview with OLUSHOLA RICKETTS, the talented singer speaks on being quiet on the music scene, her daughter, why she’s become a fitness buff in recent time, among other issues.
You’ve been quiet for a while; are you not under pressure to put out songs?
When you see certain write-ups about you, you will get worried. Things like that make you start thinking about your career, if it is ending or not. But I believe that anything worth doing is worth doing well. It is one thing to be in a hurry to put out music and it is another to put out great music. If you take Adele for example, she takes her time to release songs.
It does not make sense if you have seven albums; people can relate with only three songs. I am a live artiste; I enjoy the stage and everything that has to do with music. But I have to be sure that whatever I put out is worth it. If I am not inspired to put out something and I did, people would query why I put out quack content. That is even worse, because you might never get the chance to redeem yourself.
However, I am not really under pressure because I have supportive people around me and I know what I was working on.
Being a judge on The Voice Nigeria took a lot of my time. Since it was my first experience, I did not plan well; I thought it would not be an issue.
But I have lots of plans this year; my album has to drop too. My new project, ‘The Mountain,’ is so special to me because it is like a new born baby.
Have you been getting shows?
Shows are not really how we make money in this industry. There are times you see us on billboards and we get little or nothing from the promoters. How many shows did we have last year? Most companies did not do their end-of-the-year parties; artistes were the ones creating concerts for themselves.
Would you like to be part of ‘The Voice Nigeria’ again?
I was the one that did not do my homework well; the break from music has nothing to do with the TV show. But one of the things the show did for me was that it got me plenty baby fans. When you have baby fans, you are sorted for life because as they grow, they grow with you.
When I am 50 years old, some of them would be 30-year-olds or 25-year-olds and they would still be enjoying my music. I even plan to have a concert on Children’s Day. Children would come to the playground just to enjoy themselves. I realised that ‘The Voice’ gave me 60 per cent of baby fans.
Also, it is not just about pouring out music and getting popular. Everyone at the top today does other things that make them relevant.
Do you agree that P-Square’s ‘Do Me’ shot you to limelight?
It served what it came to serve; remember I was not in the video.
Why were you not in the video?
That is a story for another day. Some things are bound to happen because I needed to learn a few things and be more deliberate in decisions I make while working with other people. I also needed to understand the power of having a team that looks out for you. Even as an up-and-coming artiste, you need a management team to get you to the next level. I did not take a good leverage on certain relationships because I did not know better at a time.
Or you did not know the song would be a hit?
I knew it would be big because they were already stars and I was just a young undergraduate. Of course, I was not happy I did not feature in the video, especially since I wanted to be in the limelight and get money from it.
How did you combine music and education?
For me, I just wanted to be on stage to show myself. When I started singing, it was somebody that even told me I could make money from music. The first time I performed in my school, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, people shouted and I did that without my voice. They gave me N200 or so. The first time I earned so much was at the end of the year party of the then Zain. They paid me N250, 000 and it was so huge for me.
How did you spend the money?
I am the first child in my family and I am involved in taking care of them. So, it really helped us stabilise a few things.
But for music, what would you have settled for?
I do not know really. I have thought of the question too many times. I do not like cooking, but I like to bake. I did ‘chin chin’ for a while with my friend. I would have continued making and selling ‘chin chin’ I guess.
It seems you are a bit emotional?
Yes, I am very emotional. But I am changing gradually; I try to hold myself more now. I used to cry a lot when I see certain stories about me. That is why most of my songs are inspiring because that is what I had in my head at a time. But the media has been fair to me generally.
Why did you decide to lose weight?
You know when they stream live on television, you look bigger. I do not know what really happened to me, but I did not look nice and people were saying negative things about me on twitter. I really cried; I can never forget that day. It was in October 2013. I called my manager that I did not want to do this again. I was sincerely tired. He told me that if there was something I did not like about myself, I should change it. I started working out and I was determined about it. Also, life is hard, so you have to surround yourself with people that feed your ego. A man may not have anything in his pocket, but because of the people around him, he does not care. I do not like to be seen with people who make me feel bad.
Is it true that you had to lose weight to impress a man?
I am not married yet, so they will talk. As you grow old, you will understand that people will always have opinions. If you do something either negative or positive, they will come after you.
I did that because I saw that I was a brand and I wanted to be able to sell myself. I want to be able to go on magazine covers and look good. I am constantly looking for how to spread my music, so I need to reinvent myself.
Does this mean fat people are not appealing?
I do not say that. If you do not like something about yourself, change it; it does not matter anyone’s opinion. I am not a thin person; I still have my shape.
Why do you try to protect your daughter from the prying public?
The thing is that she has her life to live. I think the focus should be on Waje, not my family. She is still young, so she is trying to discover herself. And whether she goes into entertainment or not, I will support her.
Would you say being a single mother has influenced you to be who you are?
Definitely, your background and story always have ways of influencing your decision as you grow in life. So, it probably has an effect on me as a person, but it is not really about being a single mother. I am woman, a parent, and as one, I have a huge obligation to bring up my daughter in a certain way. I am also a Christian.
I get lessons from young girls, who send me direct messages and so on. I do not usually like the term single mothers, to be honest with you. I am a parent and I need to do my job as a parent.
Have you cancelled the idea of getting married?
Of course, I am still open to it. My kind of man has to be God-fearing because the Bible says the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. I want a man that is not afraid to be expressive and not afraid to support his woman. He should not put restrictions on what I do.
He does not need to have all the money in his account, but must be hardworking. When he is hardworking, it means that we would get up when we fall. I do not care much about his height or complexion, but he must not be too short because I am tall.
