Nigerian Songbird, Yemi Alade appeared on Al Jazeera’s English channel, where she addressed interview questions about her career and gave a live performance.
Yemi Alade was a guest on Al Jazeera’s English platform where she opened up on her career, activism and what fans should expect from her in the coming days.
During the interview, she was asked what inspires her to write a song and she replied,
“Somethings I wake up with a song on my lips, sometimes I just hear an instrumental and I just start to sing. I always tell my producers, the minute you are playing music, just make sure my mic s connected because I have a story to tell. I always have a story to tell and I am happy that I have people that want to listen.”
She revealed that the last time she had a song on her lips was in early 2020 and the song was called “Poverty” which was inspired by the major job loss that occurred as a result of the pandemic.
She said she was happy that she was one of the artists that saved and made hay while the sun was up as this helped her during the lockdown.
However, she wasn’t totally free as her loved ones and even people she didn’t know were affected.
The singer also spoke about the songs she was going to perform during the interview. The first song, “Shekere” was revealed by her to be recorded in both pairs and Lagos. while the music video was shot in New York and Nairobi, Kenya.
Alade referred to her collaborator, Angelique Kidjo as her music mummy and mentor.
When asked what it feels like to be a woman, an activist and a celebrity and how she picks what to support.
She said while women are selfless and like to put people before themselves, she chooses to support things based on her conscience.
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According to her, whenever she sees her voice can assist, she assists. She stated that sometimes people just want people to echo their desires.
For her, activism is just a decoration or a badge on her CV but her calling as her background has made empathetic to other people’s problem.
Speaking on how she can empower women, the singer stated that representation matters as any female watching her from home is impacted by seeing a fellow woman achieve her dreams.
She also revealed that she has an NGO which focused on helping people reach the best version of themselves. She disclosed that recently through the NGO, she dispensed a certain amount of money to about ten women.
Speaking on forthcoming projects and potential African tours, she said that she has plans for an African tour but when COVID season is over which might be around 2022.
She also spoke that fans should expect exciting collaborations between her and other top female artists soon.