Yinka Ayefele is no neophyte when it comes to Nigeria’s entertainment industry as he is the creator of his own brand of music which he calls ‘Tungba Music.’ The Ibadan based singer whose debut album Sweet Experience, saw his fame and foryune rise astronomically, in this interview culled from Sun Newspaper, speaks on his meteoric rise from grass to grace, how he has managed to maintain stardom and oversee his sprawling businesses. Excerpts:
How I started
I have been in music since when I was in secondary school. I used to be a member of the Boys Brigades in my hometown where I played trumpet. I started playing guitar when I was in the choir. I actually developed the talent in music when I joined FRCN in Ibadan by producing jingles for programmes and so on. This was the time I discovered I had the potential in me especially when I had the accident and I had cause to raise funds, I discovered that I could work in the music industry full time.
Growing up
I came from a poor background. I was a child of a headmaster and I grew up in a disciplined environment. Imagine my dad as a teacher, he nurtured me with good moral qualities.
My music career
I usually say nobody knows tomorrow. I never knew I would become what I am today. As a matter of fact, I wished I became a banker. I strived to get a job in a bank but to no avail. I eventually found myself playing music.
How I maintain stardom
It is not easy because to satisfy everybody is the major problem. I found out that it is very difficult to satisfy everybody. As you know, my job can’t be done on my behalf like any other job. Like going for shows, attending programmes, people want to see Yinka Ayefele and not any other person. To maintain stardom, it takes a lot of financial resources, time and devotion.
On the planned demolition of his multi-million naira studio complex which generated an outcry from the artiste as well as public debate, Ayefele says:
“Naturally, I felt bad about the proposed demolition of my house. It’s a multi-million-naira property and imagine someone coming one day to demolish it. I thank God they are working around it. It is a way of beautifying the state and expanding the road for the benefit of all.”
The singer also denounced insinuation in some quarters that the planned demolition had a political undertone. According to him, “It is just an insinuation that there is political motive behind the demolition. I am not a politician and I am not biased. It is not only me that the Oyo State government’s policy is going to affect so I see no reason why people should insinuate a political motive to it. Because Yinka Ayefele has a name, is that the reason they will witch hunt me? Never! I belong to everybody and I play for all political parties and everybody that likes my kind of music.”
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