FEELING GROWN AND LEARNING FROM BEYONCÉ WITH SEYI SHAY
The music industry is heating up across the world, and one of Nigeria’s biggest stars is Seyi Shay. She has built her following to over 1.1 million global fans, and has just released her latest album 'Big Girl', featuring the likes of Backroad Gee and Calema.
She’s had a colourful experience in the music and entertainment industry so far, in our interview, I wanted to find out how her time being managed by Matthew Knowles, being a judge on Nigerian Idol and preparing this album have shaped her into who she is now - grown and proud.
Seyi Shay, let’s start by asking why your new album is called ‘Big Girl’?
“I’m feeling grown. I have been through a good few years of transformation, growth, reorientation, love, loss, pain and gain. Going through these phases makes you grow up and become a bigger person, especially when you come out the other side, still fighting. We called the album ‘Big Girl’ because I’ve evolved, I’ve done a lot and this album documents many of the transitions I’ve gone through in my life.”
One of my favourite tracks from your new album is Maserati Sexy. Do you have a particular audience in mind when you go into the studio?
“Maserati Sexy is honestly just me flexing! When I wrote the song I was on a jet on the way to filming, and I remember feeling the vibe and thinking to myself, why don’t I just sing about my experiences? Im flexing, and I’m allowed to flex. God has been good to me, I’ve lived a good life. I feel like a lot of females need to be more celebratory about their lives and make sure they don’t put too much pressure on themselves.”
How have you learnt to balance being an artist and all of the noise and media that surrounds it?
“I will never forget one thing that Matthew Knowles [Beyonce’s father] said to me: ‘You know, Beyoncé never reads the news or social media comments’, which is to protect your sanity. Once I reminded myself of this and starting doing like Beyonce does, I could properly live my life. My job is to make music and to entertain, nothing else.”
I know you don’t like to pin your sound as particular genre, do you find it hard to make it clear to people that just if the sound is coming from Africa, it’s not necessarily Afrobeats?
“I’m an African, Nigerian specifically. As a musician I’m going to want to be classed as an Afrobeat artist. On the album there is a lot of RnB and hip pop, but afrobeats are all encompassing, and there are also some obvious afrobeats records on there. I’d like to call this an afro, soul & RnB album.”
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