I AM NOT A CONTROVERSIAL PERSON -Queen Busola Oke

In this interview Murphy speaks with Busola Oke on her being a controversial person. Please read...

Busola Oke a.k.a Eleyele, a gospel singer, for some time now has not been in the country. But the cross-over artiste recently returned from her "journey," and immediately  launched her single album . AJIBADE ALABI caught up with her recently, where she spoke on many issues, especially on her relationship with Bayowa.

Excerpts:

Not much has been heard of you?

Yes I have not been around, I relocated to UK, but now I am back . And it has really affected my career which is the reason I’m coming back to pick it up from where I stopped. I relocated to London before but now I’m back to face my career.

Why did you relocate?

It is because I realized that I was not doing too well again in my career. I was more into making money instead of the normal gospel music that I’m known for. I was busy making money from my other profession aside my music and I know I’m better with music. It is not as if I was not making money from my fashion business but music is my passion and that’s what I derive joy from whenever I’m doing it. To some extent, fashion business is stressful but I made a lot of money from it. But the fact still remains that, I prefer doing what I enjoyed doing rather than what I stressed myself to achieved. For instance, when you have a natural talent, you don’t need to stress yourself at all because it comes naturally; it is not until you book an appointment with a customer or trying to fix up a customer. But for music, I enjoy doing it and it makes me happy and that’s why I’m back.

You lunched a double album recently, can you tell us about it?

I lunched a double album on the 9^th of June, 2013. It was titled ‘Grateful Heart’. The album is meant to appreciate my fans and to lunch myself back into the music world. People have been asking different questions about my whereabouts and the album was to show them that I’m still very much around. It was strictly for my fans.

Your latest single it titled ‘Music Sin’ what is it about?

Music Sin is a song that has to do with me and my God. It was basically the mistake I have made all in the name of Stardom.  How I abandoned my career or the concept I had before because of the love of money, material things, I deviated from my calling. For instance, when people started saying they like my music because it is danceable (Alujo), with that they started booking me for different shows. And doing that, made me forget the gospel aspect of my music. So, I was lost because I allowed stardom to get into my head. Music is just a way of begging God for forgiveness on several sins that I’ve committed against his will through my music.

Before you relocated, you were under Bayowa’s record and people were saying it is because you left his label that is why you were having problem with your career, how true is this?

No! I don’t know what people think but it is not as if I have problem with Bayowa. He’s still there like a father and I’m still close to his record label but the thing is I can’t be in a place forever. And again, I never left Bayowa’s record; it just that I relocated from Nigeria. And now that I’m coming back, I just felt, I have all it takes to be a record label owner, so why should I go under somebody again?

Some people said you relocated because you realised that you are not doing very well in music again, how true is this?

That’s not true. I relocated because I was married and the person that I got married to doesn’t live in Nigeria. My kids were not born in Nigeria and my husband is not living in Nigeria. So, how can I be in Nigeria and be marry to somebody living in abroad. I relocated for marriage not for anything.

Now, that you’re back, do you think your coming back to Nigeria will not affect your marriage?

No, it will not affect my marriage. Actually, I don’t want to talk about marriage, I just want to talk about my musical career.

No doubt, music has done a lot of things in your life; tell us some of the things that music has contributed into your life positively and the negative aspect of it?

Music has been so good to me and I’ve achieved so many things through music. The fame, progress and other good things that I’ve used the money that I got from my music to achieve, at least if I wasn’t into music, I wouldn’t have gotten the money in the first place. I think music have connected me with greater levels. And for the disadvantages, I’ve experienced a lot. From one controversy to the other and at times, people see female musicians as prostitute that they can’t advice any of their family member to get acquainted to. Many people believed female musicians are not decent. I’m not going to say that, I’m a saint and I’m not going to fight on behalf of anyone but I know and I’m sure that there is decency in music that’s if you choose to be one. Music is a very fulfilling job that has its own hazard. Life is full of ups and down and I thank God for my life.

You said you are not a saint; can you throw more light on that because a lot of things have been said about you before now?

Well, I’m not here to convince you about anything you’ve had, it’s a free world. You have the right to hear, digest and even conclude anything you hear but what I was trying to say there was that, female musicians are not prostitutes. Though, nobody is perfect and I’m saying I am perfect but I can be sure of myself, I don’t know what you feel inside you that I’m a decent  person. And the fact that I’m a musician doesn’t make me wayward and it doesn’t make me an indecent person. And it is always very difficult for female artiste in this industry to scale through this allegation because people won’t understand if you’re decent or not, everything is always causing confusion. Like I said, I’m not a saint because there is no perfect human being.   

Let us say this is your second chance, and the truth is that, those people that distracted you from your normal calling are still in the industry, what if they come with whooping amount of many, won’t you follow the same steps?

Thank you for the question. There is this Yoruba saying that says; “Owo Ti Omode Ba Koko Ni, Akara Ni O Ma Fi Je” mean the first major money made by a child will be spent lavishly.  I’m wiser now. I’m not the same Busola of 1998; I’m a different person now.  I got into this industry professionally in 1998 and I’m still here.  And I think if you can be in the industry for more than 15years and I’m not wise, I can never be wise again. I’ve learnt a lot of lessons and this time around, I’m watching my steps. I can start saying everything that I went through for derailing on the pages of newspaper but I know I’ve learnt my lesson.

Now that you’re coming back to God, what exactly has change in your music style?

With all due respect, my Alujo style cannot stop because there was Alujo in my previous music. Asoro Matase was Alujo all through and I was still the Busola Oke they used to know. So, my Alujo is not going to stop but all those club shows will stop. I don’t want to do club shows anymore. The only thing is that, if it is a gospel concert, I can come. But I can’t sing in any night club when I supposed to be singing in a church program on Friday, I’m not going to do that henceforth.

You are giving us the impression of you being a born again               

I’m not going to use the word ‘Born Again’ but I’m going to say this is new Busola Oke.

Does it bring spiritual or evangelism?

I don’t know what you mean by born again or evangelism, but the bible tells me that, gospel means good news. I don’t know what you’re expecting from me and it is not as if I’m a perfect being or I’m going to be almighty Jesus. For instance, there are some churches that if you go there, you will see people wearing mini-skirt, in fact some of them, their cleavages will be showing and you will see them wearing heavy make-ups and all these they are putting on does not make them a bad person or indecent person. I am telling you that this is new Busola, I’m not going to put money first but my career first. And put what I believed in first before money.

But don’t you think people that like your music for “Tungba” will be disappointed in you? I mean you might lose some fans, if you now play only gospel music?

No, they should not be disappointed, because the love song I have sung before is also gospel because. Eleyele is really about a wedding. I am going to continue with that, may be 80% of gospel and 20% of love.

Female gospel singers are now wearing mini and revealing sexy wears. What do you have to say to that?

I cannot say anything on that. You can see the way I dress. So to me any female gospel artiste can dress the way she likes. The bible has said it all, that “Only God knows who is a true believer”. My own is let the will of God be done in my life.

Which church do you attend?

I’m a celestial member and I’m proud to be one.     

We need to know what inspired you into music, tell us how you found yourself in music?

I didn’t know how I got there and I can’t explain how it started because it is a natural thing. I started singing since I was 6years old. When I was young, I joined the junior choir. Another thing that I noticed about me was that, if I’m walking or doing some I usually sing even when people offend me or when I’m devastated, I still sing. The number one thing that I first discovered when I was in Secondary School was that, anything that happened around me turned into music. That is how I get inspiration for my everyday life.

What do you have to say about what people are saying that are you a very controversial person?

First, I thank God that I’m still alive because it is only the dead ones they can stop talking about. Secondly, I don’t know what you mean by controversy because I can’t remember the last time I appeared on the pages of newspaper. But you know people develop controversy on assumption. It is a pity I’m not good looking (she laughed) and when it comes to good looking women, people says all sort of things about them. Even when they don’t see, they say they saw. For instance, in 2006, I was performing at a wedding ceremony in Nigeria, and the next day, I saw it on newspaper the following day that I was in London with Bayowa trying to abort a pregnancy that I had for him. I did not have anything with nor had any emotional relationship with Bayowa. When another other magazine sees that, they will start calling and the story will start generating other issues. That is why I said, controversy is based on assumption. Its might be true for others but I know myself and I know what I’m capable of doing.

Still on Bayowa issue. People are still insisting that you once dated him?