Popular highlife singer, Sunny Neji, tells Ademola Olonilua about his career and love life
Not much has been heard from you in recently times. What have you been up to?
I have actually been working; I have been recording. It’s just that I am taking my time to make sure that whatever album I release now would be worth the wait and would stand out. A lot is happening in the industry and I am just taking my time to make an impactful album and when people buy a copy, they will know they have something of substance. It is not as if I cannot be releasing an album every year, but it is not my style.
Most music lovers complain that today’s songs lack meaningful content, do you agree with that?
It is very hard for someone like me to criticise because what I might condemn is something someone else might love. I try not to be drawn into that argument. I just believe that if you know that what you are creating is real art, put it out and eventually people who really appreciate art would reckon with it. Real art is always long lasting and that is why you still see people singing Fela’s songs till date. When you have a creation of art, it will always outlive you. That is basically what I am doing. Regardless of what everybody is doing, I believe in doing things the way they ought to be done. I do my music based on how I feel it has to be done regardless of how others are doing theirs.
Many believe your career is dwindling, do you think they are right in their views?
People are entitled to their opinion. I just know I am working and eventually I will put out an album that the fans have been longing for.
We learnt your father was in the military?
Yes he was. Unfortunately for me, I never experienced that part of him because I am the last born. I never saw him in his uniform.
Did you at any point in your life aspire to become a soldier?
At some point, my father really wanted me to become a soldier but I was not cut out to be one. We all have our destinies regardless of what our parents want us to become. But children will only excel in their area of calling. I realised right from when I was a little boy that I did not have the strength to become a soldier. I don’t know if my father tried to put his other kids in the army but my own case was deliberate and I deliberately refused to join the army because I knew I was not cut out for it. I honestly do not know why he was very particular about me becoming a soldier and unfortunately, he did not live very long for me to ask him a lot of questions. By the time I was man enough to sit down and begin to talk to him, he was already gone.
You studied fashion designing at Yaba College of Technology but ever since you graduated, have you practised the profession?
No, I never did. The only stint I had with the fashion design industry was when I did my Industrial Training. Even all that while, music was burning in me so much and I could not wait to face it squarely. We all have a calling upon our lives and no matter where we find ourselves, if we do not heed our calling in life, one may never find any internal satisfaction until one yields to it.
But you were once a dancer in a cultural troop?
When I was a little boy growing up in the village, I used to dance a lot. That was an indication that music is in me. As a child, we had different peer groups in the village. The elders had theirs and we the children also had ours. I belonged to the children’s traditional dance troupe of my own little clan. We used to sing and dance at cultural events and we had rehearsals every evening. It used to be a very interesting and challenging period. Interesting because most kids at that time especially in my village wanted to be a part of that dance troupe; so we were like the superstars in the village. Also, to be chosen to wear the masquerade meant you were a big star but I never wore the masquerade. My immediate elder brother used to wear the masquerade then.
When you decided to make music a career, what was your parents’ reaction?
There wasn’t any opposition from my family. I grew up with my elder brother and it was in his house that I began to launch my music career. Living with him gave me the opportunity to be exposed to contemporary music. He gave me all the encouragement I needed.
Is it because you began as a cultural dancer that made you stick to highlife music?
When I started, I was exposed to every genre of music, not only highlife. I listened to everything but somehow, I became so connected to highlife spiritually. Every now and then, if you listen to me, you hear me delve into some other genres of music but predominantly, it is highlife. I am able to express myself better and connect with my fans through highlife. That is why whenever my fans hear me do another genre of music, most of them would complain. They are able to connect with me more when I do highlife.
What were some of the challenges you faced while building your brand?
It was very challenging in those days because you could not just go into the studio to record a song, release it and it would be everywhere like it is being done today. There was a process that had to be followed. We used to have proper recording companies then. What we had to do was to record a demo tape, submit it to a department at the recording company where the demo tape would be listened to. If they liked it, they would sign you on and you’d go to the studio to record properly and then they would release your work. That process used to help to separate the wheat from the chaff because if you were not truly talented, then it was very difficult to be heard. Those were some of the challenges we faced. It was not the era of having a compact disc. It was the days of vinyl and to record a master tape was not very cheap or easy. We do not have such challenges anymore today.
What is happening to your acting career?
These days, I have delved a bit into acting because people are approaching me to feature in their movies. To find the time to act is the problem but if I like a script and I can find the time, I will act. I did a movie last year, a Christmas movie. I act a bit but I am not fully into acting because I am occupied with the music that I do.
Shortly after the release of your hit song, Mr. Fantastic, ladies began to fantasise about you as their sex symbol, how did you manage them?
It is a normal thing. The truth of the matter is that if you are a pop artiste and you have done a song that people love, it is normal for ladies to fantasise about you because they constitute more than 70 per cent of our fan base. If you have a concert and it does not have more ladies in attendance, you will not enjoy it because they are very emotional and they tend to support and follow what they like more than the guys. It is a normal thing for ladies to have fantasised about me and they still do. When people ask me how I have been handling my female fans, I tell them that I need the female fans as much as I need my male fans. Luckily, they tend to be more supportive when it comes to music and arts generally.
Is that why ladies always fought over you?
It is not fighting physically, they just wanted to show their appreciation that they loved what I was doing.
Amidst all that, how did you meet your wife?
I just walked into my bank one day and I met her. I think she had just started working at the bank and someone introduced us. The person said that she was from my place and he went ahead to introduce us. When I saw her, instantly I knew she was my wife. To be honest, before I met her, marriage was the farthest thing from my mind but immediately I saw her, I started thinking of marriage.
We learnt you hardly went to church till you met your wife?
It is true and that is why I always say that there is a man for every woman. You will know when you meet that woman that God has predestined to be your wife. She will set you straight and help you organise your life. She would give your life meaning and make you more committed and responsible. If you have a woman in your life who is not helping you to be a better person, then there is something wrong.
Is it true you proposed to her in the banking hall?
Immediately we were introduced, I asked her if she would be my wife and she was shocked. She did not even know when she said yes. I believe that is how it was predestined to be.
But it was insinuated that you married her because she was a banker and she had money?
That is a very funny thing to say. In life, I have come to understand not to always engage people because they are entitled to their opinion and they would always have something to say no matter what you do. In life, it does not matter what you do, someone would always have a contrary opinion. But the most important thing is for you to know what you are doing. I married my wife because I fell in love with her instantly. – Punch.
