Naeto C
Naeto C, rap artiste and son of a former minister of Aviation, Kema Chikwe, tells obasanjo adeosun about his career and fashion
How has the feedback been for your new song, Atide?
The feedback has been great and I released the song to let people know that I would be releasing a new album,
Festival,
soon. That song is the first song that I would sing in Yoruba. The
feedback has been great given the fact that it was released a few weeks
ago.
What influenced you to sing in Yoruba as an Igbo boy?
My
experience as an artiste who sings in various Nigerian languages has
made me understand how rich our culture is. For me to be able to
communicate ideas through my music in different languages, it is a very
powerful tool. Regardless of my ethnicity, I am a Nigerian before I am
Igbo. It is important to think outside the box sometimes and do
something new that would make you connect with your fans from different
ethnic backgrounds.
How come it took you about three years to release an album?
To
be honest, it took me a while to release this album because a lot of
things were happening with the label, Storm Records that I was working
with. The label had problem and it affected what we had already built.
You see the success of other prominent record labels in the country and
you can see what some artistes have done for the record label. It shows.
I did not have that. Even when I got married, I was still releasing
songs but what happened with Storm Records affected me a bit and things
were not the same again. It was no longer fun to do music there because
those were the people I started with. Having to lose the people I
started with did not put me in a very good mood to do music. I later got
over it and I have been working on this album. It is more of a personal
thing.
Is it true that you did not part ways with Storm Records in a peaceful way?
No,
it is not true. I was never actually signed to Storm Records. There was
never any paper work and when problems began, I decided that I had to
take matters into my own hands as opposed to leaving it in the hands of
people in Storm Records because I knew that they already had issues
there. It was just a function of telling, Obi Asika, that I had some
songs that I wanted to release independently and he understood. At a
point, I actually brought a management company into the picture but they
were scared. We never had any issues in terms of me stepping aside.
Did you make any effort to make things right within the record label?
Yes,
I tried my best because the owners of the record label, Obi Asika and
Olisa Adibua, are my big brothers. I have known them for a very long
time and Obi Asika is my cousin. I have made numerous efforts to see if
it is something that could be salvaged but when you are dealing with
adults, you have to be careful. I did try numerous times to make things
work.
How did you feel when you learnt that NBC banned your song, Tony Montana?
I
felt the board was very late in banning the song because I released
that song in 2012 and it was banned in 2015. Also, in the video, there
was a disclaimer that no one should try the stunts we did in the video
and if they had seen the music video, they would have seen the
disclaimer. If they are going to ban the music video because we used
guns in it, then they should ban movies with guns and occult scenes.
However, that is our reality. I don’t think we communicated anything in a
distasteful manner neither did we communicate the wrong message to
kids. I have two kids and naturally when you have kids, you think about
other kids in whatever you do. I respect the organisation and I would
not talk down on it but I don’t think it was necessary to ban the video.
When
you started your music career, you were fond of wearing a cap normally
worn by northerners. What influenced that fashion trend?
I
lived in Abuja and I was around a lot of Hausa people so they
influenced me. I remember one time I went for a show with Mo’hits then
and Don Jazzy wore a Hausa cap, I felt it was cool and I started wearing
it.
At what point did you dump the trend?
It
was when everybody else started wearing the cap. I just felt it was a
fashion trend I started and as everybody else had followed suit, I
realised it was time to create another trend. Life is all about growth
and if I was still wearing a Hausa cap till now, then it means that I
did not grow. I felt I should leave the trend for the younger ones.
How many of those caps did you have?
I
had a lot. I had about 70 of them and those caps are not cheap. The
least expensive one I bought was about N45, 000. They have some that
cost as much as N120, 000. There is one they call Senator and that is
what our senators wear. Those ones cost about N30, 000. They are not
cheap at all. Back then, I could afford to buy them because I was still a
bachelor and I did not have any responsibility. There was no mouth to
feed so I could buy a cap for N50, 000 and after a show, I would dump it
at home or give it out to a fan.
You are fondly referred to as White Kaftan. What informed that nickname?
It
is just a nickname and my favourite colour is white. White Kaftan
itself is symbolic to me because it represents a certain level of
excellence. When you wear a white Kaftan, it is like you are going for a
celebration or an important meeting.
Why do you like wearing native attire?
It
is because I am very comfortable in them. I think I have reached a
stage in my life whereby I feel like it is important to do what you want
to do as opposed to what the society expects you to be doing. One has
to grow and you have to evolve. You have to dress in the best way that
is comfortable for you. Wearing the native attire makes me feel down to
earth. I have a great sense of fulfilment when I wear native attire and
it makes me feel like a regular guy. Sometimes, it is not what my
manager or publicist wants but at the end of the day, I don’t want to
feel like I am in a cage. I don’t want to feel like I cannot go to the
mall or the bank to get my BVN. I don’t want to be in a cage because I
am a superstar. Also, I love our culture and I have this sense of
patriotism whenever I wear the native attire especially outside Nigeria.
I am very patriotic.
What is your fashion weakness?
I
like sneakers a lot and I have so many pairs that I have lost count.
Because it occupies a lot of space in my house, I had to put them in
boxes. I think I have five boxes filled with sneakers.
What would you never be caught wearing?
That
is very tough but I think it would be earrings. I am too old for
earrings. I also don’t like the beads that look like rosary. I really
dislike them. I am a Catholic and I feel that a rosary is not a fashion
statement. Certain things should be left alone. If you want to wear a
chain with cross on it, cool, but a beaded rosary is not cool. I would
never wear that.
What is the best fashion item you have received from your wife?
Before we got married, she got me a lovely blazer.
What is the fashion item you cannot leave home without?
I would say it is my jewellery.
You used to sag a lot; how come you stopped?
I
think I grew up and realised it looked stupid. When I was a younger
artiste, I did not care much about my image. But now that I am grown, I
pay attention to my image because the people I perform for are my
clients.
My client is a mature person who obviously can afford my
services. You don’t want your client to see you as irresponsible because
tomorrow, when you go to the same client for a business proposition, he
would not take you seriously if you are sagging. The client would see
you as immature and irresponsible. I think being mature and responsible
made me stop sagging.
