Weird MC Interview!
Hey again, It's interview time again...! And this tyme we've got excerpts from a recent one-on-one with none other than Weird Mc aka The Rappatainer! She requires no introduction, being one of the biggest Nigerian Female Artistes who manages to blend Western and African lyrics and beats so seamlessly...But enuff of the "hero-worship", read on urselves!!!
REAL NAME?: Adeshola Idowu
HOBBIES/INTERESTS?: I like reading and i'm a movie addict
STAGE NAME?: Rappatainer /Weird MC
What has been the greatest challenge so far in your career?
My first greatest challenge was to change the way nigerians perceived hiphop music in general when i dropped my first album pple were not really receptive to hiphop in nigeria i took it upon myself to make a change let pple see that that there was nothing to fear sometimes promoters even shied away from booking me until Benson n Hedges picked me up then came the awards and accolades. i think another challenge is right now in the sense that i've been away for a while n i'm sort of staking a claim again how this new joint is received remains to be seen although i know god is on my side but it will be nice to see what happens.
Who or what is the major influence in your Creativity as an Artist?
My major influences musically are Fela Kuti, Missy, miriam Makeba, Brenda Fassie and Lagbaja. The major things which inflence me creative wise are things which go on around me, terms pple use, my life experiences.
Why and What made you decide to be an artiste?
I remember seeing concerts on tv i was blown away by the way the artistes were able to hold thousands of pple together with words with their songs with their intense stagecraft i was in awe. i was like damn i want to do this. then i discovered this beautiful thing called hiphop it was decided, the freedom which came with it the attitude,the energy. another thing was that i didn't want to do what everybody was doing our parents have this thing about go be a doctor, lawyer,teacher or a nurse i wanted more than that i wanted to take a risk.
Do you enjoy what you do?
Yes i love what i do i love bringing new songs to life, i love performing on stage that's like paradise for me that's my own perfect vacation it's like i'm in my own world in my own space by myself i just let down my guard n let loose. having said that i resent the politics and the bullshit in the business.
What is your motto?
Let sleeping dogs lie..live n let live
What are you goals as a Songwriter and Performer?
I'd like to create classics which pple could relate to long after i'm gone you know pencil evergreen songs that's why i love Bob Marley..fela Kuti those guys wrote tight stuff the other day i was listening to some stuff by Ray Charles it was like fresh dew
Do you have a favorite among your songs?
To be honest i love all my songs cuz they touch upon different things "Da Way We Blo" and "Ijoya" will make u bounce in da club "African Woman" a song i wrote with 2face idibia and blackface will make u think and u will go on a trip if ur a woman. "TIRENI" a gospel track shows a different side of me i think it's a song which will surprise a lot of people "Palava" i love cuz i recreated a fela kuti classic and femi kuti collaborated with me on it.
What support do you receive from receive/received so far from your peers?Yes artistes like Femi Kuti,Alariwo of Africa,Pupa Tee, Kween,Lagbaja,King Sunny Ade,Shina Peters,Aladin Sani, Dede Mabiaku JJC/ 419 Squad, KWAM 1 have always been so supportive, i got stuck once before i mounted the stage at my first benson and hedges appearance in Kano nigeria 5mins before going on we discovered there was no guitar i almost freaked out shina peters came to my aid he had about 3 guitars so he gave us one to use. I went down to Ghana at some point on a promotional tour King sunny Ade picked up the tab for my travel and accommodation expenses i'd never forget that. When i was recording my interpretation of fela kuti's classic song "When trouble sleep" i invited Femi Kuti to feature alongside me on the song he came down to the studio and did his thing no ego no hang ups. The most recent support i got was from Dede Mabiaku during the All African Games in Abuja he fought on my behalf to secure reasonable hotel accommodation i was deeply touched other so called big artistes will simply mind their business but he went to war with the organisers.
Performances/Collabs?
Live on stage and in the studio with Tony Allen, Femi kuti, yinka davies,tuface, blackface, lagbaja, king sunny ade, blakky, osibisa, Afrocelts, shrine,jjc/419, kween, Alariwo, pupa tee and Aladin Sani.
What magazines have you been featured in?
God loads i'd just reel out the ones i can remember guardian,cyrstals,effects,voice,new nation, ovation, hiphop world, Vanguard, New Age, African Videos, Mondomix [paris], folk roots, City People,Ffame, Encomium, Today's Choice, global excellence, daily times, griots.net, womex, tribune,irohin, sunday guardian, metro, hackney timesPride and so on the list is endless and now on Naijalife Magazine.
Describe yourself?
I'm an introvert in a sense, shy, crazy in my own way.
What makes people want to work with you?
Most of the time i've been approached to do collabos after pple see me on stage i've found that i impact pple intensely after they come see me do my thing on stage. I also put out positive vibes especially when i'm doing my music so i guess pple see that n they think hey i wanna work with her.
So what makes you unique?
I think being myself makes me unique the way I do my thing the way i express myself maybe the way i bring it on when i'm performing.my sound makes me unique too i think.
What image do you think your music Conveys?
Musically i'm quite diverse so i think i put across different moods i've got songs with a political undertone in the same breath i've got tracks that will make u party till u drop then i take u someplace else by mellowing it down my songs depict that variety is the essence of life.
How do you describe your music to people?
I've never tried to pidgeon hole my sound i do music with a hiphop sensiblity but still i think i manage to transcend categorisation. I just tell people that i do music period.
What are your Immediate Music Career Goals?
To put out my new joint i had a good summer last year in terms of concert appearances i pray to god that i'm able to get more this year i'm also itching to get my hands on more awards. later in the year i'd like to set up a multimedia/recording facility in Nigeria. I have a homebased one in the u.k. already. In the next 1-2 yrs i'd love to have appeared in a couple of movies and do t.v. stuff. I love movies i also hope to nurture acts and put them out in the market place via my label imprint 0907 Entertainment.
How Do You Rate a Good Live Performance and how do you rate your live performance abilities?
The feedback is always glaring the way the crowd relates to you gives you an indication of how successful your outing is most of the time when i've had a good live performance people come to see me backstage ..fans..journalists...my live performance abilities i think are excellent i've always known how to work a crowd i do enough to win them over i spent time honing my craft it's like mathematics you've got to know when to step it up n slow it down sometimes you 've got to be "FULLON" no mistakes allowed.
Can you tell us a songwriting process in Details?
It could be a hook playing around in my head i just take it from there i don't really have a set formular for writing my material it could even be a phrase i just let my creative juice flow the song ijoya was born out of a bassline progression i kept humming the bassline n i took it from there my junior brother biodun came round the house n he started adding extra lyrics to my ideas n we just put it down at my home studio. later on i finished it up at JJC's studio BackBone Music.
What are your songs About?
My songs touch upon things which happen around me, certain attitudes which people have it could be doing stuff borne out of real life experiences. The song African Woman was written to address the disrespect we encounter as women.
Can you specify what themes they cover?
Spirituality, Fun, Social consciousness, High Energy, sometimes some tongue n cheek stuff.
Who was your first love?
I no remember that one o
Your Fave Food?
rice fried plantain n stock fish.
Drink:
cocacola so they better give me an endorsement deal one day amen...i also love sweet palmwine
Place:
My space.. anywhere nice peaceful and sunny
Sign:
i'm a cancerian in command
Language:
Yoruba/English.ijebu lingo?
Country:
Naija anyday i love yanky 2 sha
TV shows:
Sex in the city, mtv cribs
Actors:
Jamie foxx, Tom Cruise, RMD, Emeka Ike, Will Smith.
Movies:
Jungle Fever, Living in Bondage, Bangkok Hilton.
Song:
Greatest love of all
Actress:
Charlize Theron
Tell us about your first kiss:
u guys r naughty
first date:
hmm it's been a while
first concert that wasn't yours:
Bobby Brown
first Song you wrote:
seriously i can't remember
First real relationship:
Are relationships real these days?
So what does the future hold for You?And What advice do you have for up and coming Music Artistes?
keep it real stay away from the bullshit there's alot of that in this business trust nobody when all is said and done it's everyman for himself. be yourself cuz pple can tell a phony a mile away
To find out more about Weird Mc, check out her website here WEIRD MC
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I'm soo loving ur blog right now and ur celeb hot list on the right! Weird MC she went to Sagamu right? Cos she had been rapping from time menn
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Cool interview..Yeah she went to Shagamu and I think the chicks a lesbian..Cuz back in skull she was quite tomboyish!I see the way she was ducking all those relationship questions!
By 
, at 12/14/2006
, at 12/14/2006
