Why I’m called Temi Doll Face
When I was living in London I used to visit flea markets a lot and some people would say my face looked like a doll. I didn’t think of my face in that way. Anyway, I felt the name sounded interesting and I decided to add ‘doll face’ at the end of my first name, Temi. Come to think of it, I needed to make a clean break from the record label that I belonged to. I needed to start afresh with a different sound and identity. I just felt like turning a new leaf. Then again, it was easy to find the name if you searched online. I don’t mind that people think I look like a doll. I don’t mind that I look like a pretty Barbie. I like to dress up like a doll. Dressing up like that is not a problem for me.
Why I returned to Nigeria
I left Nigeria at the age of 15. I attended a boarding school before going to the university. There is no place like home. I have lived in the United Kingdom for a long time and I just felt like something was missing. I was signed on to a record label. They tried to make me the British answer to Lauryn Hill. And as much as I loved Lauryn, I just couldn’t be her. My creative freedom is the most important thing to me. I had to come back home. I had cousins here who were also active in the music industry. They advised me to come back. I came back last year and I have spent more many months already. I didn’t plan to do that. I just wanted to come back and see what happens and go with the flow. I met Icon, a music producer and I didn’t know we could have creative chemistry. We got into the studio and we just clicked. The chemistry is very rare. We did one song and I decided to stay. But I still plan to be an international artiste. There are lots of stuff I do that I am not sure will be understood here. I am beginning to see a difference in the reception for my music. I really want to establish something here. I am finally home. I would like to say this is my base now. But I would visit London occasionally to play at gigs there.
Getting used to the home scene
Now I am used to the home scene. I used to come home every Christmas and my family used to visit me in London once a year, at least. Most of the folks I grew up with lived in England. We had our own little Nigerian community in England. We had a Nigerian market, too. Since my return, life hasn’t been as tough as I initially expected. Some friends of mine who returned to Nigeria before me are showing me the ropes and helping me to break into the system. I am thankful for the friends and families I have. Although I miss England, anytime I am there I miss Nigeria. There are so many things I miss. I did a lot walking on the streets of London. If you do that here, an okada will just knock you down.
My kind of music
I call it ‘drama soul.’ I didn’t think it would fit into the norm here. I wouldn’t say I am a rhythm and blues or a jazz artiste. I am a mixture of everything. I am influenced by everything. I am a multi-genre artiste and I am dramatic. I am always acting out a character when I am performing live on stage or in the studio. I know my music will be commercially successful, though what sells here is basically dancehall and hip hop. I am trying to rise to the challenge of becoming a successful and acclaimed artiste. I love Afrobeat and I incorporate it into my music. You can dance to my music. I have about two albums worth of materials, but it is not everything that I would release right away. I will start with an EP with about three or four songs.
Dealing with competition
I have noticed that everybody wants to be a singer. But then, coming from a completely different background, everybody else is already setting me apart. I think from the responses I have received so far from playing gigs, there is a market for me. Another thing that will set me apart is fashion. I am self styled. I style all my videos and all that. I have a slightly different style from what is already in vogue here.
Collaboration
I have recorded a song with SDC (Show Dem Camp). It is a song called Listen. I will be working with Dipo. I will probably be getting in the studio with Lynxx. I am looking forward to work with Cobhams Asuquo and maybe, with MI. That will be nice. I am still a newcomer. I am trying to get my feet wet.
My life in the UK
Apart from music, I was a stylist and a fitness instructor in the UK. Ever since I returned to Nigeria, I have been eating a lot of ‘Agege’ bread. I need to get back to fitness. I have been working out with an amazing trainer called Ponle. Hopefully in the future, we might do a fitness video together. Basically, I was making music in the UK. Music is everything for me. I produce, compose and write songs and I direct. I am responsible for my image and every decision that I make.
My former records label
I was signed on to Sony Music. I had a very dodgy manager. I was young and naïve. I didn’t know anything about the music industry. All I knew was that I had a dream. Somebody now took advantage of it. Initially, I was so glad that I was signed on to Sony. But I started seeing things as they were. I knew I didn’t want my name next to an album that didn’t bear the full stamp of my authority. I didn’t have any say over how my songs were produced. It was a harrowing experience. You only get one chance to make a first impression. The audience wouldn’t give you a second chance to come back with what you really are. I had a record deal with them. Too much dodgy stuff went on with my manager. I met my manager first. He had an existing relationship with Sony. They called me and I brought my keyboard and I played to 20 members of the staff and I got a standing ovation. But it wasn’t as simple as it looked.
How my career started
I think my romance with music started right from the cradle. My mum said I used to dance each time she played music. I just started writing songs when I was seven years old. They were mostly gospel songs because I was raised in the church. I wrote a lot about Jesus. I had a little band and we would sing and adults would come and look at us. My mum is an artiste. I left the country thinking I could do something professional. She wanted me to do something I could fall back on if music didn’t work out. There was nothing I wanted to do apart from music. But I still got a degree in food science and nutrition. Can you imagine that? I just knew I wasn’t supposed to do this first week in the university. But I managed to stay till the end. I attended the University of Surrey.
Coping with scandals
I have always wanted to have a clean image and keep my personal life away from prying eyes. My music is what I have to give to the world. It is a gift I was given and I want to share it. But every career has its unpleasant side. Some artistes don’t get the formula right. I just want to keep my private life private. But some people choose to read things the way they want. I could be talking to you now and some people would just assume we are lesbians. I hope it doesn’t happen. I am not a super woman. I am human.
My relationship vs. my career
I am not involved in any relationship. I am facing my career at the moment. I want to give music everything I have now. Anything can happen, you can never tell. If God decides to throw anything into my life now, I will know because it will feel right.
My family
My father passed on recently. My dad was half Yoruba and half Igbo. My mum is half Yoruba and part West Indian and Scottish. I don’t really want to talk about my dad. Unfortunately, we never really had a cool relationship. I don’t want to get into that. It is a hard one to talk about it.
Growing up
I was raised by a single mother and my grandparents. My parents got divorced pretty early. I never lived with my dad. My family got into the church. My mum is an Adefarasin. They are all pastors, including my mum. I grew up around Christian music. At a point, I felt I was starved of secular music. Then I would lock myself in my room and listen to secular music on the radio. I didn’t feel as if I was rebelling. I was just being myself. But with time and understanding, my mum finally came around. I have her support. She is cool with what I am doing, though I don’t know if I am cool with her being cool with my music. I was on the set of a music video set the other day and I had to do a shot. The make-up artiste said I should look sexy and all that. I wanted to do that, but my mum was right there. I had to ask her to leave. Anyway, she is cool with my music and she has been very supportive.
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