TAKE 5: Jeff Akoh

Jeff Akoh is a Nigerian singer signed to Temple Management. PHOTO| COURTESY

What you need to know:

  • They kept me on, even though I wasn’t the best performer that night, and I was like, hey, Jeff, you have to win this thing. It changed my life.
  • Music is what I’ve always wanted to do. When I was small, my dad would play us music before we went to school.
  • I never wanted to go to school, I just wanted to hear the music. I knew this was where I wanted to go. I’m close to living my dream.

Jeff Akoh is a Nigerian singer signed to Temple Management. He won Project Fame West Africa in 2015, and recently released his debut album, Lokoja. He was in Kenya last week to shoot the video for his collabo with Khaligraph Jones, Halima.

  

1. It must be so tiring for you to still be asked about Project Fame, three years later…

Yes, it’s been three years, but I am still totally grateful for that opportunity. At 18 years, I was the youngest winner at the time.

 

2. What motivated you to give the audition a try?

My mom! My mom is the one who made me do it. I had just finished school and was idle, so she was like, go for this thing. I did the auditions in Abuja, then Lagos, and I won. Did I think I would win? No, but I was very optimistic. At some point I got very low votes - I was nursing a broken  toenail and I was in so much pain, I couldn’t sing. They kept me on, even though I wasn’t the best performer that night, and I was like, hey, Jeff, you have to win this thing. It changed my life. Music is what I’ve always wanted to do. When I was small, my dad would play us music before we went to school. I never wanted to go to school, I just wanted to hear the music. I knew this was where I wanted to go. I’m close to living my dream.

 

3. Whose music did your dad play?

Michael Bolton, Westlife, Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross, Phil Collins. We not only listened to their music, we watched the videos too. My two siblings can sing too, though they are doing different things. My sister just graduated from university – she chose law.

4. Which artists do you enjoy listening to?

There are many, so the list would be a long one. There are artists, long dead, whose legacies still live on. Artists like Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Bob Marley, Fela (Kuti). Artists with spirit and soul. Those are the ones I look up to. They are more than artists. I would like my music to live on long after I am gone. I want to be celebrated years after my demise.

 

5. What can we expect from you this year?

Khaligraph and I finished shooting the video for the song Halima, and I also got to meet Naiboi. I am still looking forward to meeting other artists from Kenya as well. I’m all about the music this year. I released my album last year in October, so basically this year is dedicated to making music and releasing videos for the songs, with good visuals. In future, I would like to delve into other things, but right now, I’m an artist, I’m a singer, so expect music.