Rotimi Etumudon-Martins, a.k.a Alariwo of Africa, has made his mark on the Nigerian music scene. He tells CHUX OHAI why he is coming back to music after a long break.
You have been away from the music scene for a long time. What have you been doing?
I have been busy. I‘ve been busy in the studio working on my new project. I am almost done; the title of the album is ‘Back on Track‘. It is a 16-track album. When the time comes, people will understand why I have been away.
You recorded your first music album in 1998. Why has it taken so long to come back to the scene?
I released my second album titled ‘Boju Boju‘ in 2002 and since 2002, I have not another album. Now I am releasing my third album in 2010, eight years after, the noisemaker is back. I wanted to take my time and I have been busy all the while. I have been anchoring events as an MC and I am into event packaging. I run a music studio of my own and I am equally a broadcaster. I have been making noise here and there and positively too. Music is my calling and I felt I should take my time as the industry has become more competitive. I love competition and the competition is getting annoying, hence I have to do it right.
What do you mean by the competition getting annoying?
It is getting annoying in the sense that it is getting more interesting. Some people are playing trash, but they are selling. I think these days it is about singing nonsense to make money. That is not the kind of music I want to do, I am too mature for that. I would say with confidence and without apology that I am a veteran in this industry, in my own little way. I have to take my time to come up with something very creative and that is exactly what I am doing.
If some of your colleagues, I suppose younger colleagues, have been singing trash and smiling to the banks, don‘t you think you should toe the same line?
I am a godfather in the industry. I don‘t need to sing trash because people are singing trash and smiling to the banks. And I can tell you that 85 percent of them are doing well, it is only 15 percent that are singing trash. Most of them however are very creative and making sense with their music. I don‘t have to imitate them. When I released ‘Yawa go gaz‘, most of them were either in primary school or secondary school. I wanted to take my time; I didn‘t want to rush anything. When the time is right people will decide, I am a matured artist so I have to play mature music.