It’s a Thursdays morning. You walk into Cobhams Emmanuel Asuquo’s cozy office in Lekki. As he welcomes you in warmly, you notice that the book shelves are filled with the Holy Bible in Braille and plaques. And just beside his table is a card that reads, ”Thank you Uncle Cobhy”. In this interview with Yetunde Oladeinde, he talks about his first album which will be released next month, what his wife means to him and the thrills of working with artistes around the world.
WHAT are we to expect in your first album? I think you should expect a lot of truths. People should expect a lot of honesty, artistic truths. The album is very personal and very intimate. So, there is a lot of expression of truths behind it.
Political truths?
Hmmm … It is emotional and spiritual. Not really political. I have created materials with a bit of political undertone and I feel that this is going to come through; this is a series of three albums that have already been recorded. Of course, every other thing is important to me. My God, my family and people. These are the things that the albums that I will be releasing over this period of time would be reflecting.
This is your first album, why did you wait this long?
I spent a lot of time creating music for other people. I did that for two reasons. The first is that when I started out, I didn’t like my own voice very much. So, I felt that the best way that I could express music was using other people’s voices to do the things that were in my head. Then on the other hand, I was going with production, interpreting the things in their head as opposed to the things in my head. So, I learnt that and realised it was fascinating to help others birth their dreams and help create someone’s sound.
So, I did that for a long time and I enjoyed it while I did it. I still do it, every now and again, but over time, I have come to accept my voice for what it is. I also realised that there are certain emotions and certain truths that must be said by me or should be said by me. Other people are going to say it how they want to say it but I control how I say it. And so, I decided that I would go to studio and create it. Also, it comes to me naturally to write music and I think I am able to master my voice better now.
Talking about truths, is the message going to be very deep?
First of all, my position on the usual Nigerian music is that millions of people cannot be wrong. There are millions of people who love and embrace afro beat. It is a sound that has come to stay. However, the Nigerian music space should accommodate other genres and other forms of music. This album was not created to fit into a box, it was created to be my musical expression and I don’t know if I have heard songs in the album played in clubs but we never know. It is definitely true to the kind of sounds that I would create and I don’t want to say that it is not mainstream because, really, anything can become mainstream.
Someone like Nikky Laoye talks about you as a great source of inspiration, how would you describe her?
I think she is a bundle of talent. She is a strong woman and I have a lot of respect for strong women; people who are able to hold their own and stand out in an industry that is male-dominated. She is always striving to create her own sound. She is a hard worker and the honest truth is that the principle of hard work and consistency is that you get good results. And I think that she is someone who strives to do that. And because of that, her music has been able to be placed where some of her contemporaries struggle to get into, not necessarily being as successful. She has done amazing things. She is a gospel artiste who won at the Headies. It is a feat when your music is not boxed in because of your beliefs, and on stage people can recognise you and the brilliance of your work. I think that is something that Nikky Laoye has been able to earn for herself, I respect that very much.
Let’s also talk about some other artistes that you have worked with
I have worked with a lot of artistes and, for me, to work with an artiste, then I have got to like something about them. They are all unique and they bring something different to the table. The first person I worked with, I can’t really remember. I started at about 15 or 16 years and it was about me having said that I was a producer even before I got into the studio. The first song that made me really go commercial was after I had worked with the group called Maintain.
Olu Maintain?
Not just Olu. Maintain was still a group that was in 2002 or thereabout. I was 21, young and excited and we took Bamo; he took a chance with me. Something a lot of established acts were afraid to do at that time. For a number of reasons; number one, they thought I was young. Then number two was could you trust a blind guy with your stuff? So, you know, Big Bamo took a chance. We made that song, put it out there and it became a hit. That was my first major commercial success.
This is valentine season, let’s talk about you wife. What does she mean to you?
She is special. She is my friend, gists’ buddy. There is absolutely nothing we don’t talk about, nothing we can’t pray about. She is someone I am not afraid to be vulnerable with. We have a very special relationship and she is someone that I am not afraid to disagree with because disagreement does not always mean lack of love. You are safe with a person when you can agree and also disagree. She is the smarter of the two of us; she is super smart and super humble. She is a good lesson to anyone who would want to let her; she is very creative, very artistic. She is definitely my best friend.
How did you meet her?
We met at the library, the public affairs section of the United States Information Service (USIS). That was in 2001.We were both studying to go to the US and she eventually ended up going. She left two years later and I stayed back. We became great friends; we were friends for many years. We were just friends and we were good friends for many years, about eight or nine years. Then we realised that it was time to take the relationship to the next level.
What were the qualities that you saw in her then?
Her honesty; sometimes brutal, but always necessary. She is someone who generally is not afraid to speak her mind especially when it concerns me. Someone who is not afraid to tell you the truth with the hope of helping you to be better. Then she is a very kind person, considerate of others. I think that I have a very interesting temperament and I know that I am not the most perfect person. I can be easy enough to get along with just anybody. Obviously because of the grace of God upon my life, in a place where I can be a lot to a lot of people and I can add value and when you add value people can tolerate you more. So, your relationship a lot of time is based on what you can give. My relationship with her is not based on how she treats me alone, but how she treats other people who cannot be what I am to her. I think that is the sense of true compassion and kindness. When you are fair with how you see things and how you see people and when you respect people not because of what they can be to you but because they are people. She is that way and everyone else in her family is that way. They are amazing people.
How are you spending this valentine with her?
Ha! That is not for me to reveal. I am not going to reveal the surprise. All I know is that it is an interesting time for us as a family. We are working together on the album and getting ready for the 12th of March when the album will be dropped at a launch. She is a big part of that; she is a part of everything that I do. In the midst of all of that, we recognise the season that we are in. We would do our best in our own little, private way.
Let’s talk about the memorable moments in your life and career
I have had a few; one of them is in the time of recording this album and the kind of emotions that you deal with creating a project like this. It’s been a roller coaster of emotions. There are very good days and sometimes there are down days and putting all that together. Also, working with musicians around the world and creating the projects, the recordings were live and working with great musicians. Then the time I share with my family. I have a lot of fun times creating music. In terms of specific times, one comes to mind. We were in New York and I was trying to reach a friend of mine, Bono, who is part of a group called U2, an international group was passing with his entourage and obviously the security won’t let me talk to him, a super star, one of the greatest artistes in the world. I reached out to him and he said Cobhams, just being remembered and recognised by somebody of that stature and magnitude, in a place like that! Everyone broke ranks and allowed us to embrace and while that was happening the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, was passing about the same time. This was at the Central Park in New York and Bono stopped Ban Ki Moon and they began a conversation. He introduced Ban Ki Moon to me with very glowing words. There we were holding hands, myself, Bono and Ban Ki Moon. That for me is a
