HE may be controversial, but rising star Ahmed Abiola Akinbiyi aka Bella Shmurda is a youngman that embodies what the Nigerian Generation Z identifies with. He is audacious, bold, compassionate and talented, and has continued to rise on the Nigerian music scene while appealing to fun music lovers. His biggest single, ‘CashApp’, remains one of the biggest songs in 2020 and 2021. The graduate of History from the Lagos State University, who was raised in Okokomaiko, a Lagos suburb, speaks to ADENIYI ADEWOYIN on his rise to fame, new EP, appreciation of traditional beliefs, and plans.
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YOU recently graduated from LASU, you must have been working on your new EP while still in school, how did you juggle both?
Well, it has always been like that before my first EP, even before my first break out in the industry. I have always been a student; I have always been working to fend for myself. So majorly, I think hard work, grace of God, and the mind set we all put at what we do matters a lot. You have to be passionate about what you do before you can make a thing out of it.
Did you have enough time to attend to your studies while in school?
Yeah! Obviously, but as a man, you have a way to balance things. I’m doing well in my music which is my major goal; the school is just an addition.
Your new EP is titled ‘High Tension,’ how did you come about the name?
Basically, I call myself a ‘tension’ because of my ability to penetrate against all odds, ability to strike, to show you to the world. I believe where I am coming from is not a place of opportunity. Finding me out here is a tension thing.
Where is that place you are coming from?
I’m from Okokomaiko in Lagos State. Yeah and it’s a place of less opportunities. But me being here as myself, I think it is tension and it’s high so that’s where the inspiration comes from.
Why did you decide to come out with ‘High Tension 2.0’?
Majorly, I want to bring out my sound to my fans. I want people to feel me more because most of the time, I’m the one featuring. Right now, I want to be the only one, to prove to my fans and my lovers that I’m a better person. I’m a better Bella Shmurda.
So there is no feature on the EP?
No, there is not. It’s just me and it’s to prove that I’m competent, that I can do it on my own. I have been doing this and I can still do it.
Are you insinuating that features might distract people from the kind of music that you are making?
No! Personally, I want to know my strength. I want to know what I can pull alone. I want to know how far I can reach. That’s why I’m the only one on my EP.
What was your impression after listening to the complete EP?
I felt this is coming in a different way. People would see another light of Bella Shmurda. Most of the songs on this EP are not just songs, they are songs that took time, and they are songs that I made to make people be able to relate better with Bella Shmurda. I want people to see a different light, a different dimension. That’s how I felt when I listened to all the songs on my EP.
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So when is your album coming?
Next year. Early next year.
You were spotted in Ghana with Wizkid. Did you produce a song together?
Yeah, we did something nice. Yeah, we made something good. So shout out to Wizzy.
With the current fame and fortune, what’s going to be your focus going forward?
My focus majorly is to improve life with any kind of business I want to do.
Having come from such a background and where you are today, what strikes you the most when you think about where you are coming from?
Looking back, as Bella Shmurda, I don’t want to go back there empty handed. You understand. I want to go back as someone that is representing, as someone that is helping, as someone that yes if they are talking about Bella Shmurda, the whole of Okoko will be there to defend my name. So, that’s what I want to do. That’s where I’m coming from. I want to be a better representative and I want to have proof for it. Not just Okokomaiko for mouth.
How did you find fame? How did this whole Bella Shmurda thing come about?
Ha! I started hustling from studio to studio. You know, leaving my hood to meet other people in their hood to get better experience, know what they are doing. I stay in Okoko while Poco Lee used to stay in Ojo. It’s the same area but on a different side. It’s like Victoria Island and Oniru. Yes, so you understand? My aims are to improve lives there. Even if my money cannot touch them, at least my music would. It can change some things, their mindset, and their standard of living.
When did you get to know you were popular?
I got to know I was popular when I made my remix with Baddo and even before then, in my own hood dem don know me say sabi boy but you know I had to be a better sabi boy. There was a day I went back to school, LASU, to do a show and the hall was filled up, and on top one track wey I don sing. Then I understood that mehn, things have changed and I have to do better. I can’t let them down. People wey don dey support dey, Bella Shmurda dis, Bella Shmurda dat, I go kon go there kondey flop? No nah.
In 2019, I remember that you said that the ‘struggle continues’ because the vision 2020 that was promised was not what we got. So the trend now is for artistes to come and speak against bad governance. Is there any song in this EP that is going to touch on that trend?
Yeah, and that’s ‘out there’ on the track. I no want may dem come carry me like ‘Igboho’ oh! But I have to be stylish with the way I’m talking because I’m more popular now. If na now I sing ‘Vision 2020’ dem go come carry me oh.
To your question, Yes, but you know, there are songs like that and I have to put them out. This is really my basic, my style of music. This is a conscious sound. I’m an historian. So, I know more of these things. I know our weakness, especially, as a country and I have to fight for it.
From where you are coming from to where you are now, what are some of the things that you could have done differently?
Well, I can’t change my behavior. I wish I could be an introvert instead of my present state of extrovert. I talk too much. It is like it is only me in the industry. Yes, I wish I could change that part of me but I’m not God. At one point, I had to understand myself. A lot of things that affected everybody affected me too but it is good when you notice things. It’s good when you are ready to change, you know, not everybody really wants to change. It is not easy to correct people, they still find themselves doing the same thing. There is a fear of change. There is a fear of the unknown because there are a lot of unknown things that are still bound to happen. One has to be strong.
Now talking about your tattoos, what influenced your tattoos?
This is ‘Allahu’ here, that’s God nau. I served God nau.
Where does religion and spirituality come into play for you as an artist?
A lot. This is because I was born into a polygamous family and we are into our African thing, our African religion. Being an African man, in action, plus I studied History, it went far. Religion and spirituality is a thing that you can contemplate. You can argue about it, you don’t know anything about it. You were not there when they were writing the Bible. All you just need is to understand who you are. Know your God and what you really want. All these deities are means to talk to God. The same is Jesus and Mohammed. Christians pray to God in Jesus name to get to God. The people who do our local religion pray to Ogun, they pray to Sango to get to God. So people don’t understand these things and they get to use their mouth to spoil what is ours. You know, God was not mad when he created Ogun and Sango and all of these deities. He was neither crazy when he sent Jesus and Mohammed, we just have to understand these things, our means to pray to God.
So are you saying that you practice African traditional religion?
I appreciate it more. It is not that I practiced it. But I appreciate it because I know what they are. I know what it is. It is good when you understand these things. If you pray to God to help you to kill someone, he would kill the person. What you want, tell God.
How well have you used the African traditional religion?
It is an everyday thing.
So let’s come to your fashion style. It’s not African. Is there a reason for that?
No! You know, in this game, you have to balance things up. You can’t be talking like an Orisa man and still be dressing like an Orisa. As an artist, I have to balance things up. Yes I am African, yes, I am traditional but at the same time I want to make everyone connect to my music, so I have to connect with them too through fashion.
If you didn’t study History in the university, would you be the same Bella Shmurda?
Yes, I would. History affected my perspective. I view things differently. If I had studied some other course, I would have viewed things differently too.
Do you have plans to further your education?
I want to go further but furthermore there is no time to go further.
In future, after success, what do you want your fans to identify you with?
First of all they should smile; they should dance, and be happy. You know, that’s the major thing. I want my music to appeal to people. Even if you are sad, when you listen to my music, I can give you a 100% assurance that you would like to dance and that is what I want to be known for. I want to be known as a talkative that sings senses. Not just a talkative but someone that spreads knowledge, someone that tries to revamp people’s knowledge.
Is there any artist that you are tailoring your career after?
A lot of artistes. We have Olamide Baddo representing the streets. We have the likes of Seun Kuti. They brought knowledge into the music. Shout out to everyone.