From Noah Ebije, Kaduna

For Simon Waziri, 23, from Hong town of Adamawa State, his interest to go into the music industry was inspired by the late American singer and King of Pop, Michael Jackson as well as the sensational R&B duo singers, Peter and Paul Okoye, popularly known as P-Square.

Speaking to reporters in Kaduna over his ambition to become a big-time professional musician, Waziri, now an undergraduate at the Open University of Nigeria, disclosed that his interest in music increased when he started secondary school education in Yola which he completed in 2017.

He said he is inspired by P-Square’s music because they “have contributed immensely to the growth of the Nigerian music industry and to Africa at large, using their music to promote African culture.”

The upcoming music artist said he took after his mother as far as dancing is concerned, saying: “My mother dances a lot”, and adding that: “My father once told me that he has lost interest in music long time ago”.

The budding musician called on music lovers all over the country to encourage him morally and spiritually to find his feet firmly in the music industry, just as he appealed to media organisations to expose him to the outside world for possible sponsorship.

“My name is Simon Waziri, and my nickname is Shine boy. I am from Adamawa State, Hong town precisely. I am 23 years old. I was born in Kano, I started my primary school education in Kano, and then we moved to Yola.

“In Yola, I developed an interest in music. I started playing with my friends. I like dancing, I started going to clubs with my friends. I like Michael Jackson, P-Square. I was getting inspired. I did not know that I could actually go into music. I started singing like Michael Jackson, P-Square then and there.

“So when I started my secondary school education, I decided to go to the studio with one of my friends who is now a soldier. In the studio, my producer recorded me when I started singing. The producer asked me whether I wrote the songs. I said no, I did not write because I did not know that I needed to write. I was just singing off hands. So he advised me that I should write down my songs with choruses.

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“I went back home and I started writing my songs. By God’s grace, today I am a good songwriter. This is a special part of my talent; I can write songs at any moment, and at any given time. I thank God for this gift.

“I have been into music like five years now. I was just doing it on my own before support started coming from my father. He started supporting the recordings of my songs. I have so far received an award in Abuja as the best music writer of the year, 2021. We did some video shooting, one of my videos is currently on the cable. I titled the song, ‘Looking Up’.

“I finished my secondary school in 2017. I got admission into Open University in 2021. I am offering International Relations. I did not offer to read music in the university because at the time of admission it was an International Relations course that was available for me. But I know that one day I will study music. I just said let me start schooling so that I will not be idle at home. I know, later on, I am going to go for music professionally.

“I believe that I can go far in music. I know I can do more in music. As you know music appeals to the heart. Unfortunately, some people thought musicians are just into smoking and drinking. But the fact is that music uplifts the weak mind and motivates leaders to do for the people. I can tell you that some people who wanted to lose hope in life regained hope through musical messages. This is the type of music I want to do and I know one day I will do it.

“I did not actually listen to gospel music when I was growing up. Though there are a couple of times I sat down to write gospel music, I never got to produce them. I know there are good gospel musicians in the country and I know some people are motivated by them.

“Today I can write songs and produce them, but I am appealing to music lovers all over the country and beyond to assist me financially and morally and I need the media too for awareness because with the media my music will be exposed to the world.

“I do my things on my own, I want to go solo to avoid dispute because even brothers doing things together can have a dispute. So it is my plan to go solo.

“None of my family members is into music, but I think I inherited my dancing talent from my mother because she dances a lot. And my father too once told me that he used to have an interest in music but the interest appeared to have faded along with his growing-up years. So for now I am the only one in the family that is into music. I am currently staying in Kaduna with my mother and occasionally I go to Abuja where my father is staying.”

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