By Bolatito Adebayo
jeff Akoh came to limelight when he participated in the 8th edition of MTN Project Fame West Africa in 2015. The talented singer and sound engineer, who grew up in Abuja schooled at SAE Institute, Cape Town, South Africa. Taking his gift to the next level, he just released a new single with Bisola of Big Brother Naija. Their debut album titled, Lokoja, will be released on October 27, this year. In this interview, the singing sensation, who is the last born of the family, parts the curtain, to give us a snapshot of the special bond he shares with his mother and talks about how she has supported his career through thick and thin. Read on….
What are you working on at present?
I am working on my album at the moment. I have been recording so many songs with some of Nigeria’s best producers. I am almost done with the album and I can’t wait to share it with the world. Let me use this medium to acknowledge the strong support of my management team, Temple Management Company (TMC).
What is the name of your mum?
Her name is Betty Akoh.
What does she do for a living?
She is a caterer and a businesswoman.
What is your relationship with her?
My mother and I are very close.
Do you relate like friends or siblings?
It is a combination of both – we are like friends and siblings. I’m the last child and typical of what they say about the lastborn and their mother, the same is also true for me. So we’re really close.
When last did you see her?
The last time I saw my mother was two months ago; she lives in Abuja while I am based in Lagos.
What is her favorite food?
She doesn’t have a favourite food; she eats what she likes.
Please share any childhood experience that got you into a major trouble with your mum.
I was living in the boarding house at the time. I was so fond of being home. I always called her before going home, but one day, I went home without informing her. I thought that she would let me stay home and attend school as a day student but to my surprise, she took me back to school, and handed me over to the housemaster.
As a teenager, what did she tell you about girls?
Honestly, she never really told me anything about girls. She just said when it’s time for me to have girlfriends, it’ll come naturally and that I shouldn’t rush; she trusted me to certain level.
What kind of teenager were you, quiet, nerd or popular?
I was a very weird teenager and also popular at the same time because I could sing. I was never the bad child and hardly got into trouble.
What makes her happy?
My mum like every caring parent, seeing her children excel makes her happy and I think that is her greatest joy.
What is her relationship like with her grandchildren, now that she is older?
She has no grandchildren at the moment.
What attributes do you share with her?
Aside the fact that we share the same birth month, likewise the same horoscope, we also think very much alike and we are both slow to anger. However, we laugh a lot.
Has she always supported your music or she wasn’t comfortable with it when you first started?
She has always supported me, from the beginning; there was never a day she didn’t support my singing. She is my Number-1 fan.
What are her fears about you?
She believes I think too much, and I’m also overzealous at times. So, she tells me to take things slowly, one step at a time.
What is the greatest advice she has ever given you?
She advises me every day and they’re all as important as the previous day’s advice.
What is the biggest thing she has ever done to support your music career?
The biggest thing for me is the validation and total support for my music career
What will you never do to hurt her?
I can’t think of anything I’ll do to hurt her. She’s my hero and the most important person in my life. So I don’t think I’ll ever be in a position to hurt her but make her smile and happy.
What is that song you would like to do to put a smile on her face?
That will be to become a global sensation.
Is your mum very fashionable?
I would say she’s moderately fashionable not necessarily ostentatious. I would say that is one of the attributes I have picked from her. I am not a flamboyant person because I learnt from the best.
Can you share an experience of a sacrifice your mum made that still lingers on?
She has always sacrificed for me. My mum is a selfless woman and I love her very much. In fact, she sacrifices all the time, so thinking about one sacrifice she has made will be undermining her because she has done everything for me.