Kush never really broke up – Emem Ema

Weekend Magazine: You’re still very close with your female group-mates T.Y Bello and Lara George. Is the rumour of a Kush reunion album true? Emem Ema: I’ve heard the rumours, too. We don’t know. I don’t know, I haven’t gotten the memo.  WM: Kush was well-received by fans nationwide, and one of your songs even […]

Weekend Magazine: You’re still very close with your female group-mates T.Y Bello and Lara George. Is the rumour of a Kush reunion album true?
Emem Ema: I’ve heard the rumours, too. We don’t know. I don’t know, I haven’t gotten the memo. 
WM: Kush was well-received by fans nationwide, and one of your songs even had Hausa lyrics. Who wrote that?
Ema: I did. My parents travelled a lot, and they ended up in Jos where I learnt a bit of Hausa. But as time went on, we moved to Lagos State. I didn’t really have anyone to speak the language with, so I lost some of it. When the opportunity for ‘Let’s Live Together’ came, I fixed all the words I knew in Hausa and then in English, then made a phone call to be sure I was saying the right thing and that was it.

WM: How does it feel like today, having started music early, and not just talking about your age, but in the formative years of what is now called the Nigerian music industry?
Ema: When we started as a group, what we wanted to do was change the perception of people who feel those who don’t have options in life fall back to music. We had a plan to make quality music. Again, most of us were female, undergraduates, so we had to work twice harder. For good music, there are certain things you need to put in place, like structure, or theme. You need to define your sound. 
At the time we started, we approached work differently. Then no-one had ever heard of ‘Oh, I have to speak to my manager’ and all that. Music is a business, so you have to make sure that there were certain things in place. Then came the image, for which you need to have stylists. So for us, it was a huge responsibility, and we are very thankful for that opportunity and for the fact that today people take the Nigerian music industry seriously.
It’s not just about the money, but to be able to fashion out an almost-perfect system where – even if you can’t sing but have a passion for the industry – you can fit somewhere.

WM: There have been all sorts of stories about the Kush break-up. Are they true, or are the three of you still friends?
Ema: Absolutely, we’re still very much friends. We check in on each other from time to time. I was on the phone with TY [Bello] a couple of days ago. Lara and I talk regularly as well. We find time to catch up, and we do business together. There are certain things in terms of TY’s musical career that we handle together, so we are family and I don’t think anything is going to change that. The so-called break-up wasn’t like we woke up one day and had a blow-out and declared ‘I’m never going to speak to you again’. It was a matter of transitioning, to family or career changes. What people don’t realize is that Kush was on for about 4 to 5 years before they ever heard us, so we were constantly with each other. But there comes a point in time when you want to try something different. It doesn’t mean we are never going to do music together. There is a bond. We have relationships aside music.

WM: ‘Let’s Live Together’ is your biggest hit, and is enjoying cross-platform success on movie soundtracks, call-back tunes, etc. Does that mean royalties galore?
Ema: It is additional revenue for us, so we can go to bed and say yes, we made some money off our music. 

WM: Let’s go back a bit. How and when did you start singing?
Ema: I grew up in a home known for music, arts, culture and all that, so I fell in love with music from a very young age and also, I would say my earliest memories of music was when I was three and my dad would play Jim Reeves on Sundays as we get set for church. My mum was in the choir and my dad played instruments. I remember picking up his guitar, which made him make one out of wood for me. I picked music up from a very young age.

WM: What artistes have you worked with recently?
Ema: There are some that consult, some who sign-up with our company, and those we work with on agency basis. We have worked with P-Square, Styl-Plus and many more. I mean, name whoever in Nigerian or African music, and we must have worked with them on various capacities.

WM: When you changed caps from artiste to manager, how easy was that for you?
Ema: It was at a point when there weren’t a lot of managers in the industry and music was growing exponentially. As a manager, you could go into film or music. You can do events, promotion and production. It gives you access to opportunities. We realized that when we started with management, and people started asking if we could produce and do event production. That was what expanded our business. For me, it was concentrating on the other side of the creative industry. But a lot of people had not paid attention to what was lacking.

WM: What is a typical day like for you?
Ema: It depends on the day. On a typical one, very early I say my prayers and then work out, try to respond to emails and then I have my to-do list for the day which might involve a couple of meetings, checking on the home-front, checking on some clients. I like working out in the evenings if I don’t get to do it in the morning. I also enjoy a good meal with great company. I also read books and then watch TV when I can.

WM: Do you plan to go into the studio for yourself someday soon?
Ema: I’m very careful whom I do music with, because it is like a relationship. Before you go into a relationship with someone, you want to be sure that it is the right fit. Music is like that, too. But I have recorded soundtracks for movies, like ‘Tango With Me’ and the upcoming ‘76’. Also, some people could be in the studio and would want me to listen to their work and add my ideas to the mix. I enjoy creating.

WM: You are one of the most sought-after talent managers in Nigeria today. What’s your secret?
Ema: You should ask our clients. Recently, I got feedback from some of our clients and some of the things that stood out were things like, ‘you’re hard-working and resourceful’ and ‘You guys make it feel like home for us’. I think being an artiste myself, I have an edge on how to blend talents, and it makes me more emotionally attached because I understand where they are coming from. You need to be able to manage that.
In the final analysis, trust is key and you have to always keep your eyes on the ball. If I don’t feel that you will fight for me, then I wouldn’t trust with my career. Those are some of the things we bring to the table.