“I Have Never Smoked In My Entire Life, I Pray Alot”- Singer kcee

Nigerian singer Kingsley Okonkwo,
popularly known as Kcee, has opened up
on his career and other issues.
The singer, who recently revealed his
ambition to become the next governor of
Anambra state, in a chat with TOFARATI IGE
of PUNCH, revealed he has never smoked in
his life and also takes his governorship
seriously.
See excerpts of the chat below;
Are you really serious about your
ambition to become Anambra State
governor?
It’s not a joke. It is a movement to serve
and work for my people and offer them a
valued experience that they would never
forget. As a youth who believes in this
country and in my state, I decided to come
out.
We’ve been hearing that youths are the
leaders of tomorrow for too long, and now
that the age requirement for running for
office has been officially reduced by the
National Assembly, I’ve decided to make
good use of the opportunity.
I am here to save the future.
The election is just a few months away,
how do you intend to stand up against
politicians who have been on the field for
longer?
I know that they wouldn’t give me the
chance because they’ve been doing it for a
very long time. But if I have the support of
the youths, we would emerge victorious.
I’m not scared; I just implore the youths to
support me.
Which platform would you be running on?
I really cannot say much about that now
because my campaign manager has
instructed me not to say anything.
Do you have any prior experience in
politics?
I’ve never been involved in politics before
now. It is the hunger and drive for
transformation and progress that is
pushing me.
Shortly after you uploaded your campaign
poster on the Internet, many entertainers
also followed suit. Don’t you think that
would make people not to take you
serious?
Well, that is the industry for you. The
attention and buzz I got when I put the
poster online was massive and it was
obvious that a popular youth had declared
his ambition.
Most of my colleagues think it’s a joke and
they’re trying to cash in on the trend. But I
am actually serious.
Artistes are usually fun lovers; do you think
entertainers can cope with the rigours of
political leadership?
Of course; life is easy. In America,
everything is working for them. When
Donald Trump won the presidency, a lot of
people questioned how a businessman
with no prior political experience could
lead the United States.
They said the wife was a stripper and made
all sorts of allegations but today, they live in
the White House and they are the world
leaders. I don’t care what anybody says
about me; what matters is who I am as an
individual. That I’m a musician does not
mean I’m stupid. For example, I don’t
smoke and I pray a lot.
But a lot of people think all entertainers
smoke and drink. Mind you, this doesn’t
mean that I’m better than those who
smoke, or that they are better than me; it
just goes to show that you shouldn’t
stereotype people.
Is it that you’ve stopped smoking, or you
mean you’ve never smoked?
I have never smoked in my entire life. The
only time I’ve held a cigarette was while
shooting a music video. If I want to
unwind, I just take a little sip here and
there, and I’m good.
Why did it take you four years from the
time you released your last album till now
before putting out another one?
The industry doesn’t support album
projects and this makes some of us to see
it as a waste of time, money and energy.
After my last album, I was very busy
travelling round the world performing, but
I’ve never slacked in releasing singles.
The songs I’ve released after my last album
are enough to fill up an album. Having that
long interval between my albums doesn’t
mean I’m a lazy artiste but I think this
would be the last time that I would wait so
long before releasing an album. I may even
release one next year.
What inspired the title of the album,
Attention to Detail?
The idea is for people to pay attention to
me as a person, beyond the music.
I’ve been around for over a decade and
there have been lots of ups and downs, so I
just decided to talk directly to my fans and I
want them to pay attention to Kcee.
Do you think the songs on this new album
can actually do better than your past hits
like Limpopo and Pull Over?
No artiste can answer that question
because we’re not God. Even for Limpopo
that brought me a lot of success, its video
was the cheapest I’ve ever shot. The song
was recorded in few minutes so there
wasn’t much effort to it. I never knew that
the song would become that big.
Pull Over was also the last song I recorded
on my last album. I had actually planned to
make a remix of Limpopo with Wizkid. But
when we were in the studio, the producer,
Del B, just played a beat and Wizkid started
singing to it.
That is how we came up with Pull Over.
This goes to show that you never really
know which song would become a hit until
it becomes one. For me, I’ve put in my best
to this album and I believe it’s better than
the last one but God has the final say.
Five Star Music members are always
flaunting cash; doesn’t that make people to
demand a lot from you?
It does but we can’t stop it. That’s the
lifestyle we live. I believe God would always
give us the resources to help people.
People also criticise you for that, doesn’t
it bother you?
Such is life. There is nothing you do that
people wouldn’t criticise. When former
President Jonathan was in office, people
were abusing him, and the current
president is also facing the same thing. I
never get distracted by what people say.
So long as I know that what I’m doing is
right, I am not bothered. A lot of people go
on social media to say mean things to hurt
you and bring you down but I don’t pay
them any attention.
Artistes usually dump their record labels,
sometimes without fulfilling their contracts.
Why does this happen and can’t it be
stopped?
It cannot stop. It has nothing to do with
the industry but with the individual
involved. A lot of people went through
record labels and kept to their contracts.
There are some politicians that come into
office and fulfill their campaign promises
while some don’t, so it happens across all
sectors. It’s more about the person’s
upbringing. I think the best way to get out
of this is to keep educating artistes that
before you sign any contract, make sure
you get your lawyers.
Most times, when these artistes come
begging for record deals; they don’t have
lawyers or family members. But when they
begin to make little money, their parents
and lawyers swarm around them and start
giving them different kinds of advice.
Since it has also happened to you, has it
made you weary of signing new artists
and supporting young talents?
No, it has not. Inasmuch as there are bad
people, there are also nice people in the
world. I was signed to Kennis Music for a
while and I kept to the terms of the
contract.
I was with him recently and he said I’m one
of the best artistes that he has worked
with. Till today, we’re still friends.
Meanwhile, some other artistes fought with
him so you can see that it’s all about the
individual.