The renowned afrobeat singer Yemi Alade has revealed why she doesn’t receive awards depite her hard work in the music industry.
The artiste, who is mostly referred to as mama Africa, expressed that she seldomly wins award due to her refusal to succumb to sexual advances from men.
She recounts that numerous professionals in the industry had approached her in the past with sexual advances in exchange for a better career.
According to the artist, the decision to maintain her dignity rather than going down with men has blocked a lot of opportunities for her including nominations in award categories.
Yemi Alade described this stage as a bridge she had to cross in order to gain access to certain platforms, contracts, and even awards.
IN HER WORDS:
“There was a time in the industry when everyone wanted to sleep with me and it was like, ‘Yemi, if you don’t do this, you won’t have that. Today men are the reason I don’t win awards in Nigeria,”
“Going down with men was like a bridge I had to cross to get on some platforms, get some deals, and even awards. When I made my decision never to engage in sexual activities for gains, lots of opportunities were automatically blocked for me.”
