Nigerian singer, Ayodeji Balogun, more popularly known as Wizkid has recounted his experiences with police brutality, saying he was once arrested, har
Nigerian singer, Ayodeji Balogun, more popularly known as Wizkid has recounted his experiences with police brutality, saying he was once arrested, harassed, and slapped by operatives while in the university before he became famous.
The 30-year-old music star brought the revelation to light during a recent interview with super model, Naomi Campbell, on her show, “No Filter With Naomi.”
Wizkid said he was vocal about the recent #EndSARS protest because it was exciting that racism and police brutality gained a place in social discourse.
“I’m so happy that racism and police brutality has become part of our conversations. I felt great seeing what was happening. I’ve been harassed by the police countless times before I could get away from it for being me,” he said.
“I was in the uni. I was harassed; arrested. Of course, I was dealt with, like, slapped by the police so many times. It was normal when that’s not supposed to be normal. For me, the fact that it (EndSARS) happened, I was so overjoyed.
“That’s why I was so vocal about it. It’s something that needs to stop. The kids are already here. We’re already dealing with no electricity, bad roads, bad governance, no jobs, terrible schools.”
According to him, police brutality shouldn’t compound existing problems plaguing the youth in Nigeria.
“When you get out of school and graduate, there’s still no job. The youth are dealing with these things daily. Going outside and getting arrested or being profiled shouldn’t be added to it,” the Afrobeats star added.
“That can be controlled so we need to fix that. It’s a terrible thing, man. People have lost their lives for the most ridiculous things. It was sad. That was just the right time for us to speak up. I will always speak my mind.”
Wizkid is an alumnus of the Lagos State University (LASU) and Lead City University, which is situated in Oyo state.
Wizkid also revealed that he is not a fan of awards, adding that awards don’t define an artist or how amazing the artist is because it is a show organised by a company to give people.
Wizkid went on to explain that he is more interested in his music touching the right people as that leaves him feeling more contented than any other award.
Talking about how being nominated doesn’t influence him in any way, he explained that he couldn’t care less.
Talking about his family, the ‘Joro’ singer said that if he wasn’t a musician, he would most likely be on the streets as he isn’t from a wealthy family.
On his career, he talks about how it is harder to make music in Nigeria. He explained that it does not matter what record label an artist is signed to, it does not mean that his/her song would be played.
Watch the full interview here
