Nigerian singer-songwriter, Sadiq Onifade, popularly known as WurlD has fronted the latest issue of Accelerate TV‘s “The Cover“.
For the magazine’s July edition, the alternative music star opens up about his meteoric rise to fame, the reason behind his catchy name and why his sound is needed in the music scene.
See excerpts from the interview:
On how he came up with ‘WurlD’:
“When I started my artiste career, the type of songs I was working on got my friends saying, these songs sound so international, very worldly. They couldn’t really put their fingers on what it was, only how it made them feel…the producers working on the songs suggested world… spelt with an ‘O’ at the time.
To be honest, I was truly scared about it so I took time to really think about the name… I remember going to sleep and thinking- this actually sounds right…after a month, I chose to go with it but I changed the name to WurlD… spelt with a “U”.”
On what makes his sound relevant within Africa:
“So a little story… I released a song called SHOW YOU OFF and before creating that song, I became aware of Afro beats and where African music was going and I felt that we were going to get to a space where the whole world would be looking.
I felt like Africa had a diverse sound and lots of musicians with different ranges
But they weren’t coming out boldly to proclaim their sound. I felt like I needed to come out and do more.”
His creative process:
“My music creative process is very simple, it’s just me in the studio, me and the mic. The funny thing is that a lot of people require people around them ..
And usually, there are a lot of people in the studio working with other people, there’s different ideas, different melodies…it’s hard for you to focus on
Good thing I can engineer so throughout my creative process it’s me, myself and I.”
On how he uses his platform to speak out and make a positive impact, WurlD said:
“The most important thing is awareness…
Being aware of my position and the fact that people pay attention to what I see and what I do…I need to be more aware and more sensitive…
When it comes to matters that involve humanity, regardless of where you are…the reality of the world we live in is that we need to be empathetic because we are humans first and foremost…
Also I try to say and do things that will surely motivate people”
Credit:
Creative Direction: Tokyo James
Styling: Joan K. Vincent-Otiono
Photography: Mikey Oshai
Graphics: Adedayo Adegbami
Outfits: ATAFO & The Ruiin