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‘Osinachi’ crooner Ekene Ijemba aka Humblesmith has made some startling revelations about his rise to stardom. In a chat with Showtime Celebrity, the singer opened up on his family background, surviving, his music, social media and more.
Read excerpts from the interview below…
Family support…
I am from a Catholic background, so they didn’t want anything to distract me from going to church and probably become a priest. My mom wanted me to become a Catholic priest while my dad wanted me to be a footballer because he is a football coach. I had to apply wisdom and diplomacy; I did everything they wanted me to do. I played ball, I served in church. I didn’t do it to please them; I did it just to be sure of what was actually going to work for me. I later discovered that I was born to do music.
Survival after relocating to Delta …
After my relocation to Delta State, things were so rough for me. When I was still with my parents, I was known as a moi-moi seller. I and
my siblings hawked moi-moi on the streets, that was how my parents were able to train eight children through primary and secondary school…
…I hustled on the streets of Asaba, I made trending shoes, sandals, slippers, and belts and sold them to students and workers just to make some money to pursue my music career and equally fend for myself…
…I hustled seriously on the streets to survive; it got to a point that I opened a video rental shop in Asaba. I stole and sold my mom’s gold to pay for my first studio session, but I later confessed and apologized to her, promising to buy her more than what I stole in the nearest future.
Abuse on social media…
No matter what you do people will always talk, but I want you to know that the number one thing I love are my fans. Whether I’m following you on social media or not has nothing to do with respect or love, and it doesn’t change me from being the Humblesmith that I am. In life it’s a normal thing to try some things when you get to a certain stage. I un-followed everybody on Instagram including my sisters, because my management needed to work on my page. I don’t own myself, I have a label to whi
ch I am signed and I always need to obey them. Most fans got angry and abused me because I un-followed them on Instagram, but trust me, I don’t hate anybody.
Read the full interview here.