Encomium
Popular music producer cum hit-maker, Abdul Rasheed Bello, better known as JJC Skillz, is fully back in the fiercely competitive Nigeria music industry.
The proud father of three children whose smash hit autobiographical song, My Life and Save The Last Dance is still thrilling good music lovers was recently linked with Nollywood actress, Kate Henshaw.
Their bond later led to a music and video collaboration See Us Now, which is already making waves.
When asked, what was the connection between both of them, JJC hinted that he had always longed to have a bond with an actress and Kate Henshaw was perfect for his mission.
“I actually saw Kate Henshaw’s performance once at a banquet and I thought she would be perfect to pass the message to the people. I like her uniqueness. I have been looking forward to a chance for Nigerian music industry and Nollywood to come together for the common good of the masses. With Kate, I have made that happen. People have been saying I have a crush on her, but it is far from that. Before I saw her in person, read an article about what she was planning to do for her state if she was given a chance to join their House of Assembly. She promised a lot to them and I got hooked. I saw that as a quite inspirational speech, so I approached her and we did a song together entitled, See Us Now.”
He also highlighted what their fans should expect from them, “For the video I shot with Kate, it is emotional and inspiring to lift the hearts and minds of all Nigerians worldwide. A call to come together, support and build a brighter future for ourselves and our children.”
In this sternly competitive Nigerian music industry, the multi-talented singer talked about his challenges as a returnee artiste and how he has been coping since he fully retuned to Nigeria, from London in 2013.
“My biggest challenge coming back to Nigeria is the fact that I didn’t grow up in Lagos. I didn’t even grow up in Nigeria. Even though, I come back to Nigeria once in a while to promote my music, I don’t really know a lot of people in the industry. I have also come to notice that people do things based on we-we level. It is all about who you know or who you grew up or school with. Everybody has his own struggles and mine is totally different. I felt like a fish out of water when I moved back to Nigeria. Lots of people know me, but I didn’t know a lot of them. A lot people thought I was arrogant, but they don’t know the real me.
“Second, I have lived in the UK all my life and some people believe you should come back with a whole lot of money. But in my case, I have lots of responsibilities. I didn’t bother about the money, but I just had to continue my music career over here in Nigeria after my family gave me their consent.
“At first, I was so depressed and almost ran back to the UK, but I thank God, I stood still and weathered the storm. So, I have fully scattered my career in Nigeria. It hasn’t been an easy journey at all, these periods I got to know who my real friends are and those who are truly there.”
