Nigerian singer Tiwa Savage shared that she isn’t always so charming, and sexy Diva fans know today. In fact, before entering the music industry, she described herself as a tomboy.
According to Savage, during her foreign work as a songwriter, she usually wore loose clothes with a more leisurely style. This changed when she met her ex-husband and former manager Tunji Balogun (commonly known as Teebillz), who helped reshape her image.
She recalled how Teebillz turned her into a sexual symbol after returning to Nigeria as a record artist in a recent episode of Joey Akan’s Afrobeats Intelligence Podcast.
Tiwa Savage: “I’m a tomboy of course, but Teebillz
Afrobeats star Tiwa Savage is open to her early struggles of image, identity and acceptance in the Nigerian music industry. Talk about Afrobeats Intelligence The singer’s podcast, hosted by Joey Akan, revealed that her bold, sexy character was never part of her original identity—in fact, she considered herself a tomboy.
Reflect on her 2014 music video wantedSavage said,
“The sexy video was fascinating at the time. I just got married and the media said: ‘She is no longer acceptable. She’s done. She’s done. Her time is over. Now there are new friends.’ So, I want – let me do something crazy.”
She added,
“To be honest, sexy isn’t even my goal. That’s not my natural person. I’m a tomboy by default. But TJ [Tunji Balogun]my ex-husband and the manager at the time saw the gap in the market. He told me that I had to lose weight, hit the gym, wax my eyebrows, and start wearing wigs – he completely changed my appearance. When he met me in Los Angeles, I was just a songwriter in loose jeans and t-shirts. ”
Savage explained that their return to Nigeria was highly criticized:
“He wanted to introduce African Rihanna or Beyoncé, and I said, ‘Let’s keep going.’ But once we got to Nigeria, my fashion sense caused a lot of backlash.
She recalled her hit song love me TV use is prohibited.
“I’m discouraged.” She said. “But Bizzle called me and told me that the ladies were actually loving me. It gave me the confidence to come back. I told this story before-I went to every major tag: Storm Records, Mo’hits, Banky W’s Eme- they all refused.”
