before she broke up with her husband, Tunji Balogun aka TeeBillz. Aired twice
this week, the TV interview has done justice to Tiwa Savage as a global brand.
Lagos, Tiwa reminisced on her childhood—parents, three brothers and life in the
neighbourhood with other kids.
passion for music, her urge to leave the 9-5 job and go for music, how she met
TeeBillz, his interest in her career, how his managerial position helped the
Tiwa Savage brand grow and his grooming of her image.
music at the Berkley College of music. Then I moved to Los Angeles. Now, when
you move to L.A., there are a lot of beautiful people there. Their skin is
glowing, their teeth is perfect, their hair is amazing and I’m like looking
around for someone who doesn’t wax, I have like a uni-brow.”
Meeting TJ, who later became her manager, Tiwa revealed how he created the Tiwa
Savage brand.
She said, “I needed to do something and I met my manager who is now my husband.
He saw me and was like, ‘you could be really pretty if you put an effort into
it’ and I was like ‘wait what do you mean?’ He was like, ‘you need to lose a
little weight, wax your legs; that might be attractive. So he just literally
put me through this whole programme and told me that ‘the music is great, the
talent is there but 80 per cent of it is branding’. ‘So if you want to do the
tom-boy thing, you have to take it to the extreme if you want to be hot and
sexy you have to take it to the extreme. So, I started learning how to wear
heels and he basically just groomed me into the image of Tiwa Savage that we
see now.”Tiwa was sincere to have confessed that TJ left a thriving business in the USA
to follow her to Nigeria. Then, they got married.
downs,” she said. She would not forget in a jiffy the ‘little argument’ they
had at their wedding reception.
She said, “Everybody, who is married, knows that there are up and downs in
marriages and we had our fair share.”
She further narrated how they had an argument on their wedding day.
“So we just had this little tiff outside and we are like arguing and everyone
is like, ‘welcome the beautiful bride and the groom and we are dancing in and
he’s just was grumbling and it’s on camera. So, everyone watching was like
‘Wait were you guys just arguing so it’s real but there are cute moments and
real moments,” She told E!
as her ‘little man.’However, she expressed fear of the ‘cruelty in the
world.’ Due to this, she has vowed to put in more work to ensure a secure and
brighter future for Jamil.
“Every time I think of that little man, it’s a mixture of emotions. I’m happy,
blessed but sometimes I’m also a little scared. He’s so precious. You and I
know how cruel this world can be but sometimes I feel like he should just stay
in this age where I can always protect him. Every time when I wake up and I see
him, all of that just goes through my mind makes me work so much harder. I work
so much more because I want leave a legacy for him. I want him to be proud of
his mum. I want him to one day look at this interview with his wife and be like
‘that’s my mama.’
Tiwa Savage explained how motherhood has
had an impact on her brand.
“My brand is built on the young, sexy, fresh, sassy, female singer and now I
got a few rules here and there. Stretch marks (laughs) but I have to embrace
those scars because that’s what reminds me of the miracle that I had.”
“So I like to talk about it a lot especially to African women because we hide
behind it and we don’t talk about the real issues that come with it—the
pressure to lose weight. You had a baby, if you had to choose between getting
your old body back and choosing that baby, I’m sure everybody would choose that
baby. So, I will embrace my new body because I have a son,” she told E!
