By Paul Ukpabio
Being a member of the defunct
sensational all female musical group known as KUSH, was indeed fun for Lara
George, but even more fun and most rewarding it became when she rose out of the
ashes of KUSH, dropped her debut 'ijoba Oorun' and emerged a successful,
multiple award winning gospel artiste afterwards.
Lara George created an
intriguing aura of finesse and creativity around her act, which attracted a
huge fan base to her over the years and today, she remains one of the few that
keeps the gospel musical genre aglow.
In this interview, the singer
bares her mind on how she keeps a healthy singing career with the fun of
raising a family, amidst the challenges of life in the entertainment industry.
In what ways would you say
your early life contributed to the person that you are today?
I grew up in a very Christian
family with very strong work ethics. I have parents and siblings who totally
exemplified and still do, all things honorable. Some things were simply not
acceptable to do to one another and we lived within a code of conduct which
didn't seem stressful at all because that was my normal. Today, I continue to
expect that people be kind to each other, that people honour God and treat
everyone with respect because this is how I was raised. Its important to keep
your word and be a person of integrity and not sell your ideals for money or
power. This is how I was raised and this is my normal.
Your educational background
I am an Architect with a
B.E.S/B.Arch degree from the University of Lagos. Prior to then, I attended the
prestigious Queens' College Yaba Lagos, and for primary and nursery schools,
the University of Lagos Staff School Akoka.
What do you think influenced
the choice of your going into music?
I wanted to do music that
would inspire people to all things good and basically turn people in the
direction of God. I want that every time that people listen to my songs, they
see things from the God-perspective or come into an encounter with Him.
The KUSH days, how did your
parents feel about you being in a band, a girls musical band and then did they
believe you could sing?
My parents were a bit skeptical, although my dad was a bit more supportive. My mum, on the other
hand, would have none of it, and her reason I think, she felt that music was
for the never-do-well. I realised that I needed to prove that I could be smart
and educated and still sing. I made sure that I did well in school so that they
would never get any excuses to keep me from singing and because all was well
with my education, it made it easier for my parents to allow me carry on with
KUSH.
You went solo at some point,
is it because you didn't believe in the group again?
Not at all. Infact, KUSH
actually broke up in 2004 and I didn't release my first single as a solo
artiste until 2007. I had at least 2years of silence in between the breakup and
my emergence as a solo act. During that time, I had actually resolved never to
go near music again because I felt at that time that it had brought me nothing
but heartache. I started a 9 to 5 job in a regular IT firm and tried to forget
music but as you can imagine, music kept calling. I kept writing songs and
before I knew it, I was back in studio, recording my own work. I never stopped
believing in KUSH. To be quite honest with you, I still haven't stopped
believing. But two cannot walk together unless they are agreed. And I have come
to realise that scripture does not only speak of people in different faiths. To
walk a journey with someone, your ideologies must be the same. Your mindsets on
how to deal with issues may perhaps need to be the same. KUSH was a classic
case of break-up due to the famed term 'irreconcilable differences.'
KUSH came back some years
later, how was the re-union, what's the state of things today?
KUSH never really re-united.
Emem and I came together to remake 'Let's Live Together' which was the popular
KUSH single way back then. The remake featured the artiste Flavour and was used
as the theme song for the movie adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's 'Half
of a Yellow Sun.'
Let's talk about your music,
is it all about talent, or you also had to get training in music?
Much of what I do is
God-given and I am extremely grateful for that. I did get some training while I
was in secondary school at Queens' College Yaba. We had excellent music
teachers and they taught us not only music theory, but also voice-training and
I actually even started to play a bit of the recorder and keyboard while I was
in junior secondary school but sadly had to replace music with technical
drawing once I moved up into senior secondary school.
Tell us about some of your
songs and what was the motivation for each, what were your thoughts then?
'DANSAKI' is a song of
thanksgiving I wrote while I was pregnant with my 2nd child. The song, which
means 'to hail,' and is a Yoruba word originally borrowed from the Hausa
language, was written at a time when I simply wanted to celebrate God for all
He has been to me over the years.
The song 'HALLELUYAH' which
is on my 2009 album, is another one of my favourites. I wrote that one at a
train station in London after a particularly bad experience in the hands of the
hosts of an event. It was a time in my growth when I was still defining
structure for my work and so was open to much 'amorphousness' from various
angles. It was during one of such encounters that I wrote the song and said to
myself, in every situation, 'halleluyah, halleluyah, halleluyah.' I made up my
mind to keep praising and keep exalting God no matter what. And not allow the
bad experiences make me bitter but better, and to keep my focus on Christ.
'TOTAL SURRENDER' is my
newest single and is currently available as free downloads online. It was
released on the 1st of January this year and is a song that speaks literally of
absolute surrender to the Most High God. Everytime is a good time to give over
all control into the hands of our Maker, and sometimes as humans, we think we
have it all figured out until we find out that even our money, position or
whatever else it is we rely on, cannot buy us out of a given matter. We need
not wait till we are pushed to the wall to tell God that He alone is always in
control.
There are many other songs I
could talk about: IMELA- (meaning Thank You) another new single, OBA OGO- (meaning
King of Glory) yet another new single and so many more, but will stop here.
Gospel music, that is a
terrain that few artistes last for long, what is your stay power?
The face of God invigorates;
the presence of God refreshes a person and makes whole and new. I believe that
when you have seen God's face, it translates into glory in your life. I pray
for that. I believe God for that. And I hope that maybe that is what I enjoy.
God's exceedingly great grace and mercy. I pray for even more longevity
because I feel like I have only just begun this journey.
Marriage, how do you do it?
I just take one day at a time
quite honestly. Of course, there is much planning of schedules and trying to
work around a lot of things - children, home-front and of course being wife to
my husband. Its interesting working things through and very gratifying when
things do work out. I'm particularly happy to not be walking this journey of
life alone, particularly as a woman in this sector of work. Marriage is not the
be-all and end-all of life, but I am thankful to be experiencing it and
joyfully so too.
We hear you travel every now
and then, what projects are you working on?
Sometimes I travel just to
get away from the Nigerian environment I have lived in all my life. At other
times, it is for work - could be Dubai for an event, the US to shoot a video,
the UK for an industry-related course; diverse reasons really. I am currently
working on new songs.
As an artiste, have you ever
been embarrassed? How did you react?
My most embarrassing moment
as an artiste was probably when I fell into the middle of the stage at an event
in Zaria. I just sat there and laughed and was helped up by people on the
stage. The audience held their breath and didn't know what to do when they saw
I had fallen. Thankfully, I was wearing trousers so it was an easy fall to
recover from (laughs).
Music in Nigeria, how
satisfactory is it for the female singer or performer?
Life can be anything that one
makes of it. If you are determined enough, I believe that you will succeed,
whether you are male or female. Of course, the female has more to do to prove
herself. For some reason, it seems to me that there is a glass ceiling that a
woman needs to break in order to do as much or more, than her male counterpart,
but when you do, satisfaction will be complete because there then is no
stopping you.
Can you describe yourself?
I like to describe myself as
an introverted extrovert. I love being around people but am guarded about who
comes into my personal space. It takes me a while to un-bundle myself but when I
connect, it is for real and no holds barred. I'm a stickler for all things
proper and no it's not because 'na me holy pass,' but just because I believe
that white is white and black is just that... black. I love mimicking people
and can do a few good imitations especially accents, a few though. I am
unashamedly Christian and make no pretenses about that. I am also a bit of a
social activist and hate to see injustice being perpetrated in any form or
fashion. I like to call it zero tolerance for 'iranu' (meaning 'rubbish').
What does success mean to
you?
Success to me is achieving
one's purpose in life. Each one's calling in life is different. Some are called
to teach, and they do so patiently and with so much kindness that they raise a
brand new generation of awesomeness. I remember Mrs Quartey who taught me in my
fourth year in primary school and I feel she was a resounding success.
Success to me is hearing
someone say "Lara, your music changed my life for good and pulled me
through a tough patch I was going through." Success to me is being invited
to sing at a praise concert for someone who had had a stroke and was unable to
walk but listened to my music and had faith enough in her to believe that she
would walk again and actually did. Success is hearing the testimony of the
woman who came out of a coma after having DANSAKI played into her ears. Success
is being told that a breech baby changed position after hearing music from Lara
George. Success to me is seeing a generation praise God like David did and
worship like never before because the music helps them to do so and then go out
to conquer territories in His Name. That to me, is the beginning of success.
Tell us about your fashion
and style! What kind of clothes and accessories do you like wearing most?
I like dressing casual. On a
good day, I'm a jeans sort of person, but with a tendency towards the bohemian
in my day to day. I always wear wooden bangles, and I love cocktail rings,
especially signature ones. I like shimmer but also love to try different things
and not be stuck in just one style all the time.
In what ways would you say
that fashion is relevant to today’s woman?
Fashion is always relevant to
every woman. Woman has an intrinsic desire to look good and be at the top of
her game all the time. Fashion is a statement and can exude different messages:
power, sensuality, subtlety, piety, youthfulness. The list is endless. Today's
woman uses fashion to speak louder words than her voice sometimes can.
Are you playing any role to
attract more young ladies to music or you'll do that in future?
Just being in the industry, I
think is an attraction all by itself. I feel like since I came into this
industry, many more females have entered in. Could it be because they saw
possibilities? I'd like to think so. I am with a label called Soforte Music and
that label is currently taking in new talents. I look forward to working more
closely with females specifically in the very near future.
As a successful lady, do you
still find time to do lady’s things like going into the kitchen to cook?
So I made a full dinner for
my family tonight with roast chicken and beef and sauces and all that. So the
answer to that is a resounding yes. I cook, I clean, I tidy up the house, I
oversee the laundry, my children's homework, and all those 'lady things.' There
are some household chores I don't do every single time, but I do make sure that
I always oversee when I am not hands-on in the role.
We know you sing, do you
dance?
I don't particularly consider
myself a dancer but I can move in sync with music (laughs).
What fashion accessories like
necklaces and so on, will you not do without?
I can't do without earrings.
What do you value most?
I value peace of mind.
When you met your partner was
it love at first sight? How does he relate to your work and talent?
No, it wasn't love at first
sight. Actually, the relationship grew gradually into a love relationship. We
started off being colleagues at work, friends, and then became engaged.
My husband is my manager. He
is full of wise counsel with regards to the execution of my work and has very
deep insights on the working end of things. He's an 'encourager' and has always
fully supported all that I do.
How are you coping with
pressure and challenges?
Like I said earlier, I take
one day at a time. I try not to run another man's race because that is mostly
where pressure comes from. When one will be comparing oneself with another
person and feeling bad about not having what the other person has, you won't
ever be able to count the blessings God has placed in your life. I release my
albums at my own pace, attend events I wish to attend, schedule my interviews,
photoshoots, video shoots , all within my own timing. The only pressure could
only possibly come from me and I simply refuse to be put under pressure by
anyone or anything. I am running the race God Himself has laid out for me to
run. No more, no less.
As a woman, do you think a
woman can combine a career with family life successfully? If yes, in what ways
do you think she can do it?
Yes, it is very possible.
First of all, the husband has to be an understanding one. If the man is not the
type who makes life difficult for his wife by insisting that she alone handle
all things on the home front, then the sky will just be the stepping stone for
the woman. That factor is critical, so dear single ladies, please I beg of you
DO NOT marry a man who will stifle your growth. Make sure he is secure enough
in himself to allow you to be yourself and do all that God has called you to
do. This has nothing to do with how much money the man has either. It's all
about the personality and belief system.
Also, the woman herself has
to be reasonable and learn the art of juggling. A woman needs to be
ambidextrous and has to be able to remember home and not be so lost in the work
that your forget to sort things out in the house. Respect your husband and just
do the very best that you can. I feel like God takes over at a point and makes
you soar with wings like an eagle after a while. It all just takes some
figuring out.
If you were not what you are
now, what else would you have loved to be?
I would have returned to
Architecture much earlier. I would have definitely enjoyed fully exploring the
architectural arena.
You have traveled to some of
the most fabulous places in d world, tell us about your travels, where did you
enjoy most?
I am not as well traveled as
I would like to be, but to be honest with you, of all the continents I have
visited, my most interesting destination till date is right here in Africa and
just next door in Cotonou, Republic of Benin; a place called Ganvie - a village
on stilts and built entirely on water. They have homes, a market, hotels, even
graves, all on water. It was a most interesting and fascinating experience for
me.
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