Nigerian music industry is still bedeviled by sexism — DJ Cuppy

Says Her Dream Collaboration Is To Work With Nicki Minaj
Female disc jockey, Florence Ifeoluwa Otedola, populary known as DJ Cuppy has said the music industry is still bedeviled by sexism. The daughter of the oil and gas magnate, Femi Otedola, recently released her new single, Currency featuring singer, L.A.X, as she continues to discover a new side to her talents outside the turntable.

According to her, Cuppy is one name paving her path in a male dominated industry. She disclosed this in chat during a recent visit to online media platform, Pulse.“I came to Nigeria, because I had recorded a song and I wanted to put it out, but there was a change of plan as the artiste I collaborated with decided not to do the song anymore. So I had to jump into the studio and record new music. I got into the studio, just vibing and we basically came up with Currency and L.A.X came up and smashed it in one hour and we shot the video a week after.

“L.A.X is someone I wanted to work with for a long time based on his experience of the industry. I wanted someone that will make it easy for me. I don’t think I have the best voice in the world, but I am having fun and I think I make good music,” she said.Clarifying why she left Nigeria to unlock her potential and push her skills to next level in a recent interview with Cable News Network (CNN), Cuppy explained she had to leave to realize her power.

‘’What I meant was when I first started deejaying at 16, nine years ago, it was not what it is now, we didn’t have social media. Women were really discouraged to do things like DJing, to be in nightclubs, to be in the music industry.

“So what I meant by that was me living in London, New York, allowed me to basically value myself as a woman, because I have to say I love being Nigerian. But unfortunately, there is still a lot of sexism where women are seen as second class to men.

In every field, in the workplace, women are paid less than men. In every environment, we are just told we are not as good as the men. So travelling and seeing my DJ Skills and artistry valued is amazing. Nigeria is changing, now people aren’t shocked I am a DJ anymore. I am being told now that I am inspiring other young girls and that is amazing,’’ she stated.

As a slay DJ, Cuppy has been at the receiving end of various vile remarks on social media. She recently became the subject of a steaming conversation following her views on feminism but this doesn’t bother her.“I am quite good at handling criticisms, I have done it all my life. I come from quite a public family and from a very young age before I was even DJ Cuppy, a lot of people were always looking into what I did and have kept a close eye on me. So I am well trained to basically keep myself protected; so I do not care what people think.

“I feel like a lot of people that criticise people literally have nothing going for them because if you did, you wouldn’t have time. It doesn’t mean I don’t listen to what people say. I feel like it is really important to not get distracted by the background noise, stay focused,’’ she says.She mentions American female rapper, Nicky Minaj, as the one person she will like to collaborate with. “It is Nicki Minaj, I am a Barbie. She inspires me, she is such a rebel; I can see a bit of myself in her, always pushing the envelope, taking risks and I love her and will work towards it,” she concluded.