Zainab Sule

The climax of activities was achieved when the fast rising star in the Nigerian music arena, soft rock singer, Zainab Sule thrilled guests with tracks from her collections such as ‘I’ll make you dance’ and ‘Am not afraid’. Her performance not only had guests dancing but screaming the popular Shakespearian saying that “If music be the food of love, play on.” - Nigerian Pilot Newspaper

The climax of activities was achieved when the fast rising star in the Nigerian music arena, soft rock singer, Zainab Sule thrilled guests with tracks from her collections such as ‘I’ll make you dance’ and ‘Am not afraid’. Her performance not only had guests dancing but screaming the popular Shakespearian saying that “If music be the food of love, play on.” - Nigerian Pilot Newspaper

"In the worlds of Indie, Classic and Pop Rock, Zainab Sule manages to find a balance between the three, while still adding a Nigerian edge with her lyrics and vocal style. Here’s her new song, “I’ll Make You Dance”, a soft rock record reminiscent of The Cranberries or The Corrs, for lovers of Rock and live music." - Bella Naija

An Interview. - July 19 2013. - Naija Rock Blog

An Interview. - July 19 2013. - Naija Rock Blog

She describes herself simply as a girl who would do anything to be different from the rest – simple where others may be flamboyant, and vice versa – someone who pushes herself from within to be extraordinary. And no doubt, her progress so far in her chosen career, music, has been nothing but extraordinary.

Zainab Sule is her name, and she is from Etsako West L.G.A of Edo State, Nigeria. She has been singing for a long time, as early as 2002, in the University of Jos, and she recalls vividly how the school crowd in those days made her nerves tense and gave her butterflies in the stomach.

Zainab does much of country and soft rock music currently, and excels in it. But she’s also into web designing, to which she dedicates half of her time, while leaving the other half to music, especially recording and rehearsals – and particularly when a song gets in her head.

Her album, Attitude, hit the shelves not long ago, featuring such tracks as “Am not afraid” and “Show some love,” both of which have received very good airplay as well as commendations. But how does she feel about the encomiums? She heaves a sigh, and then says, “It increases the tension. The more they praise you, the more they expect from you – it’s a challenge on its own.”

Even though her Attitude album was self-promoted, she says it did better than she could imagine, in sales as well as in airplay, though she believes that there’s still much work to be done. And she’s currently in the process of recording her next album, Elixir, which she hopes would be out mid-April 2012, and which she promises is going to be unbelievable!

Looking at how good she’s with the guitar, you would say she has an obsession for it. But for her, “It’s more than an obsession.... It’s scary. I’ve always been in love with stringed instruments, but it’s the guitar that has that special appeal for me.” And her guitar is named Sean.

What about experimenting or crossing over into other genres? She answers straightway: “I have a feeling that my listeners will not be happy with me if I shift base. I tried it in a track in the Attitude album (track 3, i.e., “Things don change,” ft. Tshakes) and reviews didn’t pick it. So, I have proof they won’t trip for it. I may mix a little bit of hard/alternative rock in future works, but only God knows.” That’s how far her love for soft rock goes.

Zainab gets the inspiration for her lyrics in the life around her. She says, “Our generation is centred on booze, drugs and sex; no one listens to politicians and pastors anymore, so I believe they’d listen to music if it’s done by one of them, and if it makes sense. So, I strive to write songs that would make the average man sit down to think; religion or no….”

The highly gifted songstress is crazily in love with Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Garth Brooks, and the old Avril. She looks up to them and they keep her on.

Her greatest challenge in her music career, she says, has been her chosen genre. This is because, according to her, even though soft rock has a wide fan base, most Nigerians don’t appreciate it. They “just wanna party and do the booty call. So they promote more of that”. But all hope is not lost, as she adds that “with more of us soft rockers coming out, I believe that will change soon”.

How does she rate the Nigerian music industry? Simple: “We’ve really grown, especially the independent artistes and labels. Even our videos are beginning to have international recognition, like D’banj and 2face’s works.”

Though always in high spirits, Zainab also has her low moments, about which she says quite frankly, “I heard somewhere that almost all rock musicians have depressing moments. I do. How do I handle it? I don’t. I make sure I’m never alone but with friends and family. Depression is a bad thing. Going through it alone is a dangerous thing.”

And she’s also not lacking in wise counsels. To aspiring musicians, she says, “Make sure you have another source of income. Music may be your dream, but it needs financing. And no one but you, God and money can take you to that place you deserve to be.” And to her fans, she says: “Thanks for standing by me. You guys are the best peeps any musician could ever have. May your days be filled with laughter and love, and tears of happiness.” - Business Day Newspaper (March 9, 2012):

She describes herself simply as a girl who would do anything to be different from the rest – simple where others may be flamboyant, and vice versa – someone who pushes herself from within to be extraordinary. And no doubt, her progress so far in her chosen career, music, has been nothing but extraordinary.

Zainab Sule is her name, and she is from Etsako West L.G.A of Edo State, Nigeria. She has been singing for a long time, as early as 2002, in the University of Jos, and she recalls vividly how the school crowd in those days made her nerves tense and gave her butterflies in the stomach.

Zainab does much of country and soft rock music currently, and excels in it. But she’s also into web designing, to which she dedicates half of her time, while leaving the other half to music, especially recording and rehearsals – and particularly when a song gets in her head.

Her album, Attitude, hit the shelves not long ago, featuring such tracks as “Am not afraid” and “Show some love,” both of which have received very good airplay as well as commendations. But how does she feel about the encomiums? She heaves a sigh, and then says, “It increases the tension. The more they praise you, the more they expect from you – it’s a challenge on its own.”

Even though her Attitude album was self-promoted, she says it did better than she could imagine, in sales as well as in airplay, though she believes that there’s still much work to be done. And she’s currently in the process of recording her next album, Elixir, which she hopes would be out mid-April 2012, and which she promises is going to be unbelievable!

Looking at how good she’s with the guitar, you would say she has an obsession for it. But for her, “It’s more than an obsession.... It’s scary. I’ve always been in love with stringed instruments, but it’s the guitar that has that special appeal for me.” And her guitar is named Sean.

What about experimenting or crossing over into other genres? She answers straightway: “I have a feeling that my listeners will not be happy with me if I shift base. I tried it in a track in the Attitude album (track 3, i.e., “Things don change,” ft. Tshakes) and reviews didn’t pick it. So, I have proof they won’t trip for it. I may mix a little bit of hard/alternative rock in future works, but only God knows.” That’s how far her love for soft rock goes.

Zainab gets the inspiration for her lyrics in the life around her. She says, “Our generation is centred on booze, drugs and sex; no one listens to politicians and pastors anymore, so I believe they’d listen to music if it’s done by one of them, and if it makes sense. So, I strive to write songs that would make the average man sit down to think; religion or no….”

The highly gifted songstress is crazily in love with Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Garth Brooks, and the old Avril. She looks up to them and they keep her on.

Her greatest challenge in her music career, she says, has been her chosen genre. This is because, according to her, even though soft rock has a wide fan base, most Nigerians don’t appreciate it. They “just wanna party and do the booty call. So they promote more of that”. But all hope is not lost, as she adds that “with more of us soft rockers coming out, I believe that will change soon”.

How does she rate the Nigerian music industry? Simple: “We’ve really grown, especially the independent artistes and labels. Even our videos are beginning to have international recognition, like D’banj and 2face’s works.”

Though always in high spirits, Zainab also has her low moments, about which she says quite frankly, “I heard somewhere that almost all rock musicians have depressing moments. I do. How do I handle it? I don’t. I make sure I’m never alone but with friends and family. Depression is a bad thing. Going through it alone is a dangerous thing.”

And she’s also not lacking in wise counsels. To aspiring musicians, she says, “Make sure you have another source of income. Music may be your dream, but it needs financing. And no one but you, God and money can take you to that place you deserve to be.” And to her fans, she says: “Thanks for standing by me. You guys are the best peeps any musician could ever have. May your days be filled with laughter and love, and tears of happiness.” - Business Day Newspaper (March 9, 2012):

She describes herself simply as a girl who would do anything to be different from the rest – simple where others may be flamboyant, and vice versa – someone who pushes herself from within to be extraordinary. And no doubt, her progress so far in her chosen career, music, has been nothing but extraordinary.

Zainab Sule is her name, and she is from Etsako West L.G.A of Edo State, Nigeria. She has been singing for a long time, as early as 2002, in the University of Jos, and she recalls vividly how the school crowd in those days made her nerves tense and gave her butterflies in the stomach.

Zainab does much of country and soft rock music currently, and excels in it. But she’s also into web designing, to which she dedicates half of her time, while leaving the other half to music, especially recording and rehearsals – and particularly when a song gets in her head.

Her album, Attitude, hit the shelves not long ago, featuring such tracks as “Am not afraid” and “Show some love,” both of which have received very good airplay as well as commendations. But how does she feel about the encomiums? She heaves a sigh, and then says, “It increases the tension. The more they praise you, the more they expect from you – it’s a challenge on its own.”

Even though her Attitude album was self-promoted, she says it did better than she could imagine, in sales as well as in airplay, though she believes that there’s still much work to be done. And she’s currently in the process of recording her next album, Elixir, which she hopes would be out mid-April 2012, and which she promises is going to be unbelievable!

Looking at how good she’s with the guitar, you would say she has an obsession for it. But for her, “It’s more than an obsession.... It’s scary. I’ve always been in love with stringed instruments, but it’s the guitar that has that special appeal for me.” And her guitar is named Sean.

What about experimenting or crossing over into other genres? She answers straightway: “I have a feeling that my listeners will not be happy with me if I shift base. I tried it in a track in the Attitude album (track 3, i.e., “Things don change,” ft. Tshakes) and reviews didn’t pick it. So, I have proof they won’t trip for it. I may mix a little bit of hard/alternative rock in future works, but only God knows.” That’s how far her love for soft rock goes.

Zainab gets the inspiration for her lyrics in the life around her. She says, “Our generation is centred on booze, drugs and sex; no one listens to politicians and pastors anymore, so I believe they’d listen to music if it’s done by one of them, and if it makes sense. So, I strive to write songs that would make the average man sit down to think; religion or no….”

The highly gifted songstress is crazily in love with Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Garth Brooks, and the old Avril. She looks up to them and they keep her on.

Her greatest challenge in her music career, she says, has been her chosen genre. This is because, according to her, even though soft rock has a wide fan base, most Nigerians don’t appreciate it. They “just wanna party and do the booty call. So they promote more of that”. But all hope is not lost, as she adds that “with more of us soft rockers coming out, I believe that will change soon”.

How does she rate the Nigerian music industry? Simple: “We’ve really grown, especially the independent artistes and labels. Even our videos are beginning to have international recognition, like D’banj and 2face’s works.”

Though always in high spirits, Zainab also has her low moments, about which she says quite frankly, “I heard somewhere that almost all rock musicians have depressing moments. I do. How do I handle it? I don’t. I make sure I’m never alone but with friends and family. Depression is a bad thing. Going through it alone is a dangerous thing.”

And she’s also not lacking in wise counsels. To aspiring musicians, she says, “Make sure you have another source of income. Music may - Business Day Online, Friday, 09 March 2012 00:00 Chuks Oluigbo & Okey Egboluche