Ayo made a splash on the musical scene with her first album, Joyful, in 2006, setting a new standard for singer-songwriters with her perfect balance of folk, soul, reggae, and pop. The German-Nigerian beauty is coming back to Brussels to present her fourth album, Ticket to the World, on which she raps for the very first time. “Rap is a great way to talk about what’s going on in the world right now.”
"Ayo’s a warrior...although that’s hard to believe when you see her, so beautiful and frail with her guitar slung across her shoulder.” Those are the first words of the press release for her new album, Ticket to the World, but it’s not just promo blah-blah, as you will find out during this interview. Ayo’s musical world is a delicate acoustic mix of soul, pop, folk, and reggae. “It’s all part of my musical background, everything I’ve been raised with,” says Joy Olasunmibo Ogunmakin, better known as Ayo (sometimes written with a dot under the o), the Yoruba translation of her first name, Joy. Ayo was born near Cologne, Germany, as the fourth child of a Nigerian father and a Roma mother from Romania, but her father definitely had the biggest influence on her musical taste. “He played a lot of music. I call it good music. [Laughs] Very versatile. I am a cosmopolitan, so logically my sound is cosmopolitan.”
What is new compared to your former work?
Ayo: I’ve never rapped on an album before. What people don’t know about me, is that I used to rap before I started singing. I used to sing in the shower or in front of the mirror, but never in public. Rapping in front of an audience was easier, so in a way I’m going back to my roots on this record. There’s a touch of hip hop, even though it’s my interpretation of hip hop.
What brings you back to rap?
Ayo: Rap is a great tool, a way to talk about what’s going on in the world right now. I wanted to talk about more global, less personal things. Things that are important to me but also for the people. As a rapper, you can become the voice of the people.
Ayo's ticket to the world
“Fire”, a big hip-hop tune with the French-Congolese rapper Youssoupha, has sharp socio-political lyrics. The track is a protest against the fact that politicians don’t really care about the streets, right?
Ayo: Exactly. I believe that politics is today’s cinema. It’s entertainment, like a Hollywood movie. They make a lot of promises, but in the end they don’t keep them; it’s just a movie. Look around you, what’s going on with the youth. We’re moving in the wrong direction... Kids want to be accepted and that’s only possible by wearing Nike, Puma, things that make them come across cool. If you don’t have it, you’re not accepted.
How come?
Ayo: There are too many fake things. Everything that is fake and not important has a huge platform. Things that have a deeper meaning or really are important are not heard. Look at what’s happening to music. I think music is a spiritual thing. People go to a club to feel better. It gives them a break, away from trouble, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Music is a way to educate people, but the same way you can mis-educate them. That’s what’s happening with the music industry. The world is full of plastic things. Look at water. It used to be in glass bottles, now everything is in plastic. So is the music: it’s not about quality anymore, it’s about quantity. Luckily, there are artists who have something interesting to say, like Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley. They can make people dream and inspire them.
That’s what you want to do, inspire people?
Ayo: That’s what I’d love to do. I became and still am a musician because it’s a healing thing. It’s my therapy: it helps me to become a better person, forget about my past and move on. I believe in the power of music to heal the soul.
You once said music is a weapon to fight injustice. Am I hearing Fela Kuti?
Ayo: [Laughs] Yes, Fela is another person who really inspired me. He is Africa’s Bob Marley. He had something to say, that’s why he played music. Party music, but his lyrics are very deep and powerful, also when he sings in Yoruba. He was very political, in the right way, but also very human: down to earth, talking to the people and not afraid to say the truth. The one thing I’ve promised myself as an artist is to always be true to myself. Music definitely is a weapon, the only weapon that won’t hurt you.
Back to “Fire”. That’s a really cool hip-hop tune – I thought I was listening to Lauryn Hill!
Ayo: Wow, to me that’s a great compliment. I really love Lauryn Hill; I appreciate her so much as an artist. I was thirteen years old when I was listening to the Fugees.
“Justice” is a duet with Citizen Cope, who is also your support act in the Ancienne Belgique. Who is he?
Ayo: His real name is Clarence Greenwood and he’s an incredible artist, one of the greatest singer-songwriters I know. I hope people will come early to the show in Brussels, as I’d almost say the best part will be the opening act. [Laughs] If people don’t know him, it’s gonna be the nicest discovery of the year. They can start the new year with a new artist.
Ayo: Exactly. I believe that politics is today’s cinema. It’s entertainment, like a Hollywood movie. They make a lot of promises, but in the end they don’t keep them; it’s just a movie. Look around you, what’s going on with the youth. We’re moving in the wrong direction... Kids want to be accepted and that’s only possible by wearing Nike, Puma, things that make them come across cool. If you don’t have it, you’re not accepted.
How come?
Ayo: There are too many fake things. Everything that is fake and not important has a huge platform. Things that have a deeper meaning or really are important are not heard. Look at what’s happening to music. I think music is a spiritual thing. People go to a club to feel better. It gives them a break, away from trouble, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Music is a way to educate people, but the same way you can mis-educate them. That’s what’s happening with the music industry. The world is full of plastic things. Look at water. It used to be in glass bottles, now everything is in plastic. So is the music: it’s not about quality anymore, it’s about quantity. Luckily, there are artists who have something interesting to say, like Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley. They can make people dream and inspire them.
That’s what you want to do, inspire people?
Ayo: That’s what I’d love to do. I became and still am a musician because it’s a healing thing. It’s my therapy: it helps me to become a better person, forget about my past and move on. I believe in the power of music to heal the soul.
You once said music is a weapon to fight injustice. Am I hearing Fela Kuti?
Ayo: [Laughs] Yes, Fela is another person who really inspired me. He is Africa’s Bob Marley. He had something to say, that’s why he played music. Party music, but his lyrics are very deep and powerful, also when he sings in Yoruba. He was very political, in the right way, but also very human: down to earth, talking to the people and not afraid to say the truth. The one thing I’ve promised myself as an artist is to always be true to myself. Music definitely is a weapon, the only weapon that won’t hurt you.
Back to “Fire”. That’s a really cool hip-hop tune – I thought I was listening to Lauryn Hill!
Ayo: Wow, to me that’s a great compliment. I really love Lauryn Hill; I appreciate her so much as an artist. I was thirteen years old when I was listening to the Fugees.
“Justice” is a duet with Citizen Cope, who is also your support act in the Ancienne Belgique. Who is he?
Ayo: His real name is Clarence Greenwood and he’s an incredible artist, one of the greatest singer-songwriters I know. I hope people will come early to the show in Brussels, as I’d almost say the best part will be the opening act. [Laughs] If people don’t know him, it’s gonna be the nicest discovery of the year. They can start the new year with a new artist.
It’s country-folk. The combination of your worlds?
Ayo: I asked him to write the song as I wanted to have his colour on the album. Our universe is alike even though we’re very different in style. But I do love country music and folk. This song makes you feel good. When we play it live, it makes us happy!
The title track, “Ticket to the World”, is about what you would do if you were in charge of the world. Like a Robin Hood, you’d take money from the rich and give it to the poor.
Ayo: Yes. [Laughs out loud] When I say the rich, I’m not talking about soccer players. I’m talking about the really rich...
The 1%?
Ayo: Exactly. My aunt died a few months ago. I tried to get her over to France for treatment, but she couldn’t come because of visa problems and passed away because of an illness that can be cured over here. I realised how crazy this world is. In 2013, it shouldn’t be like that anymore! “Ticket to the World” is about being born with the right passport to be able to see the world and travel – born free, while others are born prisoners. That’s when you realise the luxury of being born with the right passport. You can be poor but work your way up or go to the Philippines, the UK, or the US for work. Only if you are born with the right passport.
Ayo • 4/12, 20.00, €27/30, Ancienne Belgique, boulevard Anspachlaan 110, Brussel/Bruxelles, 02-548.24.24, www.abconcerts.be
Ayo: I asked him to write the song as I wanted to have his colour on the album. Our universe is alike even though we’re very different in style. But I do love country music and folk. This song makes you feel good. When we play it live, it makes us happy!
The title track, “Ticket to the World”, is about what you would do if you were in charge of the world. Like a Robin Hood, you’d take money from the rich and give it to the poor.
Ayo: Yes. [Laughs out loud] When I say the rich, I’m not talking about soccer players. I’m talking about the really rich...
The 1%?
Ayo: Exactly. My aunt died a few months ago. I tried to get her over to France for treatment, but she couldn’t come because of visa problems and passed away because of an illness that can be cured over here. I realised how crazy this world is. In 2013, it shouldn’t be like that anymore! “Ticket to the World” is about being born with the right passport to be able to see the world and travel – born free, while others are born prisoners. That’s when you realise the luxury of being born with the right passport. You can be poor but work your way up or go to the Philippines, the UK, or the US for work. Only if you are born with the right passport.
Ayo • 4/12, 20.00, €27/30, Ancienne Belgique, boulevard Anspachlaan 110, Brussel/Bruxelles, 02-548.24.24, www.abconcerts.be
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