Nigerian singer Temi DollFace finds herself on a «one-woman mission to put the theatrics back into live music». In the podcast she talks about fashion, being a female artist in Nigeria, the influence of her grand mother, and the gap between critical acclaim and mainstream chart success. Finally she comments on her music video «Pata Pata», a parody on materialist desires of the «perfect house wife» as shown in 1950s television ads. A podcast from the Norient exhibition Seismographic Sounds, produced by Tosyn Bucknor.
«If I were to meet somebody for the first time, I would introduce myself as Temi DollFace: vintage dreamer, singer, songwriter, composer, tunesmith, show woman, clothes horse, creative multi-tasker and superhero on a one-woman mission to put the theatrics back into live music.
When I’m on stage I wear self-designed costumes. I like to wear clothes that do a performance of their own because with fashion I can manipulate or convey my message better to my audience. Also, while I’m creating music in the studio I am already dreaming up what I’m going to wear in the video. The mood of the music already paints a picture.As a female artist working in Nigeria, I face a lot of challenges. As I’m doing music that is considered slightly left-of-center, I’m not getting as much airplay or shows as mainstream artists. However, I actually believe that my music has major pop sensibilities and I think it’s just a matter of time before I’m able to bridge the gap between critical acclaim and mainstream chart success. My work and my creativity should speak for me: I don’t like to look at myself as a female artist. I look at myself as an artist.
My grandmother is a huge influence of mine. She is somebody who is very dear to my heart, like a second mother. The major thing that she’s influenced in my life is my doggedness and my relentless attitude in pursuing my goals and my dreams. I’ve watched her fight for women’s rights while also being a great housewife who bakes and sews clothes. She made my mother’s clothes, she made my clothes, and she made my dolly’s clothes. Even now she’s still helping stitch and repair bits and pieces that I wear on stage. So thanks to my grandmother I love vintage, old movies and clothes with a story behind them. She wore the most elegant dresses with cinched-in waists – and every dress had a hat and gloves. And here I am, mimicking what my grandma used to wear and going to flea markets, looking for that bit of treasure from the fifties, my favorite era. I feel like I am slightly displaced in time.»
