Welcome To PLANET AMOEJI

WORDS BY LESIBA MANKGA

IMAGES COURTESY OF WAVY THE CREATOR

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Who gets to determine what is “normal” and what is “different”? It seems that in life, the majority rule dictates that… However, there is a strange phenomenon in popular culture today. Being different or extraordinary is only praised and celebrated once you ascertain a certain level of success but until that moment comes, you are an outcast. Ridiculed, belittled and cast aside without an ounce of thought. For the people who choose to forge their own path, the first step is surviving this period of judgement. It is almost a right of passage.

Are you bold enough to be the person you believe yourself to be at all times? Are you willing to risk being seen as an unmitigated failure in life because you chose to go against the grain? Will you stay on course even when you’re the only one that sees and comprehends the vision?

Genius – “exceptional intellectual or creative power or other natural ability.”

Nowhere in the above definition of a genius is there mention of perceived success or social status. I would argue that anyone who can survive in the modern world without conforming to the rigid structures of today’s society, possesses exceptional creative power. With that being said, I introduce to you a living, breathing genius… Wavy The Creator.

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Finish the sentence. Growing up, I always felt different because…

I always stood out. No matter where in the world I was… No matter what crowd of people I was around; I always stood out. It’s one of the reasons I call myself an alien.

If you were to have your own planet, what would you name it?

Actually, I do have my own planet and it is called PLANET AMOEJI. I imagine PLANET AMOEJI to be an Afrofuturistic world that fuses my African heritage with the many other cultures I have come across in my years of existence.

Hmm… You seem like someone that has been influenced by a number of different places. Where did you grow up?

I was born in Lagos and I spent my formative years in Nigeria before I moved to Kansas City, Missouri. I spent my childhood there and then I moved to Houston for college.

Being “different” or being a “genius” is glamorised in popular culture but the reality of being labeled different is a far cry from what it’s made out to be. What are some of the challenges you’ve faced in being someone that’s considered to be ‘different’?

Being different comes with a lot of isolation. In that isolation, you begin to explore the parts of yourself that you may not be all that comfortable acknowledging. In that discomfort, you begin to formulate your own world, which may be difficult for others to understand. Developing and maintaining relationships becomes difficult because you struggle to find people who can understand why you think and act the way you do. That is the most challenging aspect of being “different”.

The one thing that I have always stood for is being yourself and owning that fact.

– Wavy The Creator

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Would you say you always felt free to be the most authentic version of yourself?

Growing up with African parents came with a lot of restrictions. I’ve always known who I was, but I didn’t always have the opportunity to be the most authentic version of myself. That all began to change when I graduated from high school. I felt I had reached a level where I no longer had those restrictions; I could express myself without anything or anyone restricting me.

I’m aware that you express yourself in multiple art forms. Would you say that your being a multi-disciplinary artist affects how you make music in comparison to an artist that only creates music?

Being a multi-disciplinary artist affects the way I create and release music. Everything that I do in one art form affects the other. My method of creating music is different because I believe that as an artist, you are meant to take your experiences and translate them into music. I receive inspiration from every aspect of life and in that way, I stay open-minded and free when I create music.

When would you say you experienced the most growth as an artist?

I think I experienced the most growth when I moved from my hometown of Kansas City to Houston for college. I began to see myself as this free-thinking, independent being that saw the world as their canvas. Houston was where I started my exploration into the world of art and started out as a fashion designer. Going to college was the first time I ventured into the world without any help.

I always stood out. No matter where in the world I was… No matter what crowd of people I was around; I always stood out. It’s one of the reasons I call myself an alien.

– Wavy The Creator

The next time I would experience a great leap in growth as an artist was when I moved from Houston to Nigeria. Keep in mind that I have no connection to family in Nigeria, so I would virtually be on my own in a country that I haven’t been to since I was a child, but I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to work as a photographer for Olamide. I knew it was the next step in my growth as an artist.

I do have my own planet and it is called PLANET AMOEJI.

– Wavy The Creator

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It all sounds a bit like a fairytale, but I’m more interested in the challenges that came with moving to Nigeria. What were some of the hardships you had to face in moving back?

I met Olamide when he came to do a show in Houston. He really loved my work and offered to fly me to Nigeria in December of 2016. Initially, I was only supposed to stay for a month but I decided to make my stay permanent because I had this strong urge to stay here (in Nigeria) and make an impact. I had some amazing moments out here but I also had some very crazy lows. Looking back, all of those moments (good and bad) shaped the creative that I am today.

Let’s switch gears into the music. I really love the cover art. Can you talk us through your thinking behind it?

This project was supposed to come out 2 years ago. In that period, so much happened… I experienced so many things in life. That waiting period felt like hibernation for me. In my hibernation, I was manifesting the best version of myself so that when I came out of that hibernation period, I would be the version of myself that I had been working to become.

In a previous interview that you conducted, you said that you watched a movie and there was a scene where someone said, “now you got all my sugar on you”. That line inspired the song ‘Got All Your Sugar (G.A.Y.S.)’ and so I have to ask, which movie was that line from?

I honestly don’t remember the name of the movie. I was watching that movie with a few friends when I was in Ghana and I wasn’t really paying attention to the movie, but that scene stood out to me. It just so happened that later on that day we went to the studio. That’s the story behind the song ‘Got All Your Sugar (G.A.Y.S.)’.

Being different comes with a lot of isolation. In that isolation, you begin to explore the parts of yourself that you may not be all that comfortable acknowledging.

– Wavy The Creator

So, I’m interested in your time in London and Amsterdam because that’s where you made ‘F*ck Luv’ and ‘Harmonies’.

I was in Amsterdam for a mini-camp and I was looking to work with new producers and experiment with different sounds. On my last day in Amsterdam, I was with Quesi and we recorded ‘Harmonies’. When I got back to Nigeria, I felt that the song needed something different and that’s when WurlD got on the song.

Right after Amsterdam, we went to London and that’s where I started working on ‘F*ck Luv’. We were playing around with a few different sounds and concepts, and when I got back to Nigeria, that’s when I wrapped up the song with LMBSKN.

Lastly, when you leave Earth and go to PLANET AMOEJI, what do you want us to remember about you?

The one thing that I have always stood for is being yourself and owning that fact. No matter what the challenges are. No matter who the naysayers are. No matter who the world wants you to be. That will bring you satisfaction and fulfilment in life. It will bring you peace and align you with people who share a similar vision. Let your experiences shape you, not define you. Everything that happens to you is happening for you.

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