I’m blessed to have the kind of husband I have – Lami Philips

I’m blessed to have the kind of husband I
have – Lami Philips
on november 01, 2013 at 7:00 am in showtime
people
*Lami Philips
By Ayo Onikoyi
It is not often you come across a chic and beautiful
woman who is all over town telling everyone who
cares to listen how much she loves her husband. At
least that’s what Lami Philips is trying to do with
‘Baby’, a track she said she dedicates to her
husband. She recently completed the video in
London and back at home WG ran into the suave
beauty at an event where she talked about her
career, her kind of music and more. Excerpts:
You look so beautiful even without any make-up
Thanks. Fact is that I just got back from rehearsals
for a new video I’m shooting and I got all sweaty
but had to quickly wipe my face with a towel inside
the car
So what’s new?
We just released a new single called ‘Baby Mi’ and
we are shooting another one and that’s why I’ve
been all out.
What is it about ‘Baby Mi’ ?
Well, it was a song I wrote while I was in the studio.
I was actually thinking about my husband and that’s
how the inspiration came. So I just told my
producer and we got few things down and that’s
how we did the song.
What did your husband say when you told him the
song was all about him?
Of course he blushed. He liked it. I’m just blessed to
have the kind of husband I have. He’s been very
supportive. He’s the voice in the background who
has been urging me to go for whatever I want.
So your next single involves some kind of dance?
Yeah. The title is called ‘Romantic Boy’. It’s a kind
of dance-hall song, something more fun and playful.
So it’s for the ‘Romantic Boy’ that you want to
infuse some dance steps?
Yes. I just want to do something fun and playful this
time around. That’s why you see that I’ve been
going for dance rehearsals because we are
shooting soon.
Does it mean you are rebranding because your
previous albums don’t contain such?
I won’t want to call it re-branding because it’s who
I’ve always been. I’ve always been the playful and
fun type so it’s like putting who I am into the song.
If you look at my last album ‘Intuition’, you’ll notice
that it’s strictly soul. But this new album from where
we released ‘Baby’ and now ‘Romantic Boy’, it’ll still
be my usual kind of songs but more fun will be
added to it.
Would you say you are infusing dancehall to gain
more acceptance out there?
Well, I’m already  accepted because I have my own
fan base. Those who love my music love my music
and I’d rather be one among many than join the rat
race out there today. So Lami has been the fun type
all along so I’m just trying to be more playful and
fun in my music rather than be gloomy.
You look a bit chubby now.
Yes. But I’m working out now. The reason is
because I had to take a break to rest because I just
needed to. So during the break, all I did was rest,
stay indoors, travel and eat because I love food a
lot.
But how easy was it for you to take a break and not
get disturbed by your fans to come perform?
Actually it wasn’t easy to abstain especially for my
kind of person who is a workaholic. At first I was
tempted to want to run back to work but my
husband made sure I stayed away so I won’t break
down. Honestly, I’ve learnt to hear from God when
He’s telling me to do something. When He told me I
had to take a break, I just had to obey Him. And
now, He’s telling me to work and that’s what I’m
doing.
Why is it that you’re not signed to any label?
I don’t think I need to be signed to any label. I like to
handle my things by myself to know how it’s being
run, and that has made me stronger than the
average artiste you’ll see out there. My music isn’t
the regular type that needs promotions and all that. I
have my targeted audience and I’m focused on
them. I’m a control freak and don’t like someone
telling me what to do or not to do when it comes to
my music. If you’ll agree with me, when an average
artiste leaves his label, you’ll discover that they are
not able to continue afterwards because they’ve
been lazy about doing things themselves. But it
hasn’t been like that for me because I’ve been
involved in it right from the very beginning.
Do you have
friends in the
industry at all?
Yes I do.
Omawunmi is my
friend, Waje is
also a good friend
of mine, so also is
Tiwa Savage. Rita
Dominic, Uche
Jombo, Desmond
Elliot and others.
Are you then
considering
acting?
I have it at the
back of my head.
Does it mean that
you don’t mingle with other artistes as expected?
Oh yes, I do. I hang out with my friends but we
don’t hang out in clubs. I prefer going to their
houses and they, coming to mine. Before I went on
vacation, Waje, Omawunmi and I planned meeting
and hanging out but they were busy and I was busy
too.
With your kind of music, are you always busy?
I’m as busy as you can ever think of. My manager
arranges for me to perform at required shows like
burials, birthday parties, weddings and the likes and
I make my money. But the thing is the kind of
places I go to perform with my band doesn’t get
publicised like an average concert or shows does.
For  instance, If I’m invited to sing at a burial, no
one will be on the radio or TV announcing that Lami
will be there to perform. So that’s how it is, but I
make my money; I’m blessed.
And I’m like a tomboy. Whenever you see me
performing at events, I always like to be on flats
and probably baggy or so. I like to feel comfortable
because I’ll be standing for a long time. And you
don’t expect me to sing from CDs like most artistes
do while on stage. I make sure what I sing on stage
is different from what I have on my CD.
How do you handle male admirers?
I handle them normally. But my fans aren’t the run-
of-the-mill like you’ll have at shows and concerts.
My fans are classy and won’t mob you. I also do
my best to carry myself well in a way that befits me
and my husband. Besides, I always have company.
I don’t go out alone so no rude fan will behave
abnormally around me.
Don’t you think it is negative PR if your fans don’t
have free access to you?
No, I don’t think so. Some people may see it as
pride but I just have to protect myself whenever I’m
in public. Else, some people may just think they can
come and molest you, all in the name of saying
‘hello’. Just like when I walked in here, I met some
people at the reception and they hushed to
themselves “That’s Lami”, and we greeted gently.
So if anyone approaches me reasonably, why will I
shun them?
Do you also worry about pirates?
I don’t worry about them because every artiste
knows that’s a sacrifice he has to make. We don’t
make our money from CDs. We get bulk of our
money from performing at events. So I don’t worry
about them at all.
When people watch you on TV, you look tall but in
real life, you aren’t.
Yeah. I’ve actually met fans who told me that. But
I’m grateful for the way I look because it makes me
smarter. I also used to wish I could be like this and
like that but with time, I’ve learnt to accept me for
myself and I love who I am.