i came across the newspaper interview of lewd singer saint janet - enjoy it 



Spinner of lewd songs, Janet Ajilore, popularly called St. Janet, tells the story of her adventures in controversial music in an interview with AKEEM LASISI

Since Faaji Plus came out with a feast of vulgar lyrics, a lot of people have been wondering who the person behind the microphone is. So, who is St. Janet?

I am Mrs. Janet Ajilore, a native of Osu, in Ilesa area of Osun State.

For how long did you live in Osu?

I did not really live there. I have lived in Abeokuta, and now I live in Lagos. Why are you asking, really?

I know that a good number of comedians have come from that area. And there seems to be something naturally amusing in Ijesa dialect.

If that is the case, I may have got some influence from my background. I am a comedian. I used to perform with some theatre groups in Ilesa and Abeokuta areas.

When did you get into music?

I started about 17 years ago. I started as a back up singer to my master then, Lord Kenge.

What kind of music does Kenge sing and where is he now?

Highlife. He is still in Abeokuta.

When did you leave the Kenge band?

I started on my own 10 years ago.

Faaji Plus is said to be a recording of a live performance. Why have you not released an album in the past 10 years?

Well, there have been a lot of effort in that direction. I have also been trying to deal with challenges posed by marketers. But in two months’ time, my first album will be out.

That sounds like good news for your fans. But it is definitely a source of headache to those who have expressed displeasure at the lewd contents of Faaji Plus. What are we expecting in the album?

You see, what I want you to understand is that Faaji Plus was not meant to be released to the public. It is for a class of people. It is for my big fans. The songs are for those who request for them.

Who are these big fans?

Ah, you want to know. You cannot know because it is complicated.

Meaning what?

Let…let’s leave it there.

Some people who have listened to the songs are worried that you pounced on Christian songs and turned them into something else. They note that even if you wanted to adapt songs, you should have tinkered with secular ones – a ‘saint’ that you are.

What is a gospel song?

I take it to mean those normally sung in the church.

If you call something gospel song, it is just what people want it to be. There is no gospel song, but there are lyrics.

You say you are the General Overseer of Sinners’ Chapel, St. Bottles Cathedral. How large is your cathedral?

Very, very large. In fact, the largest in the whole world. The members are not only here in Nigeria, they are in London, America and everywhere.

Where is the cathedral based?

(Laughter) Even where we are now is a cathedral, because wherever one or two of us are gathered, we already have a cathedral.

One thing people have also queried is how a woman will sit down to compose those vulgar songs. How do you compose them?

When I am on the stage, I sing what comes to my mind. I don‘t sit down to compose.

Are you saying that that is the way the songs in Faaji Plus came out?

Yes. I did not compose them, nor did I do any rehearsal for them.

Is that possible? The songs came out too neat to believe they were not rehearsed.

That is what I learnt from my master. He does not do rehearsals.

How did you get the title “Saint”?

I got it from my master. In those days in Abeokuta, when we were not on stage, I would just go and sit all alone in a corner. Then, the band boys would be challenging me, “You this girl, what kind of a person are you? You hardly talk. Yet, when we get to the stage, your voice will be the loudest.” My master would now come in and say, “Leave her for me. She is a saint.”

Some people have also expressed the opinion that you might have been sent packing from your original church; and that that is probably why you have gone rebellious with your songs.

No. Why will they send me packing from my church?

Apart from the biggest church where you are the G. O., what popular church do you attend – where, I believe, you will be a member of the choir.

I am a Christian. And my church is known to me.

Which one?

It’s a gospel church where they preach the word of God.

The Lagos State House of Assembly deliberated upon your music last week, threatening to ban Faaji Plus and possibly arrest you.

I thank God for that. Before now, I had never seen the Lagos State House of Assembly talking about any musician.

But the ban….

I will not want to talk about that.

Why? Could that be suggesting that you have some big fans among the lawmakers?

I will not like to talk about that.

In the album, are you going to sing lewd songs?

(Laughs) I sing that kind of songs for people who request for them. If you request for it, I will give it to you. But it is not the only kind of songs I am capable of singing.

What type of beer do you drink especially during performance?

I drink water. Water and nothing else.

And you are the G. O. of St. Bottles Cathedral?

I don’t drink alcohol, I don’t smoke anything.








We never planned to release Faaji Plus to the public – Promoter, Sina Ayo-Oyinlola

What is the genesis of Faaji Plus?

I am a promoter. I got her album from her, which I said I was going to work towards releasing. The album is purely a gospel album. You can see it here (shows some pieces of music stored in his phone). You can see it: St Janet 3: Master. I will play it to you, so that you can see it is a purely gospel song. (Plays for about a minute…) So, that is the album I was working on. But I now said, ”As a promoter, I should know the extent to which this artiste could perform.” That was how she invited me to one of her shows, which was an indoor show.

Indoor show? Where was that?

Yes, it was an indoor show. But I cannot disclose where, because it was one of the influential people in the country that organised the show. When we were there, she played very well. Everyone enjoyed and danced very well. All she sang were gospel, philosophical and social songs that I enjoyed very well too. There was nothing like Idi nla (big buttocks) songs. But when it got around 3:30 am, many people had left, including those who went there with girls. But there were some still ready for more. We urged her to perform till, at least 5 am.

It was then she told me that she was also a comedian. I was also interested in that. I asked her to do anything that was still funny. I wanted to see how creative or crazy she was. As a promoter, I must know all those things. By the time she started, I was amazed. Everybody there was amazed. People whose names she could not throw into the jokes in the songs were not even pleased enough. That was when I told her to use names of her band boys, since it was not possible to mention the names of everyone. All the names mentioned in Faaji Plus are those of her boys - of course, with my name and that of her husband.

So, you are saying Faaji Plus was not planned?

We were just playing. It was a mere coincidence.

When then did you record it?

Anything she does even during live performance must be recorded. The moment the performance was over, I picked the recording and kept in my car because I didn‘t want anybody to do anything with it. But whenever some of my friends were in my car, I played it for them, although with the conviction that they would not do anything with it. So, I even gave it out to about four of my friends.

The question still is: since it was not meant for the public, how did it get to the market?

Faaji Plus was in my car for over two months because I was still working on it. But one night, a friend of mine called me from Alaba and asked, ”Sina where is the live play you were playing in your car the other day?‘ I told him it was still in my car. He said, ”Ol‘ boy, the music is no more in your car o.” In short, he had discovered that some pirates had got the recording and they were in the process of releasing it.

So…?

In the process of pondering what to do, I got the advice that we should produce about a thousand copies of Faaji Plus. Take them to her fans - the big, big ones. Give it to them and let them pay good money. This will be good for her and her work.

What then happened when you did the 1000 copies?

Out of the 1,000 copies, I first took 300 copies that I started taking round. But before I knew what was happening, the so-called marketer I gave it to did not wait for me before he started rolling it out.

How many copies of Faaji Plus would you thus say have been sold?

I am a promoter, not a marketer. So, I do not know. But don‘t forget that the way music goes round is not determined by how many copies of an albums are sold. Someone gets it, five or more people may copy it from him or her. I am not denying the fact that Faaji Plus has sold well, but for now, I can‘t say the exact figure.

Now that the music that is not meant for the public has got out, will you like to do anything possible to stop its circulation? Have you stopped rolling it out?

We are not even producing copies again. And I doubt if any record seller still have it. You go and check. But nobody can know what pirates are also doing. And whether I stop promoting it or not, Faaji Plus is already out. The only caution I can give is that they should be playing it in clubs, hotels and private moments.

In my interview with St Janet, I unsuccessfully sought to know who her ‘big fans‘ are.

You don‘t expect me to start to mention names of who her special fans are. There are some people you can‘t mention here. But the fans base is very, very large. If 80 people call me in a day to comment on the work, 75 are saying: ”Keep up the good work,” why only five are saying: ”What is all this rubbish?”

But you, do you personally encourage her to sing on as far as Faaji Plus is concerned?

Actually, I don‘t see it as anything that bad. People see Nigeria as a religious country, but we are not a religious country in the real sense of it. We are only covering up because of the poverty and other problems in the country. If people have a lot to eat well, get into their house and have light and water to drink and shower, you will see that nobody will be in the church again.

Saint Janet also went as far as mentioning names of some churches.

Anything she said in the live play is a mere joke. We don‘t have anything against any church. It was a joke that anybody could crack in the circumstance. But we didn‘t know it would become something this popular. But, mind you, a lot of people crack jokes worse than this in our different corners. What about the stand-up comedians who, during their concerts, crack jokes about various churches and even mention names of particular pastors? This is how people should look at Faaji Plus.

When is the original album coming out?

Don‘t get us wrong. There is nothing like ‘original album‘. It is the album. Because if you don‘t get it right, it will be as if we have had one, and we are working on it.

Will it contain songs similar to what we have in Faaji Plus?

Well, as a human being, if you eat amala today, you eat it tomorrow, won‘t you like to eat something else? But all I can assure you is that her fans will get all they want in the album. I told you that the songs you called lewd or vulgar or whatever got out unplanned. But now that she has been identified with it, there is no way she will stop singing it. All we will do is that we are going to work on it here and there.

I also want people to get it clear that Janet may be comic in her songs she is a committed and serious artiste. Some people will be thinking that the lady singing this type of songs must be a spoilt person. Indeed, most times, she goes about with her husband. So, she is a word-and-opposite of what she is singing.

How commercially viable has it been to you as a promoter?

(Laughter) We have not got money yet. But, sincerely speaking, it has brought a lot of shows. In a week, she could get up to six shows at times. Weddings, naming, birthdays. It‘s only when people now say: ”Come and play in my club. I need those lewd ones.” That‘s when she goes to give it to them.

Any link to her song?

You sure say no be damage control technique be this?

Download link ohhhh.i don't have time to go hang out in garages and joints because of jennifer,i mean janet or whatever she calls herself.i sure say the babe go wowo sef

@ topic
If faaji plus was just on the spur of the moment and it wasn't rehearsed, then the babe is fu.ukcing talented. . . . .though raw and lewd faaji plus sweet wella. BTW, I no get the album o. . . na just one guy wey dey operate one container Video rental store like that for my area dey jam am everyday so I'm very familiar with the song

aieromon:

Download link ohhhh.i don't have time to go hang out in garages and joints because of jennifer,i mean janet or whatever she calls herself.i sure say the babe go wowo sef

Osho free go kill you. . . . download link ko, upload link ni.

Lmaoo

semid4lyfe:

@ topic
If faaji plus was just on the spur of the moment and it wasn't rehearsed, then the babe is fu.ukcing talented. . . . .though raw and lewd faaji plus sweet wella. BTW, I no get the album o. . . na just one guy wey dey operate one container Video rental store like that for my area dey jam am everyday so I'm very familiar with the song
Osho free go kill you. . . . download link ko, upload link ni.

The babe can go to hell then.Girls that spit such are generally wowo.post her pic then if you can't come up with a download link

Old hag.i'm sure she can't do half of what she sings,iya akpati.

This woman nor get brain kobo. . . lol. . .

Songs for certain type of people? i dont even think she knows the meaning of cathedral . , . . . .Make she dey give her friends cheap bread there lol. ,

Oh my days! Didn't know she was the one that sang some nasty song called sinners' chapel. Played the song for my mum and she asked me to delete it.

St. Janet's "St. Bottles Cathedral" is the best juju song I've heard in a long time.
In terms of "lewd" lyrics. It is no worse than the lyrics of a certain I K Dairo song,
anyone remember " ele le suke obibo; o di suke, suke suke e"?

The song is an incissive parody of what takes place in Nigeria- no religious affiliation excepted.

How do I know? I am from Lagos, yeah Lagos Island. Lived among Christians "Kiriyo", Moslems "Imale"
and others "Aborisha"who worship in other ways. Attended Moslem and Christians schools. I have seen,
not just heard, people of these faiths behave just like St. Bottles Cathedral Sinners Chapel.
So some of you Nigerians should stop the hypocrisy. The lady has called you out!

To boot, she is a fine singer and excellent lyricist!

can somebody pls upload her banned song for us. i want to hear for myself pls.?

haha. I just heard some stuff on youtube. Not sure what the big deal is. She sounds great and, IMO, isn't saying anything worse than a lot of stuff that has made the billboard top 10 in recent years. I think this is much ado about nothing 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OG8EoV7VCfE&feature=related