Tolu Makay
An extraordinary soul talent steps into the light.
What was your journey into making music?
If you are asking about how my music journey began.. it all started with church. From singing in the choir at the age of 8, going for competitions and then eventually falling in love with gospel music – all giving me the opportunity to create and produce my very first single. From these experiences I knew I wanted to write and sing my own songs. It became a form of expression to me, especially at that moment as it was a tipping point where I questioned life, my reasoning and experiences. I was very good at numbing how I felt and the only way natural to express myself truly was through singing, through writing. All this eventually made me make the active decision in pursuing a career in becoming my own artist.
Who were you listening to at the time?
At the time while I was growing up, I was listening to a lot of gospel – the likes of Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp, Tye Tribette, Tamela Mann, Tasha Cobbs – and “secular” music such as a lot of Bruno Mars, Rihanna, Beyonce, Adele, Jessie J, Fergie, Nelly Furtado, Nina Simone, Etta James, etc. I’m definitely missing a lot more….
Was singing in public a natural step for you?
Definitely, I was pushed to start leading a choir by the age of 15 or so and because I was raised in the church it became natural to get up, do as you’re told, and sing for God and with God there is no fear. With this and with singing gospel you develop singing with true and pure emotion in front of many people, ministering. So performing came very natural to me, especially if I could connect with the music.
There’s a lot of attention on Irish hip-hop but the soul scene is growing too isn’t it?
The thing with soul is that there are other genres that can be added to it. For example Neo-soul, pop soul, an element of jazz and gospel. It has become an add on but its music that literally comes from the soul. When we speak of solely pure soul like Aretha Franklin, these have shifted to artists like Adele or Sam Smith. Soul I feel has evolved. There is a scene here, I just don’t think it has been acknowledged or recognised to be soul because it all differs because everyone expresses it differently. Theres no specific look or sound to it. Its very individual.
