My affair with D1 - Award-winning singer, Goldie (Samod Biobaku writes)

My affair with D1 – Award winning singer, Goldie
By Obaro Itewo
itewoobaro@yahoo.com

If the task of coining three words (that begin with the same letter) that best describe the personality of award-winning singer, Goldie (born Susan Harvey) ever fell into the hands of a wordsmith, then ‘bold, beautiful and blessed would come extremely close to a 100 per cent score.
She has remained relevant in the functional sphere of the Nigerian entertainment industry and this hardly comes as a surprise especially when one considers her contract with Kennis Music record label.
In this interview, the singer spoke about her rumoured relationship with Dayo Adeneye of Kennis Music, her desire to have a home filled with kids, her career and other issues.
Excerpts:

Congratulations on your recent award. Has it boosted your ego in any way?
Emmm! I don’t know if an award can boost an artiste ego. Your hard work will speak for you whether you win an award or not. So it’s not about boosting one’s ego. If you work hard and God blesses you, people will appreciate your work even if you don’t win awards. You will always be recognized for what people are seeing.

With negative speculations about your person, is there anything still golden about Goldie?
Most people see me as someone with a larger than life attitude. This is who I am. This is how God created me and I am not going to change. People must surely have a different view about you depending on the angle they are seeing you from. I just like to be good. I don’t go out of my way to dress in a way that is different from other people. I just like to look good. I also have artistry flare. When I was young, I used to draw a lot. I could draw the pictures of what I wanted to wear and take it to designers to tell them how I wanted it.

Most time your fans compare you to America female diva lady Gaga because of your weird dress sense. How much of Lady Gaga-attributes do you have?
I don’t feel bad and I don’t feel anything because my music career started in 2007 before Lady Gaga. Lady Gaga started 2008 so I cannot be Lady Gaga.

Do we say Lady Gaga dresses like you?
I don’t know. If they say my dressing is like that of Lady Gaga, how can I copy someone who wasn’t on the scene when I was there?

Do you have any idea why you think there are so many controversies woven around your person?
I think because I am a very quiet person and very shy. When people don’t know much about you, they try to make up stories. People will always try to make up stories when they come close to you and can’t see any negative thing around you. As far as I have the support of my family and friends, I just focus on my career and face my music. If I let people into my life and they know where I stay, they know my dad, my mum and my siblings then there will be nothing to write about again but because they don’t know they have to make up stories.

How do you feel seeing some of these negative publications about your person most of which may not be true?
Do I have time to read negative publications? I am always busy in the studio. I have no time to even sleep. I manage to make out time to sleep like three to four hours. So I don’t give such negative publications any attention.

Can you tell us about your personality for your fans to know more about you?
I am someone that is down to earth and very tolerant of people. If I am angry, I keep quiet. I don’t talk much because if I talk, I can say what I am not supposed to say but I am someone that is very, very tolerance. I am very homely. If I like something, I would do all my best to get it

I heard a rumour about you having a love child?
Love child? I don’t have any. I don’t have any children. If I have children I will be very, very proud to show them to the world but I don’t have any children. I wish have now. Maybe I might adopt. I love children.

You appear to love children. Maybe you might have like ten in future…
(Cuts-in) even if I don’t have up to that, I would adopt because I loves kids. I want to have a house full of children where everybody would be happy but its advisable to do thorough family planning because its expensive to take care of children. It’s expensive.

Most people can easily mistake for a foreign or an albino what people call ‘obobo’ looking at your reddish brown hair?
I am not a foreigner. I am from Ikole Ekiti in Ekiti state. My mum is an Ijebu while my dad is from Ikole Ekiti.

If you are not an albino and your root is not traceable to any of this foreign country how come you have such a long and natural reddish brown hair?
I don’t know. (Laughs) find out if you are interested. You are a journalist. If you go into your research as a journalist you will find out and before you find out let me just tell you something. How do they come about the name, ‘Yaba’ and it’s in Lagos state and Lagos is even a Yoruba state.

And your parents are still together?
Oh! They are still very happily married. I have five siblings - Two brothers and two sisters.

What is your position in the family?
I am the first born.

I believe you have heard about the rumour affair between you and Dayo Adeneye, D1?
Noooo! It can’t be. Dayo is my boss. He is a happily married man. He is professional. Baba Keke is also my boss. A profession loves to mix business and pleasure and for me I have time for only music. I only meet Dayo Adeneye at public event. I don’t have his personal contact. I don’t know his house and he doesn’t know my house. For the records, I am not dating my boss and I have never dated my bosses.

How did you find yourself in the music industry? Was it by accident?
Emmm! I don’t think anything was by accident. I think we all have passion for different things as assigned to us by God according to our ability. I have always being an artiste before 2007. It just that I find myself mingling with people that share my view and belief and when you mingle with this people you will do what they do and even learn how to do it. Music is a passion. I love writing, I love singing and I love performing. So everything about me is actually music.

Much have being said about your relationship. You have being linked to a number of guys. Can you tell us about your relationship status to lay this issue to rest or maybe you are not in any relationship?
I am not going to talk about my personal life so that the speculations can continue because if I talk about it the speculations will not continue.

And you enjoy the speculation…
(Cuts-in) let people keep talking and guessing. Let people keep talking.

Maybe you don’t want to reveal the identity of the guy?
Let people keep talking. I am married to my music. I love my work and I have a big family support system so let people keep talking. When my friends get close to me they want to know but they wouldn’t know what they need to know but for now I am not going to talk about it. If I am with anybody it doesn’t help anybody in anyway. Why did they need to know?

Talking being married to music might mean you not in any relationship for now?
I am not going to answer that question.

If you are ready to go into a relationship tomorrow what kind of guy will you fancy?
I like a guy that is very intelligent, someone that I can learn from. A guy that can make me laughs. He should be respectful and understanding. I don’t like rude people.