Who Is…Nneka

Remember way back in the late '80s and early '90s, when artists would sing about politics and social justice just as much as money and heartbreak — you know, like Tracy Chapman on the Amnesty International tour, or everything Boogie Down Productions ever did? For those of us who miss music that moved us in complicated ways, Nneka is a powerful answer. Not only is she a beautifully raw singer, whose range and influences span neo-soul, afro-beat and reggae, Nneka is politically-committed, spiritually-motivated and as fiercely smart as her lyrics imply.

eMusic's Elizabeth Gold caught up with Nneka days before her NYC debut.

On her first musical memories:

Six in the morning, cleaning my father's old school Volvo in Nigeria, when I was about 13 — while I was washing those tires, I was singing to myself. I didn't have my own CD player or Walkman, so most of the music I heard was traditional Nigerian music on the local radio station. And I would hear Bob Marley once in a while — his songs are always easy to sing along to.

On the surprisingly difficult choice between music and anthropology:

[When I got to Germany] I started studying Archeology, and then switched to Anthropology and African Studies. I always wanted to know more, apart from the Biblical aspect, about where we come from. More about the biological side, and the science side, and to be able to read in between the lines of the Bible, to understand why we're here. I met DJ Farhot when I was just doing music for fun. He was living in his parents' place, and I would go sit with him in the basement and exchange ideas. He would show me his hip-hop collection, I would tell him about Africa. I was always writing, and I used to rap for myself, but he was the first person who gave me the courage to use my own lyrics to express myself and make music out them. We were like two dummies who don't know anything, teaching each other, and growing together. I still have not made up my mind [about music as a profession]. The first gig where I earned money for music, I felt guilty taking it.

On breaking into the record business without really trying:

I had this part time job working in a boutique, and I got fired. When I was running through town looking for a new job, I found Yo Mama Records. The secretary told me it was a distribution and record company, and I was like, “Okay, why don't you listen to some stuff I have,” because I always carried my songs in my backpack. It was very unprofessional, ghetto-y. That these guys even allowed me into their office… I went straight to the chief in charge, and he listened to my three tracks. “Changes,” and the “Uncomfortable Truth” made [my first] record.

On Big Oil and the Remember Saro-Wiwa project:

Nigeria is one of the major oil-producing countries in the world. Ken Saro Wiwa was a freedom fighter who came from the Niger Delta, a region located in the south that is rich with oil — it's where I grew up, and my parents still live. Saro-Wiwa was hanged in 1995 by the then-president of Nigeria, the dictator Sani Abacha. [At the time of his death], there was also a lot of tribalism — [different] tribes were asking who the oil belonged to. So the problem came from within and without Africa.

It's good that [Nigerians] have oil, but it's also been a curse for us. The Deltans' livelihood is farming and fishing, but there is nothing left for them. Only the rich survive. The area has been exploited environmentally, and people live in abject poverty, due to our corrupt political leaders working with these oil extraction companies. The money is not invested into the community, and there's a lot of pollution — the area is in a state of total exploitation. You can't imagine: a country like Nigeria, with almost 200 million people, being the fourth biggest oil producer in the world, and we don't have proper petrol stations [or] refineries. What I'm trying to do with this movement is raise awareness, and to educate my fellow Nigerians outside of Africa on what is happening back home. Even to raise your voice and put up a blog, or help some family, or an orphanage.

On why Africa is the Future:

Africa is the past, the present, and the future. Africa is the source. When it comes to American history: take a look a slavery times, at hip-hop, at blues. Who built Europe? Who went to war?

On coming home to Africa from Europe:

My biological mother is German, but I grew up with my dad and stepmom who are Nigerian. That had never been an issue until I stepped out of Nigeria for a while — then I understood I had color, and knew what racism and prejudice was. In the Western world, I was black! In Germany, they give it to you straight and to your face. When I went back to Nigeria, after experiencing all this in Germany, knowing that I am mixed… You don't know where you belong. I feel at home in Nigeria, I just have to remove that inferiority complex that Europe gave me. I'm cool; I'm in between.

On which other Nigerian artists you should be listening to:

King Sunny Ade, Victor Uwaifo, Edna Ogholi, MajekFashek

On who she'll be jamming with in the afterlife:

With Bob Marley, with Fela, and with Nina Simone.