As the most prominent female performer in the Afrobeats genre, Tiwa Savage has long occupied a special place in African music.
Tiwa Savage is starting her next project, which will involve both acting in and executive producing her first full-length feature film, “Water and Garri,” after leading international tours, working with Beyoncé and Brandy, and supporting up-and-coming talent.
The movie, which will have its worldwide premiere on Prime Video on May 10, centers on successful fashion designer Aisha as she makes her way back to Nigeria following ten years spent in the US.
She is shocked by the significant transformations that have occurred in her country and among the people she used to know. Aisha’s voyage is set to the moving music of the same name, and as it progresses, it reveals significant changes in culture.
Aisha’s relationships and emotions are mirrored throughout the film, therefore the soundtrack is an essential part of the experience.
Tiwa returns with her trademark overtone singing, and the soundtrack heavily relies on live instruments and ambient sound effects to create an immersive experience. The project incorporates a wide range of musical styles, including pop and mainstream trap, amapiano, R&B, gospel, and Afrobeat and Afropop.
Afro-reggae fusion musician Black Sherif and Grammy-nominee Ayra Starr are featured, with special contributions from Olamide and up-and-coming Nigerian talent Young Jonn.
“Water and Garri” is inspired on Tiwa’s 2021 EP of the same name, as well as her experience as a British lady of Nigerian descent who moved to Brooklyn to pursue her composer career. Meji Alabi is the director, and this is his first feature-length production. As the market for African material continues to grow and stabilize, the movie also represents an investment from significant entertainment giants.
“Audiences worldwide crave well-crafted, contemporary African narratives, and ‘Water & Garri’ delivers precisely that with a fresh perspective,” said Ayanna Lonian, director of content acquisition at Prime Video. “Both Meji Alabi, in his directorial role, and Tiwa Savage, as the lead, have truly delivered a stellar debut alongside an exceptionally talented cast and crew.”
Furthermore, a Nigerian production business working with Prime Video and Tiwa’s production team demonstrates a dedication to authenticity.
“We are thrilled to collaborate with Prime Video, who grasp the significance of this cultural milestone celebrating the intersecting power of film and music, especially emanating from Africa at this exciting time,” said Jimi Adesanya, producer and Unbound Studios executive.
In an interview with Variety, Tiwa Savage talked about the movie, navigating her own African identity, pushing herself at this point in her career, and a lot more while she was in New York.
The name of this film is “Water and Garri,” which is also the name for your 2021 EP. Why did you decide to keep the name the same; is there a connection between the two?
When the ‘Water and Garri’ EP came out, I had no idea of doing a feature film. I thought, ‘Okay, I’m just getting bored of doing music videos.’ I wanted to do a visual album. I was inspired by (Beyonce’s) “Black is King” and Kanye’s films.
Then we were like, ‘Okay, we’re going to do a visual album.’ I got the script and I was like, ‘This is amazing. Let’s do a short film instead.’ We started shooting it and it ended up being a full feature. And so I couldn’t change the name. It felt like there was nothing else that fit. Water to Garri is like love to pain and that resonates a lot in the movie. Now the EP is a standalone project and we have a completely new soundtrack for the movie.
Why did this feel like the right time now to go into acting? Had film opportunities come up for you before?
I’ve gotten many roles before but I wasn’t ready. Actually, acting was my first love before music. So I knew I was going to go back to it at some point. Why now? Honestly, I got bored. I got bored of, producing the album, doing music videos, and then going on tour and moving to the next thing. I was like ‘No, I need to do something else.’ Not completely forgetting music but I needed to be challenged. I needed to be scared. And, and this is a this is a good scare.
I also feel like, many of us, I’d say, Wizkid, Davido, Burna Boy, are at a place where we’ve established ourselves as household names, and at this point can do something new or do anything that we want to do.
You worked with director Meji Alabi, a previous music video collaborator, and with this being your first film, how did he support you? What was the creative and preparation like?
This is his first [film] and this is my first so it’s special for both of us. Meji was amazing. Because it started out as a short and then evolved, the pressure wasn’t there for either of us. I took acting classes in London for a couple of weeks. One of the things that they helped me with on set was [staying in character]. They made sure that everybody kept calling me Aisha. The whole team, Meji, and my partners Jimmy and Vanessa – everybody was incredible.
It’s good to know that you had like a group of people around to make you feel safe.
I’ve worked with [Jimmy and Vanessa] for years. We clicked, from day one. So they can tell when I’m a bit nervous about something and they’ll give me a shot of tequila.
This soundtrack explores a lot of Afrobeat elements but also showcases experimental concepts with jazz, gospel, and more. Was there any hesitation to stepping a bit outside of your comfort zone?
People expect a certain sound from me. So by doing a soundtrack, I could [experiment]. The title track with Richard Bona and the Cavemen is very jazz. I was able to do so many things because obviously, it’s a soundtrack.
I went to Berklee [College of Music] and I studied jazz. My background is jazz and R&B — but, even though that’s my background, I didn’t start as a jazz artist. I kind of have to ease my fans into those types of genres and show them that I can do that.
You were among the first to modernize African music and bring it to the global stage and really break out of that “Afrobeats” box people tend to place African music in. On your “Water and Garri” EP, you worked with Amaarae, who is also praised for defying genres. Is that intentional?
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Amaarae is incredible. I love that people expect me to be African and I’m going to always be African. I don’t have to wear dashiki or have braids (laughs) but I am, what I am. But yes, I like to experiment but African culture – I would either put it in my fashion or put it in my music, always. It’s because it’s beautiful to be African, I’m sorry, like, I’m not ashamed of it at all! That’s especially important in a time where some African artists are saying, “Don’t box me in an Afrobeats. Don’t call me an Afrobeat artist.”
I think everybody has different experiences. Some artists were born and bred in Africa, so for them, they want to explore other things. Although I was born in Africa, I lived in London and I lived in America… when I was growing up in London, I was bullied for being African. And now, it’s the coolest thing. It’s the coolest thing. So for me, I have a different perspective. Like, I’m not, I’m not trying to shy away from it at all. In fact, I’m running more towards it because I lived away from Africa for so long.
You just spoke about having to leave home at points and go chase after your career. Your character, Aisha, reflects that experience — she leaves home for 10 years and she comes back to everything being so different. Did you at any point experience that?
I would always go back in December. [December is a high tourist and celebration season in Nigeria and other parts of Africa] And when you go back in December, I don’t really feel like you really experienced Nigeria. You’re experiencing the fun parts of Nigeria. Now when I moved back and I was there for like a few months, I was like, ‘This isn’t dirty December (laughs).’
You’ve worked with so many up-and-coming artists. You’ve previously worked with Ayra Starr and now you have Ayra on this project as well. We spoke about Amaarae earlier. You also have Black Sherif on this project as well. Is working with new artists a conscious effort or does it just happen
It literally just happens. I’m just a lover of music and a lover of artists. So I just want to work with anybody. I don’t care if you have 10 streams or 10 million streams. like As long as the song is great. I didn’t plan to work with mostly up-and-coming artists, but I also feel like they’re more hungry. I feel like when two big artists come together, there’s too many [logistics], and then it just gets complicated. It’s always, it’s always just fun to just work with someone new and someone who is just hungry for it.
You’re obviously in the midst of promoting and supporting this film and its accompanying soundtracks but what sonic direction can people expect from your next studio album?
I’m not really thinking of collaborations right now. I’m just recording. It started off as an Afro R&B, I don’t know [the words for it in English]. It’s just music because I’ve just got so many different sounds. Now, the challenge is to tie it all and make it sound like an album, not like just different songs that I’ve just put together.
So, I’m trying to find something to tie everything together. But individually, all the songs are magical and I’ve got lots of live instruments. I’m recording some parts in New Orleans and Nashville as well. So it’s a, it’s a different sound, but like I said, it’s always going to have the African element. I’m really excited because I’m not, limiting myself to anything and vocally too. I’m pushing myself like I’m singing, singing [laughs].
What do you hope people take away from this film?
First of all, if they’ve never been to Africa, they should come because the way Meji shot it was so beautiful. And I’d say not being afraid to pursue your dream. Where Aisha she’s coming from, you would never imagine that she could be anything. But she ended up being very successful as a fashion designer, but then she still went back home. So, I think the film can encourage anyone. I don’t care if you’re from the slums, all it takes is just that dream and it definitely can happen. Whatever you put out, what you speak with your tongue, it has to – it will to come back.
SOURCE:GRAPHICONLINE
