Renowned Producer and Chief Executive Officer of Instinct Productions Wole Oni is an International Gospel Producer who has worked on award-winning hits. He opened up to our Senior Reporter ANTHONIA SOYINGBE on his foray into Gospel music production, his passion for the industry and what has kept him going in the business.
What inspired you to go intoMmusic production?
I have been doing music for 28 years and it started during my Secondary School days. During that time, we didn’t have digital recorders like we have them now rather we used analogue recorders. I decided to do music after School. Upon graduation, I told myself that I can’t work for anybody because I am a Chief Executive Officer. That decision was a big challenge which I battled with for weeks.
I am grateful I took that decision years back because everybody in my family now sees me as an accomplished person. Over the years what I am doing has affected lives not because of the financial gains. I have different mentees and protégés. I have helped lots of people to realize their dreams. The point is, God is using me at this moment to affect lives positively globally. To the glory of God, I have won several awards both locally and internationally. Most of my artistes also have been nominated and others won several awards. To the glory of God, we have done our best to push Gospel Music to a standard in which it gain its own ground and give a voice to Gospel Music in an environment in which we can propagate the gospel musically.
As a producer, I don’t just sit down and make money; rather I give back to the society. I mentor aspiring producers and singers. Over the years, I have worked with several people like Folake Umosen, Tosin Martins, Onyeka Onwenu and many others. I tell young people who intends to go into music to start with education because lack of education will deny them lots of things.
How rough was it when you started?
It was very rough because people didn’t believe in my dream; they didn’t believe music is a venture in which I will earn my daily living from. It was a very big challenge for me because members of my family discouraged me and at a point in time my music book was burnt. They had a misconception about what music was about then. Despite all the discouragements then, my passion for music was ever increasing because it is my destiny. God gave me this dominant gift so I can generate everything I want in life. Consistency and determination brought me fortune. Disciple and education are also important factors in life. You need a good structure to build your foundation.
Do you now produce secular songs?
I don’t do secular but I do inspirational music and non-religious as long as it is motivational, inspirational and educative.
You have produced some evergreen hit songs. How do you feel with these achievements?
If I may say this, it may sound very Churchy; God is the first reason and the secret behind my success. Every good and perfect thing comes from God. I believe so much in what God can do through a man because he has laid down prospect for man and I am very lucky to be a beneficiary of that. Music for me is like a second nature; I don’t struggle to get inspirations for music.
If I get you right, producing music is your hobby. If yes, can you produce music for free?
Why not? God gave me this talent for free. To create balance and structure one need to charge but even outside that I am still imparting positively into the society and that amount to me doing it for free. One thing about music for me is that I love it and I am being paid for what I love so that makes it extra for me. This I won’t deceive you makes me fulfilled and this is my definition for success. Music brings me happiness and joy and when I am doing music, I am always happy.
Aside music, what other business do you engage in?
The only business I do in my life at this moment is music. Music for me is paying off. Some will come out and tell you music is not paying off for them, for such people I often advise them to rediscover them and know if they are actually called to do music. This is like a journey of a student; the fact that you graduated with first class doesn’t translate to you getting the best job. Some people do music as spiritual while some sees it as noting but business. You need to know the rudiment of any business you intend to venture into so that you can structure your business and set standard for what you want to do. It is not just about you accumulating resources; you also need to improve your standard.
As a multi-instrumentalist, are you sometimes tempted to delve into singing?
One of my major reasons for being a Music Producer after I was done with school was because I wanted to help lives, help put people who have the gift, who have the potential to develop it, structure it to something that can yield them positive returns in future and not because I wanted to be in the limelight. A time might come when I will do my own album. Maybe it will even be a general commercial music, but for now my aim is to help develop upcoming artistes from nothing to something.
My passion is to bring out the best in people and raise icons. This is my mission and my ministry. For now, my call is not to sing but to make singers. I am very satisfied and contended with producing. I am praying for more but I don’t see myself standing behind the microphone to sing. Even though I sing, if I want to release single it will be instrumental because I am a pianist. This is what I do and this I am contented doing, if I change from this I become broken. This is my destiny and a special call God has placed upon my life.
You earlier said you have an innate passion for music; did you embark on any training to further nurture this passion?
Not at all; they are self-taught. Though someone taught me music notation and that was all for me the rest for me was to listen to people, practice on my own.
Can you let us into your background?
I grew up with my mother as my father died when I was very young. She supported me and she believed that I could be something doing music though lots of people didn’t see it that way then. Even when I was a chorister, they weren’t seeing me as a producer because the profession wasn’t in vogue then. My mother then loves the accolades people accords me whenever I play in church but over time she saw beyond the accolades. I wanted to be a medical doctor and I was admitted to medical school but somehow I couldn’t cope with seeing blood and other things. I changed to computer science while having it at the back of my mind that it will give me the option of navigating myself properly to music.
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