Happy Memories: 10 Questions For Neeta Rare (The Showcase)
When and what made you decide that spoken word poetry was the thing you wanted to do?
I had been writing poetry as a child, I think from age 9 or 10. But I’d never come across spoken word, or knew it was a thing. I just used to recite poems and engage in debates and speech presentations. I really loved to speak. In 2016, my friend, Blossom, showed me a Spoken Word Video for the first time. It was a spoken word by Janette Ikz, from P4CM, titled “31 Status.”
My mind was blown and all I could see was me doing that. That’s when I knew I wanted to be a spoken word Artiste.
I have listed to your work Maverick and before that I listened to Hope. What are the topics and issues that influence your work?
I am a life-conscious artiste. I observe intentionally and feel strongly. So my topics come from the issues that I see as social problems, my convictions, values and dreams.
What techniques do you employ before and after recording a body of work or even a piece of work. I recall you recently announced that you were now making your soundtracks?
I don’t believe there’s any peculiar technique I employ. I do know that I write my poems, go over it again and again and don’t put down my editor’s pen till I have created something excellent, a very painful process, that. Then, I record my works and get to work on them alongside my audio engineer. I also make sure my soundtracks are original soundtracks. I intend to be doing this for as long as I breathe and copyright problems are not the battles I want to fight. Besides, my uniqueness as a rule must not be found anywhere else. I am called “Rare” for a reason.
Do you have any artist or creative you respect and would love to work with if you had the chance? Why? What makes them special?
Yes. Jackie Hill any day. She’s a literal word god. Her convictions are deep, her past is real, her story relatable and her struggles and victories are the altar from which her masterpieces are birthed. She’s special to me because she models the way I want to speak truth.
Talk about wrestlemania for a minute. I liked every piece on Maverick but I think I have this soft place for wrestlemania. What were you trying to achieve with that poem?
It’s tough to know exactly where to begin. Let me begin with my daddy. I grew up watching wrestling with him. I knew every wrestler there was to know and their peculiar ring tricks or techniques. In fact, he nicknamed me after a wrestler we used to find funny. So, when I decided I wanted to write a poem about my nation, Nigeria, I wanted knew I wanted it to be something unusual. Something you will not find any other Artiste do, at least not for many miles around here. I choose to come at it from the angle of a fight because isn’t that what is happening in Nigeria? Aren’t we constantly fighting everything here to stay alive? I wanted listeners to be able to see reality through my creativity and be reminded that we will win.
What is one thing you wish the Nigerian creative scene would have more of?
I wish the Nigerian creative scene would have more truth-tellers. But I don’t suppose you can give what you are not. You bring yourself to the table. We have unbounded creativity but not enough truth and where there is truth, there is boldness and courage. Artistes mirror the society, they inform the values of social culture and if enough Artistes are truth-tellers, we will become a bolder, more audacious people, unafraid to confront anomalies.
True. Let us go to calmer waters. Our theme this season is happy memories. Do you have any memory from childhood that you remember yourself being absolutely happy and thinking the world was perfect?
I have a lot of memories. I had a great childhood. But I’ll carefully choose to share this one: in primary 3 or so, I took my mother’s expensive heels, I’ll never forget, they were purple, an Italian gift from her elder sister. I took those shoes, put them in by school bag and was going to gift them to my teacher that day because it was teacher’s day and I had no money to buy her anything. My mom always made sure we were okay before leaving for school, so I think she noticed the unusual bulge in my school bag and unzipped it. As I child, I didn’t even think of the possibility of her doing that.
I smile when I remember it now. She looked at me and brought me down from the bike. Took me away from the bike man who used to take us to school and asked me what the shoes were for. She didn’t make a fuss or berate me for it. She just promised to get me a gift for my teacher and made me promise her I would always tell her what I needed before taking first. That incident made me never have to look behind me before telling the truth. I was about 8 years old or so and it left such a mark on me. I thought the world was perfect in that way. That we could do wrong, get caught and be moulded aright without the mistake being held like an axe over our head always. It wasn’t exactly a “happy” memory. But it brings me so much meaning and joy.
How do you keep yourself motivated and even happy in the midst of all life seems to throw at you?
I don’t know how to stay down. I think subconsciously, my mind just believes I have to keep going on. There’s got to be something better at the bend I can’t see. Many times, I am not happy. I’m sad, miserable even and low in spirit for days, but I can’t find enough gravity to keep me down. I have to keep going.
Are there other activities, projects that you are involved in or working on at the moment?
Yeah. There’s my Organisation, Street Mentors Network, caring for vulnerable children on the streets. There’s my family and there are friends to be there for, who need me. I always have something going on.
Would you like to mention people who have been instrumental to help you find laughter in difficult times?
Of course! There’s Prince Nyong, my beautiful, beautiful friend and support system. There’s Idara-Chris, my amazing big sister who never gives up on me. There’s my mom who looks away from her own pain enough to say “What’s wrong with you?” There are my two strong kid sisters who’ve become pillars of strength and God! They do make me laugh! There are friends like Ufford and Joseph who never stop checking on me and making me laugh. There are those who keep praying for me like Blossom, Uyai, Precious Obasi, Courage, and others.
Anita Michael Is A Poet And Spoken Word Artiste With The Performance Name, “Neeta Rare.” She Is The Author Of The Social Skills Handbook, Building Lasting Confidence, The Goal Achiever’s Guide And Co-Author Of “The Interview.” Her Spoken Word EP, Maverick Is A Fan-Favourite Listen And Has Amassed Thousands Of Streams From Delighted Listeners On Platforms Like Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, And Others.
YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/@neetarare?si=JVJlGwI1q5eEQ7Rv
My Works: https://songwhip.com/neetarare/maverick
