By Kelvin Obambon
Cross River’s fast rising female singer, Flawless Duke, has bare her mind on the local music industry in the State.
In this exclusive interview with the Paradise News, she talks about her sojourn into music, challenges in the industry, how the Cross River Christmas Festival has impacted on home-based music talents and the way forward.
Excerpts below:
Tell us about yourself
My name is Flawless Duke, an indigene of Cross River State, Nigeria. I’m a versatile music artiste as I have done different genres of music such as Reggae, Afropop and RnB.
Please take us on a journey into your music career
My music career started in 2019 with my first single ‘Pompori’ which I featured Jazy M, the fast rising artiste at that time. The song was produced by Teddybanty who is still my producer till this day. I have done other collaborations such as ‘Level Up’ with Nicekris, ‘Faaji’ with Jeokachi and ‘This Love’ with my producer Teddybanty. I have also done great jams like ‘Bad Baddie’ which is my latest single and currently working on my next single ‘Energy’ which will be hitting the entire media space this year.
Which would you say is your best musical work and why?
I would say my best is yet to come, because I keep getting better and better, but based on fans review I will say, ‘This Love’ the song I did with my producer.
Looking at the music industry, particularly in Cross River, what do you think are the challenges?
The challenges we are mostly facing in the industry is that we are very underrated; we have it all but no one is ready to invest in us; we also do not have enough platforms to promote our crafts. If it is not December, most musicians don’t get performance slots. We also face being exploited. Show organizers wanting us to perform for free and offering exposure as payment.
What can be done to take local artists to the big stage, that is, national and international?
If the government brings brands and investors to invest in our craft that will go a long way. We need good media presence, promotions and publicity.
Who is your role model in the music industry?
For my role model I will say Tiwa Savage. I like her vibes, I love her energy.
Do you think the Cross River Christmas Festival has had any impact on local musical talents in terms of giving them the much needed exposure?
The Cross River Christmas Festival last year was actually on track, it did give some of us a certain level of exposure, but I would love if it’s not just during the festive period. We need this exposure frequently.
Lastly, what is your advice to upcoming musicians in Cross River State
My advice to musicians in Cross River state is that they should keep the fire burning. Always show up, and ‘don’t be caught Unfresh’.