While
Kenny St. Best was still hoping for a political appointment, about a
year after losing out in the 2014 primary elections of the APC, she hit
the recording studio. The result is a new single titled Ire (translated
in English as ‘good tidings’). The video, she says, will be released
soon.
The gospel
singer does not think that being fully involved in politics would
distract her from making more music. “Music is my first calling. It is
my real profession, while politics takes second place. Nothing can take
me away from music because it runs deep in my blood. In fact, every
Sunday I go from one church to another and sing. I don’t make noise
about it because it is my life,” she says.
However,
she prides herself in being a gospel singer with a difference. Quite
early in her career, she notes, she decided not to dabble into secular
music but to focus on a kind of gospel music that would appeal to a
wider audience and cut across different strata of the society.
“I set out
to create a kind of gospel music that would be accepted by the average
Nigerian on the street. I am talking about gospel music that has ‘street
credibility’ – the type that deejays are happy to play alongside other
kinds of music and even area boys (or street urchins) will be glad to
listen to,” she says.
Unlike
most gospel music artistes today, Kenny does not mind having her songs
played in a night club or wild party, where lots of alcohol is being
consumed and undesirable elements are in attendance. Rather than target
only born-again Christians, she would prefer to reach out to the crowds
in night clubs and beer parlours.
Describing
them as her target audience, she says, “This is the reason why I have
settled for gospel music: to reach out to this kind of people and spread
the good news to them. Since they will definitely not come to church on
worship days, the gospel has to reach them anyhow. And one of the ways
to draw them closer to God is to present gospel music in a way that they
will accept.
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