Nigerian Afrobeats star, Oyinkansola Aderibigbe, better known as Ayra Starr, has revealed how her approach to making music has evolved from emotion-driven songwriting to a more experimental and sound-focused method.
The Mavin Records singer, who spoke on the Creatorium Podcast, said she no longer waits for emotional inspiration before beginning a song.
She noted that while her debut album was heavily shaped by emotional themes, her recent creative direction is more experimental and rooted in sonic exploration.
“It depends on what I am going for. Lately, for me, creating just starts with trying. Not emotion; just trying, then we see where it takes us. It may start with chords or sounds, or a specific sound I want to sample.
“Sometimes, I just want to do something fun or make something that sounds different,” she said.
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“For my first album, it was more about trying something sad, something that matches emotion. But now, it’s more about experimenting sonically and indulging in different ideas to see where they lead,” she added.
“My first album has a song called Beggie Beggie. I literally wrote it on a bus. I was going back home and just wrote it there. Somebody was begging inside the bus, and a woman said, ‘See this one, beggie beggie,’” she recalled.
She added that weeks of rehearsal can be ruined by a single sound problem on stage, pointing out that behind the glamour is hard work, planning, and challenging days.
“You have to have a certain type of love and passion for what you do to be able to do this. The glamour is the glamour, but behind the scenes, it’s a lot of work.
“It’s a lot of preparation. It’s a lot of not-so-amazing days. Sometimes, after rehearsing for two weeks, one sound can ruin the whole performance on stage,” she said.
