Why I abandoned teaching for music —MMZy

MUSIC has a pull that makes people do seemingly irrational things. For the up and coming musician, MMZy (Akachukwu Emmanuel Uche), it was abandoning a teaching job as a French teacher in a Lagos secondary school.

Before announcing his arrival on the music scene in 2019 with the single, ‘Miracle Lover’ which hit over two million streams in the first three weeks of its release, he had been a teacher.

Narrating how his journey unfolded, the singer who was born in Nigeria but moved to Cotonou, Benin Republic at a very young age, expressed surprise at the trajectory.

“I never would have believed that I would be a French teacher if they had told me that on my way back to Nigeria. All I wanted was to follow my dreams and let the universe guide me, but as you know, jobs are scarce in Nigeria. I enjoyed the teaching job but left to follow my music dreams and not settle for less.”

Having grown up in Cotonou, and then studying French in the Department of European Languages at the University of Lagos, there are some discernible French influences in his songs.

Though his breakout moment was last year, MMZy, who loved music from childhood but who thought to achieve his dream was unattainable, started pursuing his dream in 2012. He released a single titled “Amoureux” which went viral in Cotonou before following up with ‘Something to show’ and ‘Tonight’.

He is thankful for the strides he has made since then. “I used to think I was never going to be an artist though I had always loved music from childhood, and this influenced me a lot. My stage name, MMZY, which some fans can’t fathom how I came by, was coined from Emmanuel.

“In secondary school, my friends casually nicknamed me Mmzy, and it just stuck. Now I can say it represents peace and love.”

Though some record labels scouted him, he settled for Kerae Records in early 2019. That deal, he said, was a lifesaver as it finally gave flight to his music dreams.

“I wasn’t doing so well until I got the record deal with Kerae Records. It changed my life,” the singer, who is eyeing more successes said.

 

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