Nigeria-Born, Nanaimo, BC-Based Buwa Returns with New EP Just Call Me Buwa and Captivating Single ‘It Don’t Matter’
Buwa returns four years later after his last triumph with his debut EP OLU, which offered pop-soul styles and a blend of compelling melodies. The British Columbia-based Nigerian singer has now unleashed his new single “It Don’t Matter”, to introduce his latest EP Just Call Me Buwa.
“It Don’t Matter” tells a story of Buwa learning to accept life as it is in the present. And instead of focusing on what the future holds for him, he should live in the moment and bask in the goodness of the present.
“I learned the hard lesson of accepting where I was in life and living in the present instead of some future I had dreamed of for myself,” said Buwa. “As soon as I started coming to terms with it, I began to hear melodies in my head,” he further explains, “and It Don’t Matter was born.”
Prior to the making of “It Don’t Matter” and the EP Just Call Me Buwa just before the pandemic arose. Buwa admits to being in a fog of writer’s block at the time. He said the state he was in was an unpleasant one and threatened to disrupt both his personal and professional life.
“I was very unhappy with where I felt I was in life and in my career and with the lockdowns, my feelings multiplied.”
Once Buwa broke through the writer’s block barrier, penning down “It Don’t Matter” flowed out of him easily. The Nigerian singer then reached out to revered producer SizzlePRO, who has collaborated with some of the biggest names hailing from Africa including Waje, Aramide, and the amazing Yemi Alade. With endless ideas pouring out from him, the singer enlisted stylist friend StudioAzom, and Raymond Knight of Knight Studios to breathe new life into his creative visual ideas for “It Don’t Matter.”
Inspired by soul music giants the late Whitney Houston, Jill Scott, India Arie, and South Africa’s fallen musical heroine Brenda Fassie. It’s no wonder “It Don’t Matter” combines nostalgic pop elements in the musical production, and highlights Buwa’s staple old-school vocals that don’t come by often these days. Fans will revel in “Jump”, “Let It Go” and “Changes” for the uniform “taking back what’s mine” theme these songs evoke.
Buwa, ever the storyteller wanted “the listener to be able to see the image of what I was creating, being able to mirror that to their own life, and with this EP, I believe I have been able to do that.”
He continued, “Everyone knows how it feels to be in transition from one life stage to another, how it feels to not know what the next day or next period of your life will be, how it feels to not know if your sacrifices will pay off, how it feels to almost taste your next step, how it feels to just accept yourself or life stage, and the growing pains that come with it.”
Care to introduce yourself?
Sure! My name is Buwa. I’m a singer/songwriter from Nigeria but I live in Nanaimo, Canada. I moved to Canada in 2016 and I can honestly say it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done. I’ve been singing since I was at least 5 years old. I started singing in the church and how I sing now is heavily influenced by my church and gospel background. It was my training ground. Music is a huge part of who I am. There have been many unpleasant experiences in my life and music is the one thing that helped keep my sanity during those unpleasant moments. Nothing in this world gives me joy or fuels my soul the way music does. Just being around music warms my spirits. I’m also a storyteller and I pride myself on being able to tell amazing stories or paint vivid images with my voice and lyrics. When I write, I always paint the picture in my mind and then begin to use words and melody to tell a story that accurately captures that picture
Tell us about the process of writing and recording “It Don’t Matter.”
“It Don’t Matter” was the first song that came after having pretty bad writer’s block. I had written some songs for my EP but it just wasn’t working. I hated everything I wrote and for a while, I was scared that I had lost my creativity. As I began to finally learn the life lesson I was being taught by that season of my life, the melodies began to show up. One day I was listening to Estelle and suddenly I started to hear the hook “Walk talk hands to the sky, let me see you jump to the right”. I immediately took off my headphones, pulled out my notebook, and began to write. Yes, I’m still one of those songwriters who can only write with pen and paper in my preferred Songbook. As I wrote It Don’t Matter, It almost felt like copying a melody and lyrics from my brain. The melody, lyrics, harmonies, and concept for the video all came so quickly, that even I was shocked. When I was done, it became clear that I was writing about just accepting and being present in the now, all the outside noise and influences… it don’t matter.
What’s it like being a musician in Nanaimo?
Nanaimo is such a supportive community where diverse musicians are allowed to thrive and excel. Nanaimo opened its arms and supported me in such a way that I had never experienced before. Nanaimo allowed me to explore various creative outlets. It was in Nanaimo that I got a chance to experience the joy of theatre after dreaming about it for so long. It was Nanaimo that connected me with musicians who trusted my direction and were willing to take risks. It was Nanaimo that gave me the chance to perform with a big band. I remember moving here and not sure what or how my life was going to go but it turned out to be amazing!
Who was the first and most recent Canadian Artist to blow you away?
This is a double-edged question haha. The first Canadian Artist to blow me away is Celine Dion. My Dad was a HUGE fan of Celine Dion. To this very day, I can’t listen to Pour Que Tu M’aimes Encore without crying as it holds such a special memory of me and my dad together. My dad traveled a lot for work but when he was around, our mornings were filled with Celine Dion. NO EXCEPTIONS LOL. Celine Dion holds a special place in my heart. In the heart of my family.
The most recent Canadian artist to blow me away however is Alessia Cara. I can still remember listening to Scars to Your Beautiful with my friends back in Nigeria and immediately being a fan. I have followed her music ever since and I love her new album
You’ve been making music for a short time now, what’s one piece of advice you can offer to those starting out?
Don’t Stop. The more you keep going, the better it’ll be and the better you’ll be. Don’t stop singing, writing, playing an instrument, recording, etc. You will start noticing little progress here and there and suddenly the progress will be huge and you won’t even realize how you got there. Keep writing, and recording melodies even if they don’t become full songs. My voice notes are filled with melodies that no one ever needs to hear haha. I have a song on my new EP called Jump and it talks about taking that leap of faith. A leap of faith isn’t always this huge step we imagine it to be, it can also be consistency, putting one foot in front of the other, taking all opportunities that come your way, and a variety of things that lead you to your goal. But the key is to not stop, even when it’s difficult as it inevitably will.