Welcome to another segment of 'five minutes (or more) with' some of London’s rising creatives. This time, we converse with singer/songwriter Tomi Adewusi, known as WhenSheSpeaks. Based in Kent, this twenty-two year old is re-constructing conventional gospel music and encouraging the generation to live fearlessly through neo-soul rhythm.
How did music manifest into your life?
Singing has always been prevalent in my life. Especially during my childhood, where I started performing by singing in the church choir in Woolwich. However, in secondary school, I experienced a negative shift. I started losing confidence in all aspects of my being and consequently developed a stammer – involuntarily pauses in my speech. If I was to be heard speaking, it was usually when I was angry. If I needed to articulate anything emotionally, I could only do it through poetry form.
It was only by age 17, I
started to develop a personal relationship with God. And with the encouragement
of a senior choir member, I was able to re-join the church choir. I never
imagined I would be able to sing for an audience again but every time I sang
on-stage, it was an out-of-body experience. Church-choir and God helped me rediscover
my passion for music.
This essentially led me to
create ‘Christ Coffee Shop’ on Instagram – a series where I sang on neo-soul
instrumental in video form. And from there, it all progressed into now.
What is your creative process?
Honestly, there is no structure, it is more of a spiritual experience. If my soul hears a sound and receives it then I’ll start writing immediately. I rarely revise my pieces, I will let lyrics flow on paper and once it’s done, move away from it. Sometimes this process can take up to only 30 minutes.
An example is when creating my single ‘Foothold’, I already knew I wanted to do an acoustic but had no melody or lyrics for it. My producer literally started playing a random melody on the guitar and we freestyled to various words, one being foothold – and then just like that the song was created.
That is how most of my songs come
into existence because I really don’t want to be burdened by perfection, my
only competition is myself. I want making-music to remain enjoyable, as it
should be.
Where does your musical inspiration derive from?
I am such a neo-soul girl.
Jazz and Old-School are sounds I really love and I want to bring elements of
them into gospel music. Growing up, I wasn’t exposed to the gospel artists who
were experimenting and creating music that differed from the mainstream gospel sound
usually heard in churches. Yes, I value mainstream church music but when
pulling inspiration for my own music, I wanted to create a sound that people
would listen to on a daily basis. Artists like Adrienne Archie, Sean C Johnson
and Red Hands have really inspired me, especially Red Hands as their sound is similar
to how I aim for my music to grow and develop.
What about your newest single ‘Hold on’?
‘Hold On’ is an encouragement
to stop living life in fear. There is no perfect timing in this life apart from
the present, so why hold back on pursuing what you really want. I wrote this
song during a season of transition, from career to friendship I was experiencing
change and it really forced me to focus 100% on myself. I realised that by
trusting God, everything that is meant to exist in my life would naturally
manifest.
Even for the video production
of this song, I started planning for it even before starting the song. We didn’t
have the budget either but as I spoke intentions into the world, the money and
the ideas eventually made their way towards me on their own. If I had let doubt
and overthinking hold me back, I wouldn’t be in the position I am now.
What is one message you want your listeners to get from your music?
Humans come in different shapes and forms therefore we shouldn’t conform to other people’s scripts of life. As Christians, we tend to adhere to, not necessarily religious but cultural ideals of how we should present ourselves to society. But for me, whether I am in a tracksuit or wearing flashy grills, I know God will still use me and love me regardless.
In my music I am not trying to be holier-than-thou, I simply want to present the struggles I endured to get to this position and if I am capable then I want to inspire others to achieve the same.
