"I didn't Want To Be Presented As A Sex Symbol" - Niyola Reveals Why She Left Banky W's EME

Nigerian singer and songwriter, Eniola Akinbo  known professionally as Niyola, has disclosed the reason for leaving Banky W's record label,  Empire Mate Entertainment, even though she wasn't happy about it.

The singer got signed to Banky W's Empire Mates Entertainment (EME) in 2012, with the song, 'Toh Bad' released the following year becoming a hit single, that opened a new page in her music career.

In a recent chat with Chude Jideonwo, Niyola who recently starred in Kunle Afolayan’s Swallow movie, played the lead role of Tolani Ajao – a bright-eyed young woman who tries to make it in the obstacle-ridden Lagos, revealed the record label believed in a lady being sexy but she wasn’t in for all of that because it wasn’t who she is.

Also read: Yemi Alade Says It's Better To Be Single Than To Be Taken For Granted By A Man

“When a female artiste wants to do music, the first thing any man will think of as a business man is be sexy…I know I’m sexy but I am also smart, i love God but it is also important to find a person or people who understands that….I think that to be fair on the label, a lot of times, they just didn’t see it, they are business men and did things as far their knowledge carried them…I should have been marketed as who I was and not just as a girl that is pretty and that can sing” Niyola said.

“Leaving EME wasn’t a happy event….it was not happy in the sense that when you invest time, your blood and all into something, you want to see it yield results …but it didn’t happen as expected…….it was sad for me cos i feel I should have done enough more while there…we are still friends now though, i am friends with everyone” Niyola stated.

Niyola once shared in an interview how important music is, "I think that music is one of the things that was given to me... because i actually do have something to say, I have something to do, , because I feel like a lot of the problems we face as a society stems from the fact that a lot of people don't know what their identity is.

"It is to help people, to empower people, and to make the world a bit more bearable, that is the reason why I was given the gift... I want to be the person that people look up and say, ''because of you I didn't give up.''