Yemi Alade is returning to her highlife musical inspiration with “Shawa Shawa”
Yemi Alade stands as one of Africa’s most radiant musical forces, a woman whose artistry bridges eras, spotlights heritage, and reshapes contemporary sound with originality. As she unveils her latest single, “Shawa Shawa,” she does so with a profound sense of purpose. The track is both a return to the Highlife roots that shaped her and a bold reclamation of the stories often left untold.
Her music has always carried the heartbeat of the continent. However, this chapter finds her digging even deeper, allowing nostalgia, truth, and pure musical freedom to collide in a way that only she can develop. After her landmark 2024 GRAMMYs nomination for her single “Tomorrow,” Yemi Alade enters this new era with nothing left to prove.
In this exclusive interview, she reflects on a journey defined not just by accolades but by the magic she creates. With “Shawa Shawa” setting the tone for what’s to come, she embraces herself and lights a path for women who have been mislabelled, encouraging a space for positive liberation.
This is Yemi Alade at her most liberated, most intentional, and most deserving of celebration.
What inspired “Shawa Shawa,” and what story or emotion were you hoping to capture with this new single?
“Shawa shawa” is a song inspired by the roots of Highlife music. I wanted to unapologetically return to the sound that has made me who I am today — which is Highlife. The beauty of it is that you can just pick up a guitar and sing stories that have been heard of or are unheard of. And this was my opportunity to pick up the guitar and sing stories that most people don’t hear about often. The inspiration behind that song is just nostalgia and wanting to make people feel deeply connected to the roots of Highlife. I feel like Highlife isn’t getting all the glory that it deserves.
How does “Shawa Shawa” set the tone for your forthcoming album — sonically, lyrically, or emotionally?
Shawa is the short form of a word called ashawo. It is a word that a lot of people sometimes use in a condescending manner. It can be seen as a derogatory term that implies that someone is overtly promiscuous. However, it seems that most times, as a female who is either successful or not, if for any reason you upset anyone, they will call you that name.
Whether you do or you don’t, you are damned. So, let’s just call a spade a spade. This is what it is. The song is bringing light to such a serious situation and bringing fun to something that otherwise would be chastised. I’m a risk-taker when it comes to making music. I intend to apply the route less travelled. For my upcoming album in 2026, by God’s grace, it will just be me making music, having fun and enjoying myself. I have nothing to prove and only good music to make and share.
Speaking of nothing to prove — what was it like receiving the GRAMMYs nomination in 2024 for Best African Music Performance in global music? How did you feel when you got the news?
I was beside myself. I wasn’t online the day I got the news that I had been nominated. When I finally opened my phone, I saw messages from several people saying, “Congratulations.” I didn’t know what was happening. The minute it dawned on me that the nomination was for a solo track, and it was my song, I was so speechless. I have been nominated on other people’s albums, Beyonce, Angelique Kidjo, and even the Latin GRAMMYs as well. So I’ve had other nominations, but I haven’t had my own nomination. When this happened for my song “Tomorrow”, a solo song that was made out of sheer love for what I do — honestly, words do not quantify how I felt and how it made me feel. It took me about 6 months to properly understand how it made me feel and how much it resonated with my soul.
I’m just really thankful that the right ears heard “Tomorrow”. That’s my song. And I’m also thankful that the song came into this universe through me. It’s a blessing to be able to create magic like that from my little corner in Nigeria or anywhere else in the world. And it just travels everywhere. Music is magic.
Read also: The 2026 GRAMMY nominations are here — and there are some big surprises
Just going back to you talking about the new “Shawa Shawa” single and taking the term Ashawo and really not letting it be derogatory and making fun of the whole situation. I find that your music definitely feels very empowering. What can you tell me about that aspect of your lyricism?
Where there’s darkness, I want to be able to bring joy; where there’s sadness, I want to uplift. I don’t want people to be downcast. I just feel like the world needs more joy. There’s so much criticism going around, and fewer people applauding others. I’m here for everything positive because I believe that the world needs more of it. You can never get enough of love, peace, joy and celebration. So I’m here for that. I’m happy to spread good vibrations through my music with love and happiness. I want you to have a good, jolly feeling when listening to my music.
As a child, did you dream of having a career like this?
As a child, I just loved music. I would get lost in music. I would spend my spare time dubbing — I’m not proud to say that, as I am an established musician — but as a kid, I would dub people’s music off the radio with the tape recorder. Just so I could listen to it at my own time, at my own convenience. I would write out the lyrics and either sing or rap along with them, depending on the song. And so growing up, I just got lost in music. I love music,
I didn’t know that I would become who I am today until maybe towards secondary school and university, when I realised that I could make this more than just a hobby. So, looking back, I am grateful for all the time that I spent getting lost in the world of music.
Did you have anyone at that time that you were listening to and that you can say inspired you to make music more than a hobby?
Honestly, I was blessed to be in a family where the age ranges differ far and wide. There are people in my family who are 14 years older than me. This allowed me to have the opportunity to listen to a very wide range of music. I like to call it “a buffet of music”. There’s no limit to what I was listening to in terms of the genres — I would listen to Highlife, Juju, R&B, pop and everything else. So even as a kid, I was already listening to Destiny’s Child, Celine Dion, definitely Angelique Kidjo, Shino Peters, Onyeka Onwenu, the list is so long.
I was listening to classical music, opera, everything was up my alley, and I can’t exactly place one finger on one person. I would definitely say that a vast number of people inspired me. And funny enough, I started to fall in love with rap music. I realised that I could actually do R&B, now it’s Afrobeats and Highlife.
You’ve collaborated with artists across continents. Did any global influences seep into “Shawa Shawa” or your upcoming album?
The day we were in the studio making music, we had made a few other songs, and I was like, “Let’s do something nostalgic, let’s go back to the basics and make music that the old man with the guitar would always sing at a beer parlour.” I had a picture in mind, and we went with the flow, and we created what it is today.
You’ve had many global hits, and you’ve defined a generation of Afropop. How do you continue to evolve while staying rooted in your signature sound?
As the years go by, the sound of Afrobeats and Highlife continues to merge with other genres, which is a beautiful thing to behold. But it turns out that, to an extent, our sound is also getting watered down. And I fear that it might be unrecognisable in the near future. It’s very important to always return to the scoreboard. But personally, for me, I’m one of those people who works in different genres. I could be doing Highlife today, and then tomorrow you hear me on an Afropiano or Salsa track. I’m that person who just enjoys music holistically, but this one is an ode to Highlife. It’s a root calling for the entire world to hear this genre that they’re missing. “Johnny” is actually a Highlife song with pop and funk influences.
As one of the biggest African artists across the globe, how do you balance your day as an artist and your private life with friends and family?
Balance is very important to me when it comes to my personal life, and because I feel like work is what puts me in the eyes of the public and in the limelight and puts bread on my table. But my personal life is what actually keeps me going. So it’s essential for me to find time for myself even while giving my best to the world. I also always have to go back and refuel what it is that I’ve exhausted.
This year, you released fan-favourite hits like “Worry” with Fave. How did that collaboration come about, and what was creative chemistry like? And how important is collaboration to your work?
I actually personally reached out to Fave via Instagram. I’m a big fan of what she has done for herself, and she is a leading lady in her own right. I wanted to see what both of us could create together. I just had a feeling that we should work well together, and I do not regret reaching out at all. She came around. She’s such a great person and such a talented young woman, above everything else. I love that she’s pushing her craft. and doing what she does effortlessly. She’s a rhyme book, a hummingbird. She could be everything that she wants to be, and she’s warm to be around as well.
I had a good time recording and shooting the video for “Worry” with her. It was worth every second of the day. Collaborations for me are a very good practice because you never can tell the outcome. I don’t think I would have been able to create that song if I had not done it with her. That’s the same for every other collaboration because there’s no telling what the other person will inspire. Also, there is no telling what part of the music world this particular sound would open you up to, so it’s always a nice surprise.
You also launched Yem Beauty this year. How does building a beauty brand intersect with your journey as an artist and cultural figure?
Yem Beauty is a beauty brand that currently offers a variety of liquid mattes, lipsticks, and liners. It was inspired by my own personal experience touring the world and being backstage from country to country. I found that every time I went on stage with a full face of makeup, I left the stage with pretty much only one-third of my makeup left on my face from skin to lips. It really frustrated me, especially because I needed to take pictures after the stage performance.
I decided to start with a lipstick product that would last and stay with you all day and all night. It’s such a beautiful formula, and it’s vegan. You can apply it in the morning, and it stays on until the evening and the night, just depending on how long you want to wear it for. It doesn’t just rub off or transfer whenever.
What inspired the Yem beauty brand was the need to also provide an extension of myself because music is intangible. You can’t touch music. It touches you. However, for Yem beauty, products are physical; you can hold them, and they can also nourish you. So, it’s like I’m giving another extension of myself into the world.
What’s one achievement that you have had this year that’s the most meaningful to you?
What I consider my most significant accomplishment is something deeply personal. . The one thing I feel I have achieved this year is that I haven’t lost myself. I’m still myself. It’s very easy to get washed off with all the trends and all the moving currents of this world and continuously transform into somebody that you’re not.
It is easy to be swayed by people’s narratives and expectations. I find myself being myself, staying myself for myself, and that is such an achievement that I cannot stress the importance of it more than it already is. It’s an achievement for me.
Also, my second biggest achievement is definitely bringing Yem Beauty to life and becoming another kind of entrepreneur. It rarely happened. It took about four years to get here. And I’m very sure that if this product had not hit the market this year, it would have been another four years and then another four years. So I am proud of myself for ensuring its launch.
As you prepare for your new album, what do you hope “Shawa” communicates to your fans about where you’re headed next?
I would say to my fans that we should continue to keep the guns of music blazing with the good news of life. Life is not all about the downers and the sad parts; let’s be jolly and positive. Also, watch out for more collaborations. Watch out for more from me and enjoy me in every phase that you find me because I’m not the girl that I used to be.
