My Parents Taught Me Not to Take Anyone for Granted… That Anybody Can Become Somebody
Wilson Joel is definitely not your regular music producer. He has invested in his craft and is carving a niche for himself in Nigeria and beyond. Joel has worked with top brands such as Cadbury, MTN, Universal Music South Africa, Sony BMG, House on the Rock and many more. In this interview with Azuka Ogujiuba, Joel talks about his journey into music, vision as a music producer, music creation in Nigeria, challenges and more
Have you always wanted to go into music?
Not really, I had always believed I’ll be a medical doctor. Thankfully, music never let me go. Shortly after my dad passed, I found myself tilting towards music even more. Mind you, we were music lovers in my family but I am the only one who followed through.
With over two decades of professional experience, have you any regrets taking this path?
Regrets are debatable, but summing my experiences up, I do not have any. If there be any, it would be the unstructured music scene and compensation scheme in Nigeria even though I have ties outside the country.
Somethink you only handle musicians as a music producer. Tell us more about your craft; from television to radio and advertisements?
Oh, I make music for every kind of consumption; from movie scores to radio jingles, theme songs, concert directing and music event production. The scope of my job is rather wide. My clients include Cadbury Nigeria, MTN, Universal Music South Africa, Sony BMG, House on the rock and many more.
If you weren’t a music producer, what wouldyouhaveventuredintoandwhy?
I honestly don’t know. Lol! Probably I will be into some business that has to do with imports and exports. Or maybe a medical doctor.
What’s your take on the state of things in Nigeria as far as music production is concerned.Are we getting it right or we still have along way togo?
We have grown for sure compared to just 10 years ago. We now clearly know junk from great music productions. Whilst we are not there yet, it’s a great improvement from what we have been used to.
Which Nigerian producer’ s work ethics and outputs do you admire the most and why?
Mine! Lol. Well, that’s because I put in so much work that most of my colleagues don’t put in. However, I love the likes of Wole Oni and Cobhams Asuquo.
Tell us about your formative years?
I was born in Lagos, Oshodi precisely. Attended school in Lagos and later left for South Africa at the age of 25 where I really dug into music production.
Give us an insight into your educational background and career?
I attended Unity High School, Oshodi, after being transferred from