ONE of Nigeria's biggest music artists, Teniola Apata, who is well known as Teni, has opened up on how her sister, Niniola coached her on how to use her stomach to sing.
Teni, who is a younger sister to Niniola, who also happens to be a singer, revealed that Niniola criticised her voice and she thought her elder sister was jealous of her.
Speaking in an episode of the Tea With Tay podcast, Teni recalled how Nini, who she thought was jealous of her voice, helped her to become a better singer.
Teni said: “My elder sister, the one that’s older than Nini, Doyin, maybe she was deceiving because she didn’t want to hurt me; she used to tell me I have a melodic voice whenever I sing during my childhood. Nini, on the other hand, would tell me my voice isn’t sweet. So, I thought she was jealous of me.
“She called me aside and told me not to let Doyin deceive me. She now said, ‘You sing from your stomach.’ So, every time Nini sings, I would watch her sing. So, I also started singing from my stomach.
“There was a time my school organised an event, I sang, and the whole school stood up and clapped for me. I said, ‘I’ve arrived.’ I went back home to tell Nini that I sang in school and everybody was clapping and she said I should sing what I sang. I sang it, and Nini too clapped for me. I said, ‘Okay, we are up to something.”
The sisters, Niniola and Teniola, have made names for themselves in the music industry, with Teni winning the Rookie of the Year award at the 2018 Headies Award while Niniola won the Best Vocal Performance (female) in the 2021 Headies Award.
