ON THE RISE
Nigerian-American singer and performer, Ase Odin whisks global audiences to an uplifting, relaxing soundscape with his single, “No Wahala No Problem (Hakuna Matata).” Delivering a universal sound that crosses countries and cultures, he reminds us to take a break from our problems and enjoy a moment of relaxation.
Born in Benin City, Nigeria, Ase Odin has been surrounded by music throughout his life. His early influences helped shape his unique sound, a blend of Afrobeat, reggae, soul, and storytelling. After decades of dedication to his profession, Ase Odin is reunited with music and eager to share it with audiences from all over.
It’s no wonder Ase Odin found his way back to music—it’s inescapably in his genes. His father was a local government police officer who played for events and special occasions as part of the band. “My father and I were transferred to the west of Nigeria when I was a child. He was so good at playing saxophone and trombone, so they gave him a promotion. What I loved most is since I was the only one there (my mother stayed in our hometown), he would take me to practice with him. After practice, we had the pleasure of cleaning the instruments with tools; he took pride in that. I became so involved in music,” shares Ase Odin.
Not only was his father a respected musician, his mother also came from a group of family singers. “My uncles and aunts were tribal singers and sang in our tribal language,” he adds. Because instruments were hard to come by, a young Ase Odin created his own out of sticks and spoons and would create his own rhythms and beats out of creativity.
Before he came back to music, Ase Odin followed a path that was expected and hoped of him. “When we come to America from developing countries, our parents at home want us to have an academic career job. You cannot grow up in most of these countries and want to be an actress or videographer or singer. They mold you to need an academic career like a doctor, pharmacist, engineer, or lawyer. When the opportunity came for me to go to school, I had to create something I could fall back on and raise a family while taking care of my extended family back in Nigeria. So, people ended up doing things they didn’t love or weren’t talented in,” explains Ase Odin.
Living in Seattle, he became a pharmacist, providing support to his family and relatives overseas. Now, close to retiring, it’s finally time for Ase Odin to pursue his own passion: his long beloved music.
Thus far, Ase Odin has released two singles, “No Wahala” and “Mama Mama.” His next single, “How Far,” is pending release.
“No Wahala” is a reflection of the everyday struggle we all share. “If you look at people—you and I—everyday people, no matter where you are, we’re running a rat race all over the world. Every day is a struggle. Sometimes we feel like our whole life is a time crunch. We all just need to chill and get away—take a vacation, some time to relax and take it easy and be at peace with ourselves.”
According to Ase Odin, it doesn’t matter where you come from or how much you get paid, we all have challenges within ourselves and our homes, but we can choose to look at it from a different angle and think “Tomorrow is another day, a different day.”
When it came to writing “No Wahala,” Ase Odin first crafted the message, then created the beat that went with it. “I listened to different types of sounds when I was younger. When a situation happens, I find the beat comes and then I match it with the song. I figure out where I can fit the hook or chorus line, then match and melt, making sure the message, beats, and rhythm are aligned.”
The more Ase Odin creates, the more he finds himself experimenting and exploring. “I like getting out of the box,” he adds. “I’m always pushing boundaries with how a song should sound in my head.” To create his music, Ase Odin turns to his home studio, where he’ll put down drums, bass, treble, and any highlights he hears in the process. “I listen to how I want it to sound and play it over in my head,” he shares. “If I think an actual guitar would sound better, I get real musicians to add to the recording.”
Ase Odin’s greatest hope is to inspire others through his music. “We all have different personalities and pathways in life, different destinies. We will all turn out differently. What I consider success is the happiness that comes from lifting people up. When we all have a story to tell together—that’s my happiness.”
“Everyday people can relate to my music and feel good about themselves in that they’re not alone. We’re all going through it.”
Make sure to stay connected to Ase Odin on all platforms for new music, videos, and social posts.
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Pop and soul singer Sharon Watkins is preparing to share her very first album in 2023. Working alongside producer Sam Miller (known for his work with The Hoosiers and One Direction), she is following up with her newest release, The One That Got Away, which arrives on 18 November 2022. The track is a tender acoustic ballad that tells the story of leaving behind a harmful relationship, finding strength, and welcoming a fresh start. With gentle piano arrangements and Sharon’s unmistakable soulful voice, the song captures an intensely emotional journey.
Her earlier singles, Proud and Stranded, have already connected with listeners in a big way, reaching more than 250,000 views on YouTube and 150,000 streams on Spotify. With this momentum building, Music News sat down with Sharon to talk about her music and what comes next.
Hi Sharon How are you?
Doing really well thanks! So excited about all the momentum we’ve had with our first 3 singles, honestly, it has been insane to have had BBC radio interviews, rotations, global press coverage and to have won an international song contest in such a short space of time!!
Tell us about your latest release ‘The One That Got Away’?
Well, it starts out as a real wintery piano ballad, portraying that moment when you suddenly realise that someone you're with is messing you around. Then, with the help of big strings and orchestral percussion, it develops into a powerful "I'm over you" song…. It is really a defiant two-fingers up at the ex that never appreciated you until it was too late. It moves from the turmoil of still having feelings for that person, cutting lose and moving on to triumphant recovery, knowing that you made the right decision.
The music video is visually stunning and the dance is beautiful, talk to us about the filming of this video and the creative decision to use dance to express the meaning of the track.
Thank you, that means a lot! We’re really pleased with the way the video came out. Me and my brother, Sammy J Stopford, who has been my partner in crime on this whole album project, knew very early on that we wanted a contemporary dance that portrayed the turmoil in this song. I also knew I wanted the video to express the mental turmoil you go through after finishing a relationship and the underwater medium just seamed such an ideal metaphor for that. We put out a request for dancers and choreographers on Instragram not thinking we would get much interest. One of our lessons on this project is that you can’t pore the right energy into a project if you don’t love the music and so this was the main pre-requisite for dancers…. “please only contact us if the song inspires you!”…. we couldn’t believe the response!! We ended up watching so many amazing dance videos from such talented people. Our album is about adult life lessons and so we knew we wanted a believable couple, that had a great connection and were old enough to have gone through an adult relationship and breakup. We chose Florivaldo Mossi (Michael Jackson in West End Show “Thriller”) & Ashley Cavell (Star of many shows, including ABBA Fever) as they are both incredible dancers but also fit the storyline so well. I couldn’t believe it when Choreographer, Stewart Arnold (choreographer & dancer to Kate Bush) agreed to work on the project!!
The writing in the song is very personal. Was it emotional pouring these emotions into lyrics?
Honestly, it is like an exorcism. Songwriting is how I process and deal with life’s ups-and-downs and so I would be lost without that outlet. It forces me to really dig deep on my emotions towards things. You can’t write songs about superficial stuff, otherwise it just sounds cliché.
What do you hope people take away from ‘The One That Got Away’?
I feel like it’s the song you need a friend to play you when you have broken up from someone and are feeling injured and unsure. You need someone to tell you that you missed a bullet and one day that ex will look around and realise that they lost something very special. I have had people reach out already and tell me how relatable the message is and that it has helped them… this is the biggest compliment of all!!
Talk to us about your influences as an artist.
I grew up in Manchester surrounded by an incredible 90’s music scene, in a house where my dad played everything from The Beatles to Zappa. I then spent 8 years living in the states, picking up some great American influences like Carole King. I have now made Nottingham my home, which is where I recorded the album and I have honestly really been enjoying the return in popularity of singer-songwriters like Lewis Capaldi and Tom Odell …. So all-in-all a pretty varied range of influcences… making for an eclectic pop album that I hope you all like.
Going back briefly on the video, you collaborated with some great people on the video such as Stewart Arnold who worked closely with Kate Bush and Florivaldo Mossi, noted for being Michael Jackson in Thriller Live. Tell us about your experience working with them.
It's been the stuff of dreams really. I am a massive Kate Bush fan and to work with Stewart was like a dream come true. He and I had some long conversations about our vision for this video and the turmoil I wanted to portray. His ability to translate that into dance is something amazing to watch. I had the honour of watching him choregraph the dancers on the morning of the shoot and it was like watching a master at work, the artistic ideas that he brought to this project were incredible. Flori Mossi and Ashley Cavell are both experienced dancers but seeing the way they clicked together, and their interaction and interpretation of the song just blew me away.
What can we expect from you next?
Well, we have 3 more singles coming ahead of the album launch in 2023, so make sure you follow me on Spotify to keep up with those (Sharon Watkins) and we’re also going to be doing a series of “Live Lounge” performances of our tracks ahead of the album release so follow me on socials @sharonwatkinsofficial to keep an eye out for those.
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