Kehinde Fasuyi has covered a great deal of the Nigerian arts and entertainment industry, from theatre to dance, music and TV productions. She did not do this as a journalist or some other kind of observer, but as a major player – an actress, dancer, singer and producer. The seasoned artist has achieved quite a lot on all fronts.
An energetic and incredibly talented artist, she has worked with principal characters such as Prof. Wole Soyinka, King Sunny Ade and Femi Kuti at different times in her career.
Explaining how her journey to the arts has unfolded, she says, “Starting out as a professional artist, my goals were simple and a one step at a time kind of goal. When I achieve one I set out for another. It wasn’t something I had mapped out. First I wanted to be the best at what I do and to realise that I needed more than talent and a school leaving certificate. In those days, your talent was not enough you have to have a form of tertiary education. So I went to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife where i studied drama and music.
“The next step for me is to travel the world with my art so I joined Femi Kuti’s band as a dancer. But as fate would have it, that wasn’t my ticket to travel the world. While I was with Femi’s band, I heard about Prof. Wole Soyinka’s audition for his new play then, ‘King Babu’, which was going on a world tour. Keeping my fingers crossed, it was never in my wildest dream that Prof was going to pick me as one of the actors for the play. You can imagine my shock and delight when a couple of weeks later (still performing at the Shrine), I was told that I was picked for the play. That was one dream that I didn’t allow myself to dream but came to fruition. Me! Picked to act and be directed by none other than Kongi himself? That was the pinnacle of my career.’
She adds that acting in the Soyinka’s play brought out certain abilities she never knew she possessed as an actress.
“I ended up playing six different characters – both male and female roles because the play itself should have been performed with nothing less than a 100 actors but because it was going on a world tour it was streamlined to 15 actors. So, it was an all-hands-on-deck kind of performance. We had actors and crew from Switzerland, France and Nigeria. At a point it was on stilts until it was decided that only one person should use the stilt. It was exhilarating,” Fasuyi says.
The next major step was achieving the same world recognition as a dancer. So, she and her twin sister joined King Sunny Ade’s band. Acording to her, KSA took them round the world.
She adds, “Performing with KSA (Baba Ibeji, as we fondly call him,) was electric. He is a living legend and an entertainer of the highest repute. I learnt a lot from him.”
Along the line, Fasuyi worked with the National Troupe of Nigeria, which she describes as a citadel for Nigerian culture, adding that working with it exposed her to Nigerian culture in a way that is impactful. She was at a point the National Troupe’s children creative station was a wonderful experience for me.
Later Fasuyi worked with Shina Peters, Femi K could then make one wonder how she was able to cope especially as she is also a wife and mother. For she has also had to be active in the running of Oosa Meji Entertainment and Ibeji Group, established by her and her twin sister.. They have a TV show while their musical work is nearing completion. According to her, the secret of her success is being married to an artiste like her – that is seasoned actor, Seyi Fasuyi, who has been part of many plays, films and other related performances.
She says, “The best thing that has ever happened to me as an artiste is being married to an artiste. It makes it a lot easier to still practice what I love. The only way I am able to do what I do being as busy as I have been and still able to keep my home going is that I married my soul mate who also happens to be an artiste. When he travels I keep the home when I travel he keeps the home. We balance each other and the fact that he is an artiste makes it quite simple.”