We hear from the man himself! A few weeks ago the atmosphere was buzzing with ‘news of Denrele kissing Charley Boy’. In this juicy interview he does not disappoint. Denrele addresses the rumours, tells about his ‘madness’, his brand and even his love life! Without further ado….

Am I mad?

I have this little definition for myself I tell myself I am an angel, I am a devil & sometimes in between. I am as bad as it can get and as good as it can be. Sometimes I am a million colors sometimes I am black and white. I am a million contradictions and sometimes I am perfect,
sometimes I am a mess, sometimes I make no sense. To be very sincere there are some things I do and I look back and do an evaluation and I am like “hello did u actually do that”? So in one way or the other I would not say I am mad because mad is an elementary word, it is commonly used, it is derogatory in a way to describe the insane people but they are human beings so if you want to call me mad you are free, you can call be abnormally abnormal as my mum calls me. Call me insane “yeah” call me crazy “yeah” call me weird “yeah” which ever adjective you are free to use if it qualifies me fine! But I think that I am unpredictable, I am wild, I am fun loving. I have my moments, there are moments when I want to be low but I snap out of them so all in all if you want to call me mad SHOOT.

Do I sit back and see myself as mad?

Ok let’s do a self actualization process, Denrele on a mad terrain or Denrele as a mad person or Denrele as a mad specie or Denrele as a mad being. Ok let’s see a lot of people think that I am mad on purpose or I do it to attract attention I thinks it’s a no because I see myself as different, I see myself as an individual or individualistic in my approach to life because honestly I think being an individual you must be able to challenge customs, you don’t have to conform to what is set, you set your own rules, your own philosophies and do what you want to do. So I see myself as an individual it’s like I am expressing my individuality and that word MAD do I see myself as mad well I think once in a while it just flicks on and off but I am not alright in the head in a very positive way. My family members are very close to me and they are the only ones that know me well they are like “ki lo man se iwo omo yi” I could just wake up in the morning and I am screaming the whole house down for no reason. So basically do I see myself as mad? Let me sum it up I just think I see myself as an individual a very different individual.

The Denrele brand as false persona

Ok I am not play acting here I am not suffering from multiple personality disorder. I am not a split personalized human being. Let me put it this way, to be very sincere whenever I am out because I am always out and I am a very hyper active person, I am always excited nothing brings me down there is always something that is bursting in my brain so that personality is what people see outside a lot.

Is it challenging?

I would not say it is challenging, but it is demanding. People always want to see the hyper Denrele. It’s a lot of work because the whole cloths, building the brand, the utterances are a lot of work, but I love it. I think people are just paying me to live my life.

Childhood Career dreams

I was born in Hamburg Germany. My dad used to be a DJ there, so I grew up on Abba, Bonny Em, Aretha Franklin and we had a lot of these records. After school, I put my dad’s earphone on and jump on the bed. I loved this guy in Bonny Em that had an afro and funny outfit and used to dance like he was a convulsing epileptic and I loved him, but it just didn’t click then.

I had always wanted to be a lawyer because I talk 19 to the dozen. I was the no 1 noise maker in primary school and I could lie my way out of any situation. I remember in primary 4, I didn’t do my homework and I told the teacher I had a myoclonic twitch and she even felt pity for me.

I just went for an audition in 1995(when I was in SS1) for Kiddie Vision 101 on NTA and I just got hooked from there. Law just flew out of the window.

Thoughts on Formal Education

It depends on the family background and the individual. A lot of people drop out of school to pursue their dreams, because of difficulty in financing. I saw myself through school. Life was rosyat some point, then my dad lost his job and things became difficult. I could have dropped out but I saw myself through school. I feel there is no excuse that will make you not get that education which is like a pre-requisite for life. At the end of the day, whatever profession you need some education. You need the knowledge and exposure you cannot get on the street.

Everyone is a hustler in Lagos. What are your nightjobs?

Everyone knows me as a TV presenter. I am a very fantastic teacher. I studied English Education in school and I wrote my project six times before they let me leave Unilag. I know I will teach someday, not now. Aside from that, I also do a bit of modeling on the side, acting once in a while, I write but the thing is that it is centered on my brand. There are no specifics.

Love Life

I am single, I am not married. I have been seeing someone since last year. Her name is Tilewa. Our constant squabbles are centered around the fact that I feel that she does not understand me to a certain extent. We are still trying to work it out. There is someone there, but we are both deciding what is best for us. If I say more than that, she would kill me and sponsor my burial afterwards.

Pictures with Charley Boy

I think I am going to sum it up. Be it a publicity stunt, be it the real deal, a controversial agenda, I do not owe anybody any explanation.

It is funny because if you want to bring me down you are wasting your time. Recently I heard I went to Malaysia to bleach my skin and I even heard I had a child in my teenage days and I couldn’t take care of the child, now I want the child back. But I think the more controversial of all is the Charly Boy and when it came. I was in Dubai when the pictures came out.

People ask me about Charley Boy and I say I like him because he is a relevant and consistent brand in the industry. I like him for that.