Yemi Alade, the Nigerian singer, has revealed her brief but impactful struggle with smoking addiction during her university years.
During a recent appearance on the WithChude podcast, the ‘Johnny’ hitmaker recounted her experience with the habit, which she said began as an experiment but quickly spiralled.
Alade, 36, described a period where she “started needing to smoke before I go to bed,” acknowledging she was becoming addicted to the lifestyle.
The situation, she said, created an internal conflict for her. The singer said she found herself living a double life, hiding her cigarettes in public to maintain her image. According to her, the secrecy became the catalyst for her decision to stop.
“When I was at the university, I tried smoking. It did not work out. Before it did not work out, it worked out a bit too much. In that I started needing to smoke before I go to bed,” she said.
“I was getting addicted to that lifestyle. But also in public, I would hide the cigarettes. So I was like, what is this life, the discomfort that I cannot go to bed without smoking, and when I go out, I am going to hide.
“As a teenager in the university, trying to find life, I also made some decisions for myself that if I was going to hide to do something, I am not going to do it. Because I like to be aware of my environment, my decisions, and I just said I do not think cigarettes are for me. And they affect my voice anyway.”
The ‘Mama Africa’ hitmaker said despite the addiction, her self-imposed discipline kicked in. She revealed that the smoking phase lasted less than a year, crediting her ability to set strict personal boundaries.
“Smoking did not last for me up to a year. I am a kind of person who can be stubborn. I make ultimatums for myself in my head, and I try my best to stand by them. But I get tempted every now and then, like every other human being,” she added.
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