EQUATE Meets Tomi Thomas
"I choose to attain peace."
Singer, visual storyteller and all-round creative Tomi Thomas is on its way to become a household name, not only in Nigeria but worldwide. The artist, who travels back and forth from Lagos and New York City, has already made major waves with his previous tracks ‘Hopeless Romantic‘, ‘Again‘ and, most recently, ‘Hurricane‘, which features none other than Jamaican Reggae legend Buju Banton. In his latest body of work, ‘Hopeless Romantic‘. Thomas is waving the flag for the new global wave of mainstream Afrobeat music whilst also incorporating a blend of other genres, such as Dancehall. We caught up with him to speak about music, life, and more.
Read the full interview below…
EQ: Hi Tomi. How did you first get into music and what’s your earliest musical memory?
TT: It was my grandmother’s birthday, and I performed for her and my family on the living room table. It was a very enlightening moment for me, I knew that this was something I wanted to do as I lit up the room. I loved putting on a show - it was great to put smiles on my family members faces. Such a great memory.
EQ: Growing up, which artists were you exposed to? Do you find that they have influenced your sound?
TT: My mom played me a lot of Julio, Micheal Jackson, Earth Wind and Fire from a young age.
EQ: You’ve been moving between Nigeria and the States, do you find that both places inspire you artistically?
TT: It was great shuffling between Atlanta and Nigeria in my formative years. Thankful for my parents for exposing me to exploring the world. Absorbing my surrounding played a great role in my sound and music.
EQ: So talk us through your previously released EP ‘Hopeless Romantic’ - how long was it in the making and what was your creative process for it like?
TT: The Hopeless Romantic EP is a masterpiece of modern African music. It’s about love and transcending love over and over again into peace. It took about 4 and a half years to bring this project to life. I literally made music with those I love and expressed freely over time, and we birthed this project.
EQ: For Hurricane you have collaborated with Buju Banton, what was it like working with him and how did the collaboration come about?
TT: It’s an honour to even be mentioned in the same sentence as the legend and it was a magical experience. It happened seamlessly.
“It’s an honor to even be mentioned in the same sentence as the Legend and it was a magical experience. It happened seamlessly”
EQ: When you’re not working on music, what do you enjoy doing?
TT: I enjoy cooking, skateboarding, and practicing visual art painting.
EQ: If you could only listen to one album for the rest of your life, which would you choose and why?
TT: I would listen to the music of the spheres.
EQ: Finally, what’s next for you? Anything else you can already unveil to us?
TT: I choose to attain peace.
Watch the visuals for ‘Hurricane’ ft. Buju Banton below!
YouTube/Tomi Thomas
Stream ‘Hopeless Romantic‘ HERE
Keep up with Tomi Thomas on socials
Instagram: @tomithomas_los
Twitter: @tomithomas_los
Facebook: TomiThomasLOS