Teniola Apata, known as Teni, has revealed that she once thought her elder sister, singer Niniola, was jealous of her talent because of her harsh criticism of her voice.
Taking a trip to memory lane while speaking in an episode of the Tea With Tay podcast, Teni recalled rehearsing with her sisters during her childhood.
She said their eldest sister, Doyin, told her that she had a melodic voice, but Niniola insisted that her voice was not “sweet.”
She said the latter’s harsh criticism made her think she was jealous of her.
Teni said, “My elder sister, the one that’s older than Nini [Niniola], Doyin, maybe she was deceiving because she didn’t want to hurt me; she used to tell me I have a melodic voice whenever I sing during my childhood. Nini, on the other hand, would tell me my voice isn’t sweet. So, I thought she was jealous of me.
“She [Niniola] called me aside and told me not to let Doyin deceive me. She now said, ‘You sing from your stomach.’ So, every time Nini sings, I would watch her sing. So, I also started singing from my stomach.
“There was a time my school organised an event, I sang and the whole school stood up and was clapping for me. I said, ‘I’ve arrived.’ I went back home to tell Nini that I sang in school and everybody was clapping and she said I should sing what I sang. I sang it and Nini too clapped for me. I said, ‘Okay, we are up to something.’”
