Nigerian singer Timaya opened up about the struggles he faced while hustling between Lagos and Port Harcourt in search of a marketer for his 2007 debut album True Story. During a conversation on the Afrobeats Intelligence podcast, the music star recalled how a chance encounter with a roadside CD vendor in Port Harcourt changed his career.
The vendor, after hearing Timaya’s demo, directed him to a marketer based in Alaba, Lagos. Without hesitation, Timaya traveled to Lagos and met the marketer, who wasn’t yet a major player but had previously worked with artists like Sky B.
He walked into the shop with his demo CD, and while the marketer cleaned his store, he played the track Ogologoma. To their surprise, several customers who entered the store immediately asked to buy the song. The unexpected attention caught the marketer’s interest.
After grabbing a meal together, the marketer asked Timaya for his asking price. Timaya pitched ₦3.5 million. The marketer chuckled and told him he could only offer ₦500,000 — a figure significantly higher than the ₦45,000 other marketers had proposed earlier.
The marketer gave Him an ultimatum: return by Monday or forget the offer. Realizing the opportunity, Timaya accepted the deal. He recalled how upcoming artists around him reacted in disbelief when he shared the ₦500,000 offer, considering many were being offered as low as ₦25,000 to ₦40,000.
On Monday, He returned to the market, collected the money, and the rest became history. That decision helped launch a music career that would later produce multiple hits and establish him as a household name.
What began as a risky move fueled by passion turned into the defining moment of a music career that has since inspired millions across Africa.
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