Nigerian singer Waje has revealed why she kept her daughter away from the public eye during the early years of her career.
She explained that her decision was driven by a need to protect her child from intense media attention.
In a conversation on Shaffy Bello TV, Waje discussed how the rise of celebrity blogs and gossip magazines made it difficult for public figures to keep their personal lives private.
She had her daughter, Emerald Iruobe, at the age of 18, long before she became widely known in the Nigerian music scene.
At the time, curiosity about her personal life, especially about her daughter’s father, was overwhelming.
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To prevent her child from being exploited or turned into a topic of gossip, she kept her daughter out of public view for several years.
Waje eventually introduced her daughter to the public when she felt the child was ready to handle the attention.
She wanted to control how her child was presented and ensure the reveal happened on her own terms rather than through unauthorized photos or headlines.
She shared that balancing fame and motherhood was challenging, particularly as she was still very young and pursuing her music career.
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Her family, especially her mother and aunt, provided support, taking care of her daughter while she focused on returning to university and building her career.
She said: “I never put out her picture initially. I didn’t want anybody to know what she looked like. You know that was when blogs started, and you would literally see ‘who is Waje’s daughter’s father’ on a magazine. You have to protect the people you love. Regardless of how much of a superstar you are, you have to protect your child.
“Because I had my baby when I was really young, I was still 18 at the time. For a while my mom had my daughter because I had to go back to university and then started a career. My family never shamed me. Of course, there were one or two people who did, but my auntie and my mom will fight you, like legit fight you. I moved into my auntie’s house when she was 2 months. I was just only there to give her food while my auntie was the one who was more nurturing because she had experience as a mom.”
