By Nehru Odeh
Afrobeats queen Tiwa Savage is arguably the most elusive yet controversial artiste on the Nigerian entertainment scene. And she basks in the spotlight that her slippery, yet in-your- face persona engenders.
Slippery, yet in your face persona? Certainly. That has been the strength of the singer who many know as the Number one African bad girl. That “badness” has been the Savage mystique, the elusiveness that has defined her, and also the reason she is much in demand.
Call her what you will, the truth is, this Isale-Eko born, London-trained singer has all it takes to make people talk about her, to make people gush over her what with her ravishing beauty, her uncommon talent and her daredevilry.
The more she seems to be in the public space, the more she is elusive. The more people know about her, the more they knew little about her. And she has not stopped wowing her fans, giving them things to talk about and gush over.
Still, in spite of the fact that Savage is the most trending artiste on the Nigerian entertainment scene today, many can’t put a handle on who she is currently dating or on how she feels about her love life.
Some of the artiste she has been romantically linked with include Dr. Sid, Don Jazzy, Tubaba, Humblesmith, Wizkid, Obama DMW, Patoranking, Flavour and Olamide. Yet she never confirmed any of them
Even in the heat of the infamous but intriguing leaked sex video, which controversial OAP’Daddy Freeze famously described as 10 Powerful seconds, many linked the guy in that video to a Ghana-based Nigerian called Abolo Beckham. However, Savage, true to her characteristic slippery nature, has neither debunked nor confirmed it.
The truth is, though Savage’s love life may be her best kept secret yet, the trajectory of her music career is in the public domain and the lyrics of the hits she has released one after the other reveals so much about that secret.
Savage’s best kept secret is the fact she has not been lucky when it comes to matters of the heart and she is still searching for the proverbial Mr Right. Not only has the ravishing beauty had many heartbreaks, she has not been lucky to have one she can really call her own.
The lyrics of her hit songs testify to this sombre fact. Savage burst onto the entertainment scene and etched herself in the consciousness of music buffs when she released her hit song, Kelekele Love, which later became part of her debut album, Once Upon a Time, in 2013.
The single Kelekele Love speaks volumes about Savage’s romantic struggles and her yearning for true love. The song starts with: Only serious candidates should come and hola/You don’t impress me coz you drive a hummer/And no secret calls I don’t need no wahala yeh/So save the drama for your baby mama. And then the refrain: I no do kele kele love, kele kele love oooo/Ma seri beye baby ooooo [2x]
Another hit song, “If I Start To Talk” (feat. Dr. Sid), which was released in 2015 as part of her sophomore album, R.E.D., also reveals her pains and struggles. My brother if I start to talk/The thing wey I don take my eye see we no go end/My brother we no go end/If I start to count/The thing wey baba God e don do we no go end/My sister we no go end.
It was also rumoured that Savage was once in a relationship with Dr. Sid, though both artistes later denied it
It was in that same album, which was released at the height of her marriage with her former husband Tee Billz, before it crashed in 2016 that she also sang My Darlin : In this song one could see some sign of romantic satisfaction, though it was short-lived: I no know where I for dey eh… my darlin yeah e my darling/Without my baby today eh eh eh… my darlin my darling/Oh baby I love you uh uh uh… my darlin, my darling/I go do anything for you… my darlin, my darling.
In 2017, when Savage was in a rumoured relationship with Wizkid, what with the Somebody’s Son crooner featuring him in Ma lo, the risque visual of which sent tongues wagging, Savage reveals her love life in that hit song. Robo skeke robo skeke/If no be you then tell me who oh,Them go sempe Them go sempe/Nobody messing with my boo oh, she sings.
In 2020, Savage proved many right when she revealed she would love to be in a relationship with Wizkid.
“I would really want to marry Wizkid if I am being given the chance to. Wizkid is a cute and rich guy that every girl would want to marry, so there’s nothing wrong if we make a couple,” she said in an interview. “Wizkid and I are seriously in an open relationship and I hope we can get married soon.”
Though that wish never came to fruition as it was alleged that Savage was not comfortable with the fact that Wizkid had many baby mamas. Savage, the report said, favoured being in a relationship with a guy she could call her own.
As part of Celia, the album she released in 2020, Savage also vouchsafes us glimpses into her romantic yearnings, her relationship gaffes, which many never knew. In, the single Dangerous Love, Savage is asking whether the lover is the one she has been waiting for and also showing her doubts: I fit to love you tire/(I fit to love you tire)/Are you really the one?/No go come tire for me/Make e no go turn yawa for me/Yeah.
In 2021 Savage released Somebody’s Son to critical acclaim The song, featuring American R&B artiste Brandyalso received praise from many artistes including, Davido and Nikki Minaj. The video, featuring American R&B singer has surpassed 18 million views on YouTube.
Here also Savage reveals the vacuum in her love life and her secret desire to find true love. Tired of getting it wrong/This won’t be another heartbreak song/Somebody’s son go find me one day/One day/I don dey wait don’t stay too far away.
It will be recalled that in a video Savage posted on her Instagram page, she revealed in an episode of Catching Up With Tiwa that the song is about a girl who has had several heartbreaks but chooses not to give up, but keeps the fire burning and hopes that someday she will find love.
Still, the question is: Will Savage ever find true love? She believes she will, someday. In June 2021, after attending the wedding of fashion mogul Toyin Lawani, the singer shared a gorgeous picture of herself dressed in a beautiful pink dress and captioned it, “Somebody’s son will find me one day.”