Nigerian gospel singer, Jonah Emmanuel Oshevire, has stated that he is not interested in secular music because he wants to use his gifts to glorify God and also pass messages to Nigerians.
Oshevire, in an interview, spoke about his background, saying he began to sing at the age of eight.
He said, “I was born into a family of 9 including my father and my mother. I have six(6) sisters and happened to be the only male child of my parents and the number 5 in the family. I grew up from a humble background in the military barracks in Ibadan Oyo State, where I had my primary education in Army Children School, Odogbo Barracks Ibadan. I later proceeded to St. Patrick’s grammar school Bashorun, Ibadan where I did my Junior Secondary School, I later moved to Warri, Delta State where I had my Senior Secondary School in Nana College Warri, Delta State.
“After my secondary education, I returned back to Ibadan, where I had my ‘A’ Levels and later gained admission into Lead City University for my first degree (B.sc in Business Administration). I later proceeded to the University of Ibadan, Ibadan for my masters degree (M.ed in Educational Management), i went back to Lead City University, Ibadan for another masters in Business Administration (M.sc). I am currently running my P.hd program in Lead City University.
“I started singing at an early age ,where I would listen to circular music and mime them to perfection. The journey of gospel music started when I gave my life to Christ and realised I cannot be interested in the circular music anymore and the fact that I wanted to use my gift to glorify God who made me and gave me a new life in Him.”
“At age of 8, my first stage performance was in front of my grandma’s house in Warri when I went for holidays and as children, myself and my cousin were singing and dancing and the whole street gathered in the morning to watch us perform. From that day I knew I could sing.”
Speaking on his favourite song, he said, “Imela is my favourite song because two children inspired that song. They both started singing the song where they were doing their house chaos and they were praising God in my dialect. So I was amazed at how they sang it and I decided to join them in singing it and added verses to it and it became a song.
“Apart from singing, I am an associate pastor with Victory International church. I am a lecturer in the department of Management Sciences in Dominion University, Ibadan. I am a researcher, a book writer, an educational consultant and a relationship consultant.I encourage young people in building lasting relationship with God and to be God fearing.
“Music for me is passing a message to your audience. Being a lecturer and all that I do gives me the opportunity to understand my audience and to know what exactly appeals to them.
“My role models are Dunsin Oyekan, Nathaniel Bassey, Pastor Chigozie Wisdom. My mentor is Bishop T.V Adelakun. In the next 5 years i see my music gaining more popularity nationally and reaching out across borders.”