Singer Spyro has opened up about the childhood beatings he received from his father, saying marks from more than two decades ago remain vivid in his memory. The Nigerian artist, whose real name is Oludipe David, described the lasting impact of his father's treatment of him as a child.
"My dad would beat you to kill you. I'll have marks from twenty-something years ago. When you try to bring up the conversation, there are things still very clear in my head, and he acts like it's nothing."
Spyro spoke about how his childhood experiences trigger anger whenever he finds himself around his father. He said there is still much for him to process.
"You know when you are in the presence of your dad, and there's this anger that just comes, and you can't explain it. It is a lot to unpack, but I had to heal on my own. To sort it out, we have to talk about the experience. I can't just ignore it as if none of these pains happened."
The singer recalled how his father allegedly portrayed him negatively to other people, including accusing him of stealing. His father was a pastor, and Spyro said he was blamed when money went missing.
"My dad would go and tell outsiders that I am a thief, and my dad's brother had to ask, what did I do to him? Because the way he just paints me sometimes and just tells people about me. He was a pastor, and once his money was missing like this, na me."
Spyro said his father would embarrass him publicly, only to later offer gifts after discovering that the item he had accused him of taking was not stolen. He described the pattern of humiliation followed by small gestures.
"He will embarrass me, and when he eventually finds what he is looking for, he will buy you milk. What is milk supposed to do to the damage that has been done?"
The singer then shared what he described as one of the most painful experiences of his childhood. He became emotional when recalling an incident involving a cleaner at his primary school, a woman he named Iya Romoke.
"There is a particular thing that I talk about, and anytime I talk about it, I just get teary, you know. There is this woman in my primary school, Iya Romoke. She was a cleaner at the school, and one day she called me. She placed her hands on my head, and she had a long nail that was peeling my skin, and because I was a child, I couldn't do anything."
Spyro went home with an injury from the encounter. When his father asked who had done it, Spyro told him. His father did not believe him.
"I went back home with an injury, and my dad asked who did that to me, and when I told him, he said it was a lie. He didn't believe me. But I kept saying this woman did it, and he said we would go to school the next morning."
The next morning, Spyro said he started pulling back as they approached the school. He was afraid because the woman was elderly and seemed to have more power in that situation.
"I started pulling back, and my dad said I was pulling back because I lied, and we went to the woman, and she said she didn't do it, and when I got home, my dad flogged me to stupor, and that thing till date broke me and almost turned me into something else if not for the love from my mom and how she was able to balance things up constantly."
Spyro credited his mother's love with preventing his childhood pain from changing him completely. He said she was able to balance things up constantly.
The discovery may come as a surprise to many of Spyro's fans, particularly because of the calm and composed way the singer often carries himself in public. The singer has previously spoken about his career decisions, including how he insisted on his "Jesus boy" branding despite pressure from his team.
Spyro's account of his childhood adds to a growing number of conversations among Nigerian artists about family dynamics and personal trauma. His decision to discuss these experiences publicly comes as he continues to build his music career.
According to Pulse.ng.
