Nureni Ibrahim, Editorial Intern/Contributing Editor
Interview: Featured Performance Artist CYPRIAN
Cyprian is a soulful afro-hip artiste that delivers live through musicianship, creativity and culture. He sang, danced and acted with his childhood church choir, from when he was 9 years old and continued until he was nineteen years old. Some of his influences range from Kanye West, Kirk Franklin, 2Face Idibia, Dbanj. Cyprian gained admission into the University of Calabar to study Theatre and Media Arts, where he honed his performance skills; he experimented with acting, broadcasting and choreography. On graduation in 2015 with a 2nd class upper division, he took up internship as a mixing and mastering engineer from 2016 to 2017 while observing the compulsory National Service year. He released four singles in 2017, these include: Drop It, Hell and Back (Kid Ink Cover), Gospel or Nothing and The One. When he is not in the studio, Cyprian serves as Soft Skills Facilitator at the West Africa Vocational Education to contribute towards transforming lives of underserved African youths. He is currently working on his debut album scheduled for release in September 2019.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: By way of introduction, what would you like your fans to know about you?
Cyprian: I am Cyprian Shurs. I have been an artiste from birth. I discovered my love for art just by paying attention to everything around me and since music is one of the elements that made up the ambience of my upbringing, I gained interest. I was nine (9) years, the first time I auditioned for the church choir. Being that young, I was enrolled in the children choir as the first approach. At the age of 14, I joined the youth choir and eventually became the lead vocalist and choir master for about 4 years (up until I got admission into the University of Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria).
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: Could you please describe yourself as a performance artiste, your repertoire or your range accomplishments?
Cyprian: From singing in the choir and performing concerts with various groups, performing in dance troupes (Carnival Calabar:2013 and 2014) and acting drama, It happened on me that I had unique gifts in these arts and this informed my study of Theatre and Media Studies in the University of Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria – where I chiselled out various elements of performance and performed as Helicon in Albert Camus’ Caligula, Banji in Ola Rotimi’s if’; A tragedy of the oppressed, amongst others. In 2017, I put out an amazing musical act at Mr.Patrick’s Comedy Club, held at Ultima Studios, Lekki phase 1,Lagos. Upon graduation, I interned as a Mixing/Mastering sound engineer in a music studio for one year.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: Have you had any familiar models that have helped you shape your art?
Cyprian: Yes. I do. Kanye West, Kirk Franklin, Kid Cudi, 2Face Idibia, TyeTribbett, Dbanj have all, at one point in time, shaped my creation and performance style over the years.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: What does your source of inspiration look like?
Cyprian: Life and everything that it embodies inspires me. This involves time, love, hate, anxiety etc. I most certainly graft my daily experiences and those of people around me onto materials that I churn out.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: We would like to know if there is, in fact, a dominant central lesson for us in your music?
Cyprian: You will definitely find strings of unity, patience, hustle, tough times and hope presented in different layers for my fans of all backgrounds to gain from, irrespective of their level of school, everybody can relate to all my works. From my unique flow depth of message laced presented in catchy sing along melodies and presented in the most amazing style.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: Which kinds of audience do you think your music attracts?
Cyprian: The kids, bro…the young people and the human race man. All humans yet to listen to my songs need to as there is something present for everyone, irrespective.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: We would like to know if you have any upcoming performances?
Cyprian: My team and I are dedicated to delivering awesome music to my fans and the whole universe, that is why we are working round the clock making selfless sacrifice to put out songs so, everyone stay expectant. While waiting, you can listen to my songs on Soundcloud.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: What does your greatest achievement looks like?
Cyprian: Every moment put into doing what we do is consider great. This very approach is birth of all the awesome times we have had. One of such is when I was awarded the Certificate of Excellent Service by National Youth Service Corps, Bauchi State, on the incident of completion of one year compulsory national service. This award came to me in the midst of about three thousand five hundred (3500) Corps members from across the country.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: Could you please talk about some of your career challenges and triumphs?
Cyprian: I see challenges as opportunities laced in responsibility. It is with this approach that I ensure that I pay absolute attention to all of them and take unorthodox steps in converting these challenges.
One of the challenges we (my team) had was breaking into the Lagos market, from the South-East part of Nigeria, but we are here now, currently working with creative here, getting a hang on to everything and plotting total world take over.
Ibrahim for O: JA&L: What are your future goals?
Cyprian: Pushing the envelope in art (music, fashion film/drama), albeit one at a time, starting with music is the goal now. We put out a mix tape in August 2019…and other great stuff. Stay tuned by following my social accounts:
About the interviewer: Nureni Ibrahim is an enterprising researcher and critic of contemporary writing who lives and writes in Nigeria. He studied English and Literature at the Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, Nigeria. He is among the 2017 scholars of the Nigeria Higher Education Foundation, New York. He has presented papers in local and international conferences, among which is the “2nd Joint International Conference of African Studies Institute, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia (USA) and Faculty of Arts, University of Ilorin, Kwara, Nigeria, held at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in Nigeria. He once supported Wawa Book Review Africa (as a fellow and young critic) where he wrote reviews of books published by writers on the African continent. Ibrahim is a spoken word artist and has performed poetry at Ahmadu Bello University Day of Literature, Footprints of David Arts Festival and a league of others. His works are featured in Decent E-News, Queensland, Australia; The Mamba Journal of the Africa Haiku Network, Kumasi, Ghana; Shamrock Haiku Journal, Dublin, Ireland; Best ‘New’ African Poets 2016 Anthology, Langaa RPCIG, Cameroon, to mention but a few. Ibrahim is a Contributing Editor at the Open: Journal of Arts & Letters, United States.
Images: All images courtesy of Cyprian.
