I sold akara growing up – Don Jazzy

Veteran music producer and founder of Mavin Records, Michael Collins Ajereh also known in the showbiz circle as Don Jazzy said he sold akara (beans cake) for his mother as a child, given fans a sneak pick into his childhood.

Don Jazzy made the disclosure during a Black Box Interview with Ebuka Obi-Uchendu. He added that he moved to Egbeda at the age of 11.

He said, “My growing up was amazing, beautiful. I grew up in two places, Ajegunle and Egbeda. First, Ajegunle, I was born in Ajegunle. I moved to Egbeda when I was about 11 years old.

“My memories of Ajegunle includes four or five things. School, which was primary school; come back home, follow my dad to the farm, which was at the back of the house, then come back in the night, join my mum who sells akara in the front of the house. Then in the morning my brother and I will walk to go and carry agidi.

“We used to go and carry it from the woman that my mother ordered it from. They used to make it early in the morning; so, it is hot and still like pap. We will bring it back home before it turns to agidi (like eko) then we go to school.

“So, it was school, church, farm, and music.”

Don Jazzy noted that his love for music grew in the church where he always played. He also mentioned that his father left banking to become an artist manager.

“I will call it church not music because I went to church and I loved playing music. My dad, once upon a time, was a banker. At a point, he decided he did not want to do banking anymore so he became an artist manager.

“He had an artiste named Dirty Dusty. They used to go to studio and try out things. They did not really ‘blow blow’ like that, but my dad is someone that in any organization he is in, they make him the leader because he is very outspoken and intelligent. He reads a lot.

“So, from the bank, before the artiste manage thing bloomed a little bit, there was farming in between,” he said.