The late Nigerian Juju and Highlife musician, Iyun Ajilore, popularly known as Saint Janet, moved from gospel music to sexually explicit songs after discovering that the new style attracted more bookings, audience engagement and money, her longtime backup singer, Sunkanmi, popularly known as Suko, has said.

Suko disclosed this in an interview with Alejo TV on Tuesday, explaining that Saint Janet initially built her music around gospel Juju before changing her style after struggling to attract audiences at social events.

According to him, he had known Saint Janet for more than 25 years and first met her when she was a backup singer for Nurse Kenge.

“I have known Saint Janet before she started singing. She used to be a backup singer for Nurse Kenge. I was a drummer then, so I worked with different people. When she decided to stand alone and create her own band, I decided to follow her.

‘She started with gospel Juju,” he said.

Suko said Saint Janet and her band rehearsed at a Celestial Church when she started her career.

“We used to do our rehearsal in a Celestial Church. She started as a Juju and gospel mixture. Our first studio recording was interesting, but people did not really listen to it. She spent money on that particular project and the cassette became dusty under her bed,” he said.

He said Saint Janet continued to perform at weddings, bars and beer parlours but did not receive the response she expected when performing gospel songs.

“She is someone who is hardworking a lot. Whether we were at a beer parlour performing or at a wedding, she was always working. When we went to bars, we did not really get the reception from the audience,” he said.

Suko said Saint Janet then began experimenting with songs based on sexual themes and situations at social gatherings.

“So, she started and founded this explicit sexual style, like a pastor style, by using people at the event to preach in her song but romantically since it was a worldly setting,” he said.

He said she would use people and events around her as part of her performances.

“Look at this woman, Aunty Adunni, and her husband, Mr Lagbaja look at how they are kissing. She used happenings in her song to create a form of entertainment. When she experimented with it, we got more money on stage,” he said.

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Suko said the new style also brought more bookings from clubs and bars.

“Then she started getting bookings as a result of that from the clubs or bars, “he added.

Despite the change in her music, Suko said Saint Janet continued to record and perform gospel songs.

“Still, she did not backslide from gospel music. She still got inspiration to sing gospel songs,” he said.

He recalled a wedding where Saint Janet was performing gospel music before the bride’s family asked her to perform her newer style.

“We once got to a wedding where she was singing gospel, but the bride’s family insisted that she sing the newly founded sound that resonated with people,” he said.

According to Suko, the band raised concerns because children were present at the event, but the family insisted that the performance could continue.

“We complained that kids were around, but they disagreed and said it was not a problem,” he said.

He said the reaction to the performance convinced Saint Janet that the new style was attracting more people and generating more income.

“When she started singing the song, people started spraying and we made more money than when she was singing gospel songs at the wedding,” he said.

Suko added that some churches also requested Saint Janet’s explicit songs.

“We have gotten to some churches where they said we should sing those explicit-rated 18 songs,” Suko said.

He said he remained with Saint Janet throughout the years because of their close relationship.

“I could not leave her band because we are close. We are now family,” he said.

Suko also recalled Saint Janet’s final performance, saying the singer acknowledged his support over the years.

According to him, Saint Janet turned to him during the performance and said: “Help me greet Suko, he has been with me for the longest, he has supported me.”

He said she also gave him her wristwatch and sprayed money on him.

“She so appreciated me, but not publicly on stage. Assuming I knew it was a goodbye, I would have just returned it and told her that it seemed you were going,” he said.

TribuneOnline reported that Saint Janet passed away on 1st of August, her children had earlier recounted that the singer complained of chest pain and experienced difficulty breathing shortly before her death.

Her daughter, Omowunmi, said Saint Janet performed at a show in Sango, Ogun State, the previous night and showed no sign of illness.

“She performed the previous night. People even celebrated her with applause. We did not suspect anything. After the show, we came home and slept. The show was overnight,” she said.

Omowunmi said Saint Janet went to the market the following day and returned home around 6pm before preparing her own meal.

She said she later noticed her mother holding her chest.

“After she finished cooking, she checked around the house to see if there was anything else for her to do. I later noticed she was holding her chest. She said she felt like something wanted to drop off her chest. Her breathing was no longer regular,” Omowunmi said.

The singer later asked to be taken to hospital, where she was admitted and given oxygen.

Her son, Orinayo, said medical personnel attended to her after she arrived but later discovered that she had lost her pulse.