By Awa Dk Conteh
Alhagie Singateh AKA Freaky JOE, was born in Bansang, a small town in the Central River Region of The Gambia. He is a passionate and creative individual who finds aisle to forge and express his self-identity through music.
Sing-a-teh did his primary and middle schools in Bansang, and then proceeded to Armitage High School before transferring to Gambia High School in Banjul. He has played numerous roles in and out of his school career. He has served as a student prefect and a student deputy head boy during his school days in Bansang.
At a very tender age, he has portrayed a resounding talent as both an academician and a musician. Between spending Friday nights doing ‘acapellas’ in street squares to performing at school events, Sing-a-teh was already on the track to creating a hobby that would eventually lead to a life-long passion for him.
In this exclusive interview with Gambia Daily Life & Entertainment, Freaky Joe recounted his musical journey, and his project recording project in The Gambia, after his stint in the Europe.
He reveled that he discovered his potentials in music from the age of 20 and that after releasing his first song, “GAMSAINTS RECONCILIATION”, a song dedicated to Gambian students urging them to reconcile and put aside their differences for national interest, he knew that it was an amusement but a take-off for his music as well.
He added that his motive was not to become an artist, but to travel to the USA because by then, Banjul boys always wanted to travel. He later realized that it was not his way as he was rejected several times. He said he decided to focus on music and then he dropped a song called “More Message”, a song that calls for youth empowerment.
He noted that in the year 2001, he earned Best Solo Artist of the year and West Coast Radio Artist of the Year 2002 “FRIENDS OF THE CHILDREN” and several other titles and awards. From then on, he kept on excelling to higher heights winning more awards and soon started his own concerts across the country making his music and lyrics well known and loved by all and sundry.
Sing-a-teh added that he released his first 9-track audio album in a local market of The Gambia in July 2005 and in December 2005, a 13-track CD release was for the European market which was distributed in major European cities.
The artist explained that in the year 2006, he had his first album featuring Jaliba Kuyateh and Sambou Suso, which was a great momentum for him.He continued that in music career, he has traveled to different countries around the world, collaborating with international artists Africans, Europeans, and Jamaicans. He further explained that in the same year 2006, he traveled to the USA on a tour with Champion Sound where he was invited by African Artist Association owned by a Nigerian which was held in 8 different States in America.
Freaky Joe noted that the atmosphere in music then is different from how it is now. He said technology has become a useful tool that is making their work easy.
He revealed that his new project regarding the studio is all about promoting and contributing to the development of the country by encouraging young artists and giving them all the support that they need. He said the studio was basically for his private recordings, but due to his project through the Diaspora Development Fund, he decided to help in the development of The Gambia and Gambian artists as well.
Sing-a-teh said his goal is to help GAMBIAN music go further and he is also preparing two albums to be out soon. Sing-a-teh concluded that nothing comes easy in life; that “we have to live by trying our utmost to provide the best of our ability’’.
