Afropop star Yemi Alade has revealed how she developed a short-term cigarette addiction while in university but quit after it began harming her voice and required her to hide the habit in public.
During an interview with Chude Jideonwo, the Johnny singer explained that her experimentation with smoking as a teenager quickly escalated into a nightly routine before bed.
She said the need to conceal cigarettes when out in public created discomfort that ultimately led her to stop.
Alade also noted the negative impact on her vocal health, a critical concern for her career.
“Some people say they don’t smoke, don’t do this, or don’t do that. When I was in university, I tried smoking, but it didn’t work out for me—it actually took hold a bit too much. I began needing to smoke before going to bed, and I was getting addicted to that lifestyle. In public, I would hide the cigarette.”
“So, I was like, ‘What’s this life; the discomfort that I can’t go to bed without smoking and then when I go out, I am going to hide the cigarette? As a teenager in the university trying to figure out life, I also made certain decisions for myself that if I’m going to hide to do something, I will not do it. Because I like to be aware of my environment and my decisions. And I just said I don’t think cigarettes are for me.
“They are not for me. And they harmed me; they affected my voice anyway. So I stopped. Smoking for me did not last up to a year,” she stated.
