Sophia Michaels
Teniola Apata, the famous Nigerian singer and songwriter, who is popularly known as Teni, has shed light on how she was raised in a polygamous household, where her dad had three wives and 10 children.
In an interview with the Zero Conditions Podcast, Teni said she enjoyed her upbringing in a polygamous home and she still preferred such a setting to being raised in a monogamous home.
She said given that she had her siblings around, she was safe and did not suffer harm, while also thanking her late father for keeping the peace in the family.
The ‘Malaika’ hit singer said she still maintained a good relationship with her nine siblings.
She added, “I grew up in a polygamous family with many people, so you can’t come and do rubbish. I received excellent care, a lot of love and protection. Three wives, 10 children. Huge respect to my bloodline! All of my siblings and I get along well, though there are levels of closeness.
“I don’t know any other way; it is boring. If I come back to this life again, I want to come back to the same family. How can I be in a house with one mother and one father, and then all of us will be sitting down; no chaos?
“There is love in my home, but we change it because the person wey born us dey craze sha. Do you know what it is to hear gunshots and go to where the gunshots came from? That’s not normal.”
She said her father was very wise, noting, “It was like he planned his future, and then he planned his death. So before he died, his wives knew about everything. He taught them everything; one of my mothers knows how to shoot. He taught them how to, and when he passed, they used the skill. That’s how our family is still able to remain intact even after my dad passed on.”
