Aralola Olamuyiwa, popularly known as Ara, a famous talking drummer and cultural ambassador of the Ooni of Ife, has shared her experience of facing discouragement from others when she first started playing the talking drum.
Ara, the first female talking drummer in Africa, revealed that she was once warned that playing the talking drum could hinder her ability to conceive children.
However, she defied this belief and successfully became a mother. She recently appeared as a guest on the latest episode of the ‘Terms And Conditions’ podcast.
She said, “There are some drums females cannot play. I started with the traditional drums. But I evolved over the years. I played different instruments like bass guitar, keyboard, and set drums.
“But I wanted something different, so I started learning how to play the talking drum. People I asked to teach me were skeptical about teaching me because I am a woman. So I am self-taught.
“Although at some point, I was afraid. I was like, ‘what could happen to me?’ They were like, ‘you might not be able to have kids.’ It’s a traditional thing but I broke that jinx.”
Ara is the mother of a child from her separated spouse, Prince Nurudeen Olalekan Saliu.
