Ditch Dependence on Men – Nigerian Singer Simi Charges Women to Raise Independent Daughters
2 min readCall to Support Women Doing Well, Rather Than Threatening Them
Simisola Bolatito Kosoko, a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and actress, performing under the stage name Simi, called on women to stop raising their daughters to depend on men. She opined that parents should raise their daughters to know that they can do whatever they want by themselves and, therefore, be confident in themselves.
“Please don’t raise your daughters to live their lives depending on somebody else,” Simi said. “They need to learn to look after themselves. It’s good if somebody spoils them, but they should also be in a position to spoil themselves and others.”
Drawing from her childhood, Simi said that she was over-spoiled as an only child and the last born. Her urge for music, however, made her take another route after finishing school. She stopped asking her mum for money and made sure to be independent.
“I told my mom, ‘I don’t want to work, I want to do music,'” Simi remembered. “It was time for me to stand on my own two feet and become my own woman. It was a hard decision at the time but also one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever done because music was mine–I wasn’t doing it to prove anything to anybody.”
Simi went further to liken financial independence in women to security and self-worth. “A woman’s economic power is about protecting herself, fending for herself, and confidently recognizing that she’s a whole, complete person. You deserve good things, and you need to take up space.”
She further urged society to support successful women instead of feeling threatened by their achievements.