What was the inspiration behind the album and why is it titled Take Me Back?
The album is about giving fans an idea of who Fifi Cooper is, because they were confused about who I am. I am Motswako’s first lady; I am Motswako’s boss lady. I had to take it back hence the title Take Me Back. It’s more focused on who I really am and what sound I want to be known for. The fact that I got to record the entire album under my record label is beautiful. I was comfortable. I started working on this album last year.
How is this album different from your previous ones?
It is different because I’m giving people the real me, 100%. I mixed Motswako with different genres because music changes all the time. I wanted to link what’s happening right now with Motswako and who I am. The beautiful thing about Motswako is that the definition itself is a mixture of everything. It was really easy for me to even work with the people I always wanted to work with, especially fellow females rappers. The album is literally 100% of who Fifi Cooper is.
Which song did you enjoy writing the most and why?
All of them actually, every song of mine is about my day-to-day experiences and challenges. I can’t rap about Lamborghinis if I don’t own one; I wouldn’t know what to say in that song. The songs have a bit of gospel and traditional music elements. Some are sad and others are just happy. There is a song that I wrote for my mom, which is also a happy song. So with this album, I’m taking people through my different emotions and I write everything from my heart. I feel like that’s how I talk to my fans. I am a human being –I go through breakups and betrayals and there’s a lot I have to say about that. I find it easier to say it in a song. Making music is a blessing for me.
What lessons have you learned over the years about the music industry?
I’ve been in the industry for 10 years now and it’s a very tricky environment. The fact that my life plays itself out in public makes is very difficult. You come across people who are fake and who want to use you. This is Joburg and it’s not safe, everyone is out here to hustle. People will write stories about you which are not true. So obviously you get to learn, but the most important thing for me is knowing where I want be, even though people will always try to bring you down. But that is not the focus; the focus is giving fans good music. The most important thing is support from my fans. I’ve survived many hardships with them.
What do you hope your fans take away from this album?
I hope that my fans can take the honesty that I put in the album. I know that a lot of people were confused because they didn’t know my side of the story. I didn’t have power to do anything. I just want them to get the honesty in the album and know my side of the story. They’ll get to know who Refilwe is. People who will buy the album will understand even if they don’t know Setswana, they will still relate to the album.
