Francesca Emanuel was one of the early member of Steve Rhodes Voices. In this interview conducted her at Victoria Island home, she spoke on how she was able to carry on as a member of the Steve Rhodes Voices in spite of her busy schedules in the Civil Service, a career that saw her become Nigeria's first female Permanent Secretary. Excerpts from an interview conducted by Bola Adewara.

Your name is often conflictingly spelt. Some people spell it as Emmanuel, featuring two letter M, while others spell it with only one M. Which of the two is right and what is your ancestry like?
My maiden name was Pereira . My husband's name is Manuel but our people have corrupted it to Emmanuel and now what can we do? But we left it as Emanuel, one M. Both of us come from the Lagos Brazilian family. My husband's Emanuel is of the Tokunbo area while my Pereira is of Seteolu Compound, Kakawa street , near Campos Square on Lagos Island.

How did you develop interest in music?
As a little child, I was brought up by my grand mother because my father, Francisco Eugenio Pereira who died in 1986 worked as a Civil Servant in the governor's office. He was always on transfer and mother went with him. I was baptised a Catholic through my maternal grandmother whom I stayed with at Olowogbowo area of Lagos. She was a Ghanaian who was brought into Nigerian at age 13 and married my grandfather, Jonathan Theodore Nelson Caulcrik. My grandfather had a Sierra Leone blood. I am still in touch with some of the ancestry. I took my grandmother back to Ghana when she was 70 and luckily there was one of her contemporaries around who took us round and we also invited them to Nigeria. At the Sierra Leone end, I have no link because that place is too far from Nigeria .

So I started loving music and acting as a child. Many times I caught myself singing and acting alone, fantasising. I used to attend the Sunday school at Olowogbowo Methodist Church where I was a member of Little Stars, a church organisation for little Children and we used to perform in the church.

After primary school, I attended Holy Child College where I started as a Catholic because I was in the boarding school. But the grounding was in the Methodist Church. At Holy Child, I had a Reverend mother, Mother Fidelis who used to teach us sowing, modeling, singing, geography. She had a beautiful powerful voice. There was a church which I joined and there, she identified my voice. There was also a Festival of Arts where she always feature me. In fact, I went ahead to win solo soprano voice at the All Nigerian Festival. She helped me a lot. She secured me as a main character and of course my interest was there.

After secondary school, I had a battle with my mother. I inherited my talent from her but she would not brook my turning that interest into a profession. She was determined to stop me from becoming either a singer or an actress. I had planned to travel to Italy to train my voice as a singer or school of drama in London to train as an actress. Whenever she asked me what I wanted to do, I use to maintain those things. Sometime, she would scold me, sometimes she would plead with me to change my mind. But I was sold out to those ideas.

One day she called me again and I gave the same answer. I had thought she would scold me but she pleaded with me that she has been down that road before and she knows that people who go on stage don't earn people's respect in Nigeria . She said she knows I have the talent and if I pursued it, I will be a success but here in Nigeria , nobody respects the stage. I am talking of 1952. She said the only way I could make it is to go abroad but she doesn't want me away from her. That was what did it. I gave up. The mere fact that she gave me the credit that she knows I could do it and the motherly appeal that she does not want me away from her, I gave up.

She then went to the Reverend Mother at Holy Child College . Between her and the mother, she got me the form for admission to the University of Ibadan . I was very lackadaisical about it because I though I could not pass. I went to Ibadan for the exam and to my horror, I passed and was given an admission. That was how I went to Ibadan to study Geography, with History and English as my subsidiaries.

How would you say the University of Ibadan days sustained your love for arts?
University of Ibadan had various societies like musical societies, drama societies and because of my interest, it was natural that I would join them. That was where I met Wole Soyinka, that was in 1952, 1953. Wole and I used to do a lot of acting and I used to do a lot of singing too. Other students I became friendly with were Bola Ige, Tinuke, his wife (was in the same set with me.) Others like Grace Alele (Williams) and Aig-Imuokhuede were our senior. There were so many of us who moved together. We were like rebels. After my intern, I went to England were I completed my degree. At England again, I met Wole Soyinka and we did a lot of acting.

When I returned to Nigeria , Wole too was back and when he started the 1960 Mask , I became a member. Other members were Olga, Steve Rhodes eldest sister, Segun Sofowote and four others boys who used to do the drumming. And we used to have fun. Some members were resident in Lagos and some at Ibadan . When we were preparing for plays, the Ibadan people would come to Lagos this week and the following week, the Lagos would go to Ibadan . And we use to have great fun.

At Ibadan , there was a place called Yetunde's Bar, where we go and drink and have fun. And if it was in Lagos, we went to Bobby Benson's Caban Bamboo. We would be there dancing, etc. That was how I was able to carry on.

Being in the Civil Service as an Administrative Secretary, (and the first female Administrative Secretary) so many people did not approve of my membership of the 1960 Mask. They were saying how could I be an admin secretary and still go to stage to sing and dance and act. But with what we proved in the Mask, nobody could condemn us because we all had our professions. So it was not easy to pull us down. But the resentment for me as a member and as a woman was much. But I did not care because I knew I was not doing what was professionally or morally wrong.

And in fact, it was my involvement in the art that sustained me in the Civil Service. Often, I closed so late from office very tired and weak. But when I got to Mask for rehearsals, I would be there for two hours, the tiredness gone. So I was grateful to the art for sustaining me and as it turned out, I was able to attain the highest possible position for a female then. It was the arts that made it for me.

People like you took the shame of being actresses, singers at the early days of arts development in Nigeria . This has paved way for the fame most women have today…

Yes, in fact we were even locked up when we did a play. I used to do a lot of programmes on Nigerian Broadcasting Service NBC then; children's programmes, Women's programmes, drama like Safe Journey, Shaky Shaky Alao where I played the part of Umezuruike's wife . In that programme, I spoke in Pidgin English. This went on for years. Also, I use to do a music programme where I had a quarter of Jazz programme with Fela Ransome-Kuti who played the saxophone, and I sang Jazz.

I was doing all these before I joined the service. So when the time came for joining the service, I was discouraged by so many people who said why did I want to be an admin officer? Why not a teacher or a social worker? But I told them that I had looked through the Scheme of Service and I found out that I am primal facie suitable. So you can't write me out because I am a woman. The scheme did not say women are not allowed. I said I will go for the interview. If I failed, I will accept but to say I should not go because I am a woman. No.

So I went. Alhaji Sule Katagum and one doctor were on the board of interviewers. I was surprised when the result came and I was offered an appointment.

At what point did you meet Steve Rhodes?
I had known the Rhodes family as a child. I had earlier met his eldest sister Olga when I was at Holy Child College , Lagos where she came to sing for us. Her performance tickled me so much and in fact that was one of the things that encouraged me with my singing. And also, two of the Rhodes family members, who were there cousins, were students at Holy Child College and one of them was my best friend.

I did not get to meet Steve Rhodes until he started the Steve Rhodes Voices. I was not a foundation member as they had done two concerts before I joined. I joined because I was having a great emotional upheaval and I needed something to divert my attention from the emotional problem. So going there to meet with different people, singing my hearts out and getting encouraged by the words of the songs were so encouraging. That was how I joined

What would you say Steve Rhodes has done for Nigeria ?
Well, in music, I don't think you can write anything about music development in Nigeria without mentioning Steve Rhodes. He has infused discipline and high standards. When SRV was on, people came to watch us because of the standard. It was not like now when people dish out just anything to their audience. He was very particular that the audience must be respected, and the audience too, must also respect the actor. It was a mutual thing.

He also helped to make people realise that music is not just making noise but something that is almost spiritual, what appeals to the soul. What uplifts and give dignity to human being.

The discipline at SRV was unparallel. I have not seen such discipline anywhere. We were not being paid but he was putting his whole heart to it. We had rehearsals and you were better not be late. At rehearsal, no messing around. You have to pay attention. Steve also played so many tricks on us during concerts; those songs we had rehearsed, he would change them to see if we had paid attention to him.

While on stage, you dare not take your eyes and attention off Steve. His figure looms over all of us. He demanded the best from us because the audience paid something to come and watch us. And during concerts, if anybody misbehaved in the audience, God help that person. He would let them know that this people have put in so many hours in rehearsals and you must respect them for that.

I remember an experience at a concert ion London after our performance at Eisteddfod. There was this song in which I would do a solo part. When it came to that part, I missed something. Steve was there looking at me and I was looking at him. I was petrified. I was lost while the choir went on and I was waiting for a convenient place to join the song. Thank God that the audience did not know we missed something.

After the performance, I avoided him because I was not sure what he would do to me. The audience did not know anything went wrong but I went through that experience with a great fright. Steve was an understanding person because after that, he would look at me laughed because he knew I had had enough punishment on stage.

He means well for this country. He loves this country and wants the people to be at their best. He does not suffer fool and does not rest on his oars. He raises standards all ways. Look at what he has done with the orchestra. It now means that other people from any parts of the world could now play our highlife music.

I saw him break down on stage when he was handing over to his daughter and Ben Ogbeiwi. My heart went for him. He has done so much for the country. I admire him and I hope he got some fulfillment in his life.

At what point did you leave Steve Rhodes Voices?
When in was appointed Permanent Secretary in 1975. When I was an Assistant Secretary, I damned all taunting and name calling like “Singing Assistant Secretary”, this and that from people in government and the media. I said to hell with them because I was not doing anything the law of the land and nobody could dictate my life for me.

But when I was appointed, I sat myself down and told myself that at this level of this appointment, my comportment was no longer about Francesca alone. This was Nigerian womanhood. Having been given this opportunity, all eyes are on me and they are going to judge me. Whatever I do will reflect on the chances of those coming behind me, so I must not do anything that will jeopardise the chances of those coming behind me. So I withdrew from Steve Rhodes Voices.

But after three years of being a Permanent Secretary and I had proved myself, I went back. I said to hell. I just decided that I have proved myself. There was nothing anybody could say to me again.