Jeanette, Steve Rhodes' third child lives in England. One of the foundation members of Steve Rhodes Voices, she regards it a privilege to be Steve's daughter. In this interview conducted through email, Jeanette speaks on her understanding of the SRV, her father Steve and why she lives abroad.

What do you think SRV stood for and what was it intended to achieve?
SRV stood for excellence in choral music, presentation and entertainment. It set the standard for other choral groups, choirs and church choirs to attain. I break it down because the SRV came into being as a result of a request from the Provost of the Cathedral Church of Christ, Reverend Sope Johnson. Not enough young people were coming to Church and music was identified as an idiom for attracting them to the Church. This is still the case today, music plays a very important role in the Church.

Initially the group set out to bring young people to the Church but after the first appearance in Church requests from the public came in for the group to continue on a performing level and therefore concerts were organised. At this point under the leadership of the man himself the highest standards of achievement were set:

1. High standards of musical content

2. Discipline and commitment

3. Professionalism in presentation and entertainment – even though the group was non-professional, he would not compromise on this standard. If people were paying to be entertained they deserved the best.

For a little bit of history - the American gospel group the Edwin Hawkins Singers (an American group) made the song ‘Oh Happy Day' popular in the 70s. They set the standard for modern gospel music's repertoires. If a gospel group has not got ‘Oh Happy Day' in its repertoire it is missing an essential part of its repertoire. This was one of the first songs the SRV performed and only a ‘privileged' few got to sing that solo. You had to be one of the more competent singers in the early group at the time to sing that solo – Yewande Ankrah, Francesca Emanuel and Gloria Rhodes were the pioneer soloists of the SRV.

§ How did you get involved with SRV?
I can proudly say I was a foundation member. I was still in secondary school when we made our first appearance in Church. It felt like the most natural thing to do because from a young age Gloria and I were exposed to music and musicians, television and radio studios (WNTV/WNBS in Ibadan and NBC in Lagos). We were exposed to entertainment in general and this just seemed to me to be another one of the things my father was meant to be involved with and succeed at. The fact that I was in his group meant it was time for me to be involved in his world of music and I was definitely not a reluctant participant. It felt safe because he was now not only my father but my musical mentor.

My initial involvement in the SRV was as a singing member but with time came more responsibility and I became the group's secretary and then leader. I was also involved in auditioning new members who wished to join the group, organising costumes and group welfare when we had performances. The beauty of the SRV, especially in the early days, was that there was a sense of belonging to a big ‘family' everyone pitched in because it was important to everyone that we enjoyed what we were doing and this reflected in our performances. Audiences commented on how happy everyone looked when they performed.

§ Do you think SRV came at the right time at the time it came?
Definitely yes. I remember people commenting way back in the day that Steve Rhodes was “ahead of his time”. It is people who are ahead of their time that bring the rest of us forward. They have a vision, focus, dream call it what you like and they see it through. So yes it was the best time ever for the SRV to come into being. The fact that the Nigerian public encouraged and asked for more testifies to that. The Nigerian audience is not the easiest to please - anyone in the Nigerian entertainment business knows this – and the positive aspect of this is that it challenges the artist to find out what will please the audience. It forces you to raise your standards and keeps you on your toes.

§ How will you describe your father, Steve Rhodes?
I feel privileged to be his daughter, this is the first time ever that he will read that! At the same time because he is my dad I can say he has been and can still be very demanding because he is a perfectionist. This is not necessarily in a negative way but I know when he is in Daddy mode and the picture in his mind of me is of a child (probably a 5 year old!!). As his children we were exposed to the public as members of the SRV when were young. He made it clear that we were not to be seen as being favoured as his children. He was very strict with us and this was also the case with other members of his family who were the core members of the pioneer group.

I have grown to respect him. When I was younger I was sometimes scared of him when he let rip at rehearsals because the band was not playing the right notes or were not spot on with the rhythm. It got more “frightening” when it was a certain section of the choir that were singing sour notes. Fortunately the Sopranos were on the ball most of the time! (I know I'm going to get it from the other voice parts who read this).

With time I accepted this as his artistic temperament made worse by his perfectionist nature. I remember how relieved I felt when I realised other musicians behave in the same way.  At a really young age my dad had taken us to a recording session at the NBC when he was manager to Fela Ransome-Kuti . Boy did he (Fela) have a go at one of the guys in his band. History can now testify to the fact that Fela was and will always be one of the best musicians Nigerian has produced – this goes back to the artistic temperament. For an artist, this is what often brings out the best in their colleagues.   It definitely worked for Steve Rhodes and the SRV.  Not everyone liked it but it definitely worked.

To summarise my dad is a good father and an honest person who has worked hard all his life for what he believes in and deserves all the respect he gets from those who appreciate him.  He has a compassionate side and those who get close to him to get to see this.

§ Having interviewed so many people, one common statement made by all is ‘he suffers no fool.' Can you speak on your experience on this?
This goes back to what I said earlier - anyone who has reached a high level in their chosen field will expect a lot from those they deal with, it does not matter what field you are in. The good thing about my dad is that he is honest, he tells you exactly what he expects and it is up to you to decide whether you are prepared to work with him. This is probably why people say he suffers no fool, when it gets to the point where the working relationship is going down hill it is better to just part ways amicable. He is an intelligent man and most intelligent people do not suffer fools gladly. I think it is sometimes hard for intelligent people to understand that not everyone is as intelligent!

§ How will you explain the fact that SRV is in limbo today?
This is my personal opinion, the SRV is in limbo because it very hard to expect people to understand what the SRV stood for when it first started because society has changed, values have changed. Money is a very strong motivational factor in anything in today's world. The initial SRV members joined the group out of their love for music and the companionship they found in other members. It was an extended family where you came to rehearsals ready to work but also knew that you were among friends and if you had any personal concerns there was always someone there who would listen and cheer you up. The age range was anywhere from between 15 to 45 at the time. My aunt Olga was very good at cracking jokes and we were often kept in stitches. Another person with a fantastic sense of humour was my godmother Mrs Mukoro. The only thing about this was that you had to make sure you did not get carried away with the laughter when Mr Rhodes was ready to work.

Another factor is that Lagos is not as safe as it used to be. It is very difficult to expect people to come out to rehearsals and go home after dark without the assurance that they would get home safely.

The SRV however does have a history and as long as the SR in SRV is around the SRV could always be reformed but probably on a smaller scale because of the nature of the SRV, it is a non-professional group with professional standards and at 82 I would not want to stress my dad with a large group of people who do not understand what the SRV means to him. The group meant/means a lot to him and it is something he is very passionate about; I would not be part of destroying his happy memories.

§ When and how did you pull out of SRV?
I did not pull out of the SRV; my belief is that anyone who was a member of the SRV will always be a member of the SRV. With any ‘family' there comes a time when each individual needs to consider personal factors. You get to a point where you need to grow as an individual whatever that may be; in my case my personal growth happened to involve relocating to London.

§ Your sister Gloria remains in Nigeria and so proud of the country. Why would you relocate?
I am as proud of being a Nigerian as my sister, I have in my own small way as a member of the Steve Rhodes Voices won laurels for Nigeria, how many Nigerians can say that? My relocating is not something I feel guilty about. I happen to have been born in Britain. In life everyone is expected to make full use of opportunities that come their way. Living in Britain just happens to be one opportunity I am making full use of for now. I grew up in Nigeria and carry myself proudly as such no matter where I live - I learnt at a very early age how important that is.

§ At 82, your dad is till working so hard to get some things done in a country that has shown little appreciation. Someone said he is wasting his time. What do you think?
For anyone to say he is wasting his time is very unkind. He has achieved a lot for the Nigerian music industry in his role as a father figure or Elder as he is called now. He has spent a lot of his time and energy, with a lot of personal sacrifice, identifying, grooming and encouraging talent. Someone has to do this and he chose to do this even though he hardly ever got any thanks for it – the comment that he is wasting is time is a very good example of that.

If he did not take the leadership role that he has taken a lot of musicians in Nigeria today would probably not have pursued their dreams to become musicians.

Nigerians need to wake up to the fact that people who have creative talents are NOT people with nothing else to do. They are people who are very passionate about the world they live and they see it and portray it through their various mediums as painters, sculptors, poets, writers or musicians. The very same Nigerians who criticise their own are the ones who go abroad and praise Shakespeare, Picasso and Béyonce. All of these people happen to have come out of societies that have a history of encouraging the arts.

§ Living in Europe, what do you think your dad would have achieved if he had chosen to live in Europe? Do you regret he lives in Nigeria?
I would have to embark on a lot of speculation and guesswork to say what he would have achieved had he chosen to live abroad because he had his own reasons for not doing so. He would definitely have been encouraged and appreciated more because the arts and music are high up on the priority list for people in Europe. Had you asked me 10 years ago if I regretted that he lived in Nigeria I would have said yes because I felt that he had spent so much of his life striving for recognition for the Nigerian artist and he got very little thanks for it. Some of the negative comments came from the artists themselves and this did get to me. However I watched him take it in his stride and can only say that I now respect him very much for hanging in there against all odds because he has achieved a lot in his life as a very proud Nigerian who knows that Nigerians can become the best in their chosen area of the arts if given the right encouragement and opportunities.

§ How far has his fame gone in Europe?
I am not too sure about the use of the word fame. My dad is well respected in Europe for various reasons. His educational background afforded him the opportunity to live and work in Europe as a young man so he made his contacts in Europe at that time. He worked for a multinational corporation in the 70s and 80s and earned the respect of the Europeans he worked with. When the SRV competed at the international musical contests in Wales and Finland he was recognised for his ability to present the music of Nigeria to audiences that were greatly ignorant of our music and our abilities to perform at international levels. They were pleasantly surprised and therefore a respect developed for the country and the man who brought about the respect.

He is not “famous” as a performing artist on the same level as say Fela was famous on the international music scene but he is respected as a Nigerian who has encouraged the musical talents of Nigerians, one of those talents being Fela. He also encouraged Femi Kuti and still encourages many other Nigerian musicians who I will not even attempt to mention because I will only get into trouble for not giving an accurate list of names. Fela and Femi I feel safe to mention because I identify with them as family friends. Fela was the “egbon” we loved to have outrageous conversations with because of his ‘Yabis'. Femi is like a brother to me in the sense that our families have known each other since their (Fela's children) early exposure to performing as musicians in the then Afro Spot and they have now progressed to performing on international stages in Europe and America. The Kuti's are a very talented musical family and Seun and Made are the next generation to watch out for.

§ As a trustee of SRV/SRO, what plans have you to take the arrangement to higher heights?
It is actually the CCP (Centre for Cultural Preservation) that has trustees. Perhaps this is an area that needs to be considered for the SRV/SRO. Given the opportunity and with the necessary backing my personal desire would be to be to maintain the momentum of the SRO by continuing to provide an outlet for those with talent to improve their skills and give the Nigerian audience the highest standards of entertainment comparable to anywhere in the world. The SRO performs within Nigeria it may be time to start looking at performances outside Nigeria? The SRO has very talented musicians under the direction of Benneth Ogbeiwi but there are other people that are not visible, because they choose not to be, but who contribute to the success of the SRO.  It is all about team work and the team is solid and it is our fervent prayer that this remains so.