Nigerian singer Tiwa Savage on new film Water & Garri: I always wanted to be an actor

She told the BBC it was not “easy”.

But Tiwa Savage brought the character to life by channelling parts of herself and her mother.

“She bottles up things a lot and she might just explode one day,” she said.

Aside from acting, she was also an executive producer on the film.

The songstress said she watched at least 200 edits before they decided on the final cut.

It “was a lot of work”, she added.

While the film may be new, inspiration comes from her 2021 EP of the same name.

The movie was initially meant to be the accompanying video on the project, but she said when they started filming “it was so good” they decided to make it into a feature-length film.

But the music from the EP doesn’t feature in the movie as Tiwa Savage said she was no longer in the same “headspace”.

So she began recording new songs for the movie while they were shooting and managed to finish the score for the film within a week.

Songs for the film’s soundtrack feature other Nigerian stars like Olamide and Grammy-nominated singer Ayra Starr.