Interesting career achievements of TY Bello!

TyBell

Toyin Shokefun Bello might not easily ring a bell but TY Bello does. On hearing the name, you think of the lady with the dark eyes, raspy alto voice from the renowned urban gospel group KUSH (which consisted of Lara George, Dapo Torimiro, herself and Emem), then you think of the beautiful lady with the 70’s trendy afro-style hair-do. That’s TY Bello.

She is by choice, a Nigerian photographer, musician and a philanthropist. During her early days, Toyin was good at so many things which made her confused as to what to become. She started as a hair stylist and then a make-up artist while she read Economics at the University of Lagos. She was also well known on campus as a rap artiste. Her group, KUSH enjoyed massive fame back ten and they were the first to perform at the Nigerian corner of the Notting hill Carnival in 2003. After the debut album from her group, they went their separate ways. TY’s first solo album “Greenland” was released in 2008. Her journey into photography started when she met a man called Pa Ajidagba who taught her part of what she knows.

She is a Director of Link-a-child; an NGO dedicated to propagating information on orphanages in Nigeria and soliciting sponsorship on their behalf. TY dedicates her time to her NGO and once had a conversation that impacted on her so much to which she dedicated a song on her album ‘Ekundayo’ which she did with Olufunmi. The 4 minutes song done in English and Yoruba is about a conversation between Toyin Subair, Ty Bello and Mrs. Ekundayo (owner of Ekundayo Children’s Home, an orphanage in Isanlu, Kogi State). According to TY, “that conversation made her realize how empty my life was. She saw someone who was doing a lot more than she was and had much less than she did.

TY Bello believes that the crisis in Nigeria is beyond politics and she described the bombings in Nigeria by terrorist sects as a “metaphor of the hopelessness and impending tragedy that may lie ahead if we do not become more engaged in building the country we desire.” TY Bello is considered on the A-list of prominent and influential photographers. To her, Art is about collecting experiences and expressing them. For her, music and photography are similar art forms. She collects experiences, stir them in her and express it in her own language. Just like my photography, music is her language.” TY has taken pictures for magazines, Presidents, Governors, celebrities and A-Class celebrities

HER WORKS

They say “Action speaks louder than words”. Here are a few magazine covers and photos done by photographer, TY Bello. Notice that she has done quite good for herself.