In a chat with Punch, Egberi papa 1 of Bayelsa, Timaya revealed he didn’t promise Barbara, the mother of his two daughters, marriage because it wasn’t on his to-do list yet but that he assured her he wasn’t going to have kids from different women.

He said: “I am not getting married soon. My life is a journey. My career is my journey. I didn’t lie to my baby mama when she was pregnant; I told her I wasn’t ready to get married. I never said I wasn’t going to get married.

But at the moment, I am not ready. When she told me she was pregnant, I accepted the pregnancy. She told me she hoped I wasn’t going to be like other musicians who had kids from different women. I told her no. My two kids are from same woman. I know what I am doing.”

Gushing about his kids, Timaya added:

I never knew I could love anyone the way I love my daughters. My first daughter is my best friend. I didn’t know what I wanted when I had her. But I knew I wanted to rebrand. So I had to take off the dreadlock.

My dreadlock was a strategy. I wanted people to see me as a rude boy. I couldn’t have been giving all those trouble with a calm and clean face. I wanted a look that would associate with it. Now, people come to me and I smile.

I was happy I was controversial and I was being talked about. I used to struggle to be known before then and I desperately wanted to be known.

Finally, they started talking about me. People felt I was troublesome. Some felt I was controversial. Even those who didn’t know my music knew my name. When I had got what I wanted, I felt it was time for me to rebrand.”