Our LagosMums Mum of the Month is Kafayat Shafau Ameh, popularly known as Kaffy. She is a mother, wife, dancer, dance fitness trainer, business owner, trail blazer. We certainly enjoyed talking with her and being motivated! We always learn when we read someone else’s story and they share their experiences with us. Read and enjoy.
LM: Hi Kaffy. So nice to meet you. Can you introduce yourself?
KAFFY: My name is Kafayat Oluwatoyin Shafau Ameh.
LM: Tell us how you became “Kaffy”?
KAFFY: The name just came up. I think it was from one of my Indian friends because pronouncing Kafayat was a bit difficult for him so he preferred to call me Kaffy and that’s how it stuck.
LM: Tell Us About Your Journey – How did you become a successful dancer?
KAFFY: I went through a tough period after my parents separated and I was moving between different family members, trying to pursue my education and facing a lot of challenges.
During this period, I gained a lot of weight. I was a size 16 and I was trying to loose weight. It was into that journey that I found the whole dance fitness thing. I used to go for aerobics classes at the National stadium. One day, the teacher happened to be ill and he asked for someone who could teach the class for a while until he came back. And I took the class.
From then, people loved how I took the class because I infused more dance into it. And that was when the whole dance fitness started becoming a thing. Then before I knew it, I was already a dance fitness trainer at a top gym.
On Education
I wanted to be an aeronautic engineer and I just decided to do whatever form of sciences that will make me close to engineering as possible (we didn’t have aeronautical engineering in Nigeria then). I enrolled for data processing for diploma.
I’m the kind of person that doesn’t believe in getting stuck. For example when I got to OSU (Ogun State University) I discovered that they didn’t have a female basketball team so I raised one with the help of the gang. The first female team was raised by me.
On dancing, I really liked the way it gave me direct access to making people happy. So it was a no brainer for me. I wasn’t looking at it from the angle of technically a dance. I was just looking at it like yeah I like dancing and it was fitness, “oya now let me be doing it.
LM: So you’ve just basically been blazing the trail for a long time?
Kaffy: Yes . Everything I set my mind to, I just want to excel in it. I don’t see limits, no matter how flimsy people think it is. I entered the entertainment industry when somebody called me for a modelling gig. They said they liked my pictures but I didn’t know it had to do with some runway thing. I was like I don’t know how to catwalk o.
So in the middle of that program, I was told they had to do a dance presentation. I asked to see what the girls were doing and I didn’t really like the choreography. It was on zero level for me. So I was like can you guys allow me do a solo, I will still pop your crowd. And they were like sixteen girls are meant to do something amazing, what can only you do on stage and I did my thing.
Apparently, the room was filled with a lot of industry people like Rugged man and all those people I did their first music videos. They were all excited, there was a standing ovation and I had never seen anything like that before. And that’s exactly how it started.
LM: After you figured out that dance was something you liked, something you enjoyed, you were making impact. How did you move on to what kaffy is now?
KAFFY: I think the break was when I got frustrated with pursuing my education. There were a lot of things going wrong. I couldn’t afford school and other stuff so I just reasoned that this dance thing makes people happy and I’m making a lot of people happy.
So I used some of the money I got from one of the scholarships to train myself online. I enrolled in online training as a fitness trainer. Also, I got my certification; spent my money on the certification courses, getting the videos, textbooks. I was just empowering myself by myself.
Dance was working and seemed to be the only thing working. It was consistent. It was taking me places. People were recognizing me. People loved it and there was no failure there. So, I decided to put it in all the knowledge I had gotten over the years and apply it.
I told myself, “okay I want to do this thing, and I got family saying “lai lai , dancer ke. God forbid bad thing”.
I have had family meetings where I am in the middle of the room and people were saying different things about me, “ashewo lo fe di” bla bla bla and stuff. I’ll just look at them and smile, you don’t know what’s on my mind, you’re just strengthening it more and the fire that I have in me. That is why when I see wrong things happening around me, I cannot fall for it. Even if I am making mistakes I cannot dwell on it for too long because I am always reminded about were I am coming from, and the names I’ve been labeled.
I believe that it’s not about what profession I’m in. If I’m going to be great I’m going to be great! I decided I am going to take the challenge that this dance you guys say is not the one, I’m going to take it and show that it’s not for useless people, it’s not for girls that just want to be wayward. The labels were a lot.
[Teaching children to be entrepreneurs from am early age is a MUST]
On Starting A Dance Company
My aim was to put a structure to dance because dance was nowhere and the only people that had a form of structure were those dancers in church. So, I decided I didn’t want a dance crew, I wanted a dance company. I saw dance as empowering. I saw it as an industry, I saw that way ahead.
And that was what drove me to this point where I always drive to get better. Where I am now, I see that the creative industry has a large number of young people wanting to join more than anything else. And if you look at the reason why, you will realize that just being a banker, just being a lawyer, is not enough anymore.
There’s more to life than all that. Life is art in it’s own. Life is expression. It’s about the passion. People that are passionate about Law are always going to grow. They feel like the voice of the voiceless. And I’m like that too with dance.
This art form is one of the oldest forms of communication ever. Before anyone learnt how to write, we learnt to move. Dance is an all round form of communication and communication is power because information is power and when you are able to inform the mind you are able to empower the mind. I see dance as a tool of empowerment.
When I was growing as a young person, dance was my safety cocoon. I know a lot of young people that are going through what I went through and even worse and I feel like I can use dance as an element to free them. Create it as a form of freedom of the mind.
We can use dance to tackle low self esteem, to free them and uplift their minds. If you feel intimidated by your peers, you use dance to have a voice. You know, dance can be used for everything. That’s how i see it.
On Business
I have expanded my horizon beyond dance just being an art form to a corporate industry. People look at dance as an SME venture; I dance to be paid. But i‘m looking at dance from an angle of multi-service provision. We can provide services on different levels for different categories for different individuals.
The art industry is very wide. I’m looking at expanding my services to be beyond giving dancers to artists or putting dancers on stage. I’m looking at providing creative solutions for different companies.
Some of our services are; we are an agency, we provide employment on different levels. Dancers, hostesses, people that are on a higher level of coordination and creative rendering of their services. We are also a wellness and fitness consultant firm. Becauase dance is health and wealth as well.
We are in the fashion industry because we dictate/create trends. If you want to go on stage we can make your costumes. Costumes are required in all areas of the industry.
On Getting Funding
It’s business. I want people to see me equally as a business woman proposing a business to you and whatever I need to do to get that business sorted out.
That was why I got loan. when I got my first loan I paid but it wasn’t easy to. When I wanted to get my second loan, they didn’t want to listen to me. And I told them they had to listen to me. I’m a business woman. I’m falling and I’m rising. What kind of customer do you want. Do you want one that defaults and pays or one that defaults and does not pay?
Do you think that Dangote made it without falling? I mean, I can. I will make that money back and if I was able to raise 30 million naira from you and put it back, what does that tell you? And they listened and gave me again.
LM: You have that boldness to stay in Business
KAFFY: Yes, I have a celebrity status but I will be there first to do what I need to grow my business. I will wake up in the morning and wait for their officers at the bank to come and talk to me. I can’t do everything by myself.
LM: Are all your businesses under one company?
KAFFY: It’s Kaffy Incorporated. a.k.a Kaffy inc. Kaffy incorporated is a holding company with several subsidiaries.
We have Iyanga for clothes where we make props, carnival clothes, themed outfits and so don’t have to ship them in and make stuffs ourselves. We also have a hijab themed outfit, one that is fully covered; so we cater to all types of people.
Some women are curvy, they have some nice parts on them but they just want to reduce some parts. So we have designs that can open and cover some places. We’re still stylish. Not that because you’re big you just cover yourself. We have designs that show that you’re not afraid to be stylish.
Imagneto dance company for the agency, creative solutions and training. The training is where we have the academy to train people.
Ijoda is my fitness and wellness services. Ijoda means two things for us (where there is dance and dance is good).
Those are the major subsidiaries and services we offer. We are coming up with Iyanga express to deliver goods and services for people whenever they want.
Lastly is the Jo’jo app which is a networking app. Like an uber service for the creative industry. It’s not limited to dance, the community that surrounds it is a lot bigger, It’s also location oriented. If you’re looking for salsa, it will show you the nearest instructors around.
LM: When are you launching the app. That sounds really exciting.
KAFFY: I’m working on it. We’ve developed it to the point where it’s functional. I’m just changing the name and the outlook. Once the branding part is done and I get sponsors and partners on board because it is huge then we’re good to go.
We’ve had people sign up on the app, people that are not even from Nigeria, dancers, and different professionals all over the world. So, we want to create a really big afrocentric community for the creative community.
I know the Western world have theirs. When we say african community, it doesn’t necessarily have to mean that you’re African, we’re just saying you love our music, our lifestyle and everything about African creative sphere. So, you could be a Russian that dances afrobeat.
[How To Achieve Mum-Life Balance]
LM: Tell us About Little Magnets?
Kaffy: For the past two and a half years, we’ve been steady with a group of children. We didn’t want to start with too many. We picked two of them from schools that are very dilapidated and put them on scholarships. One is 12 years old, the other is 9 and they are very good.
Now, we’ve decided to put a structure together to expose them, give them opportunities and see how far we can go with them. And I am proud to say that there are two of them that we are training to a point where they can represent Nigeria in different forms outside the country. These kids, if we’re able to pump training in them for the next two years, they can do commonwealth.
The mission and vision of little magnets is to use dance to instill the qualities that we, as parents or as churches or as any institution that cares about the future of this world, want our children to have.
International Standards
I am a judge for different dance performances so I know the quality we are looking for outside the country. I know that Nigeria can produce that, these kids can be that. We have the little ones that are already showing that kind of potential, let’s not wait till they are eighteen, let’s take them now.
Let’s empower their minds and build them for their tomorrow. The parts that their mum’s cannot touch when they are going through stuff we are going to equip them and their minds to cope.
Indirectly, we’re expanding their retentive memory, attention span. Because you need to pay attention to be a dancer, you need to be disciplined and to be of good posture and poise.
Shaku shaku is beautiful but there is a science to shaku shaku if you can break it down. There’s a wide range of motion to it than just the way we’re portraying it. I see a lot of kids on Instagram just dancing, just putting moves together, that’s not being a dancer.
[Tweet “there is a science to shaku shaku”]
I just need all the help I can get because this is me using all my money. I’ve not gotten any support or funding. So I decided to go on social media because I feel that will be a great platform for people to see what we are doing and help this kids.
Equipment for dance and gymnastics is not cheap. If you want to do it anywhere in the world, to a good level, to a good degree, it’s not cheap, it’s expensive. So people should not think because it’s a dance school, I should not pay the kind of money I will pay in a normal school.
On Support System
LM: You sound like you have a very strong support system.
KAFFY: It’s God. Humans are not the strongest support system. I think God is, because you get to come across different kinds of people, some will frustrate your business, some will almost push you to the point where it’s almost running you down then you have to pick it back up by yourself.
So, I’ve been there and done that. I’m just in a better place right now where I can tell what I want from you not just by what you say or do. I have a better vouching system by myself.
LM: Tell us a little bit about your family.
KAFFY: My family is great. I’ll say God blessed me with them especially my children. I won’t say I’ve been responsible for training them. I’ll just say God has been responsible. I’m just being the best I can be.
You know, there’s no blue print for being a great mum. You can be the best mum you can be in terms of following all the best mum books but it’s still the grace of God.
I keep thanking God for whatever they’re exposed to when I’m not there. That’s the most important thing. And God helping me shut their eyes from what is evil. And I continue to pray to God to maintain it that way for me.
[Tweet “there’s no blue print for being a great mum.”]
https://www.instagram.com/p/BkJYpTml05F/?hl=en&taken-by=kaffydance
On Religion
KAFFY: Who I am today is not because of how well my parents trained me but somehow, God was just with me from a young age. I knew and loved God so much since I was five, I was very passionate about serving and praising him.
God raised me himself so I want the same for my kids. I joined the Ramadan fast and I still go to church on Sundays.
Usually, I tell people I’m not religious, I’m spiritual.
[Tweet “I tell people I’m not religious I am spiritual.”]
There’s nobody that God cannot use. That’s why I always look at the good in people. I look at the God in you. The God in you is what God put in you that you didn’t put there yourself. So, for me, when I see young people doing unspoken things, I just don’t look at that side. It might be painful and frustrating but I just know I’m working with what God has put in you. Sometimes they wonder, “wetin this woman see?” I’ve been subjected to different kinds of criticism.
LM: My daughter is a great dancer, she has told me that when she grows up she will like to be a dancer. I have started researching it and now realize there is a path for this.
KAFFY: Yes there is a path, one of our little dancers that was here in Nigeria just graduated dance school in Chicago. And it’s not just watching Davido’s videos and saying that’s dance. It’s much more than that. I’m also getting an annex that will be like the boot camp for dance. I’m trying to help people see the outlook because outlook potential is very important to parents.
LM: Tell us more about Little Magnets. I know you talked about it a little bit. what’s the plan?
KAFFY: I’m just taking it one step at a time. I don’t have a full blown plan yet. I’ve been trying to do whatever I can to get the vision and mission sorted out. I’m trying to partner with the church I attend. Because they really are yearning for a dance department and they want to set up a dance crew. So, I’m like okay let little magnets be the club set up and it also instills the values that church will not be scared to associate with. They are children, we can’t expose them to certain things.
LM: Does that mean you play good, clean, music.
KAFFY: Yes, even if they dance to Rihanna, it’s not bitch better have my money. I don’t want anybody to spoil the picture I have. For a church, definitely, what we teach in church will be different, it will be more inspirational and gospel. Even if kids from church come to little magnets, they will still be dancing to trendy songs but it is not in a way and manner that is appropriate.
We are already in business. If your kid wants to register now, they can. All information is on the little magnets Instagram page. There’s a number and an e-mail there.
[Summer camps Lagos 2018 guide]
LM: What do you do for adults?
KAFFY: We have Ijoda programs for adults. Ijoda is afrocentric workout and wellness lifestyle. It’s not just aerobics. I have Poinobeats, that’s using the Igbo Atilogwu, high impact movement to create a workout. We offer many different ones too.
LM: Where’s your studio?
KAFFY: It’s in Ajah, Badore. We’re currently trying to partner with land owners on the mainland for a mainland branch, so people will not have to travel. I have a woman who comes in everyday from Maryland to Ajah to come and workout. So, she doesn’t miss her class.
LM: How can we support. I love the idea, I love what you are doing especially with Little Magnets
KAFFY: You can please support. Support really is basically right now, there’s a new facility I want to pay for.
I spoke to an Olympian, he is German. I’ve seen the way he trains kids, he is awesome. I know people who are good but cannot teach. It’s not everybody that is good that can teach. This man is detailed in the way he teaches the understanding of the art.
So, I reached out to him.
I want him to come. I’ve not spoken to him in a few months now, the next time I want to call him, I want it to be that I will tell him how far I’ve gone. So, he was like what kind of facility do I have? I’ve seen the kind of places he works/has. I want him to also help us in consulting.
The basic things we can do within that particular structure, I want him to help us get it put together. Then, he will come and do workshops for us and do training for some of our teachers that are already inclined.
LM: We need more summer camps and options – not just learning mathematics and english.
KAFFY: Yes. I have offered a camp before and will offer it again next year – 2019.
My camp is more like a university of learning. I operate it almost like a school. After your dance class, you get to go for music classes where you learn instrumentation. My husband is a fantastic music director, he plays the drums, piano etc. Our dance classes include Latin and different styles. We also got different celebrities that came in to talk to them about how they made it in the industry. It’s not just a bed of roses.
We also have people coming in for mental health, dental health, food, health nutrition.
LM: Do you have more than 24 hours in a day
KAFFY: (laughs) No, I wish a day can be extended so we can get a lot done.
LM: Can Other Mums or Women Invest?
KAFFY: if they want to invest. For example, We have the Ijoda app, we can give you a blue print, you can make your money in the creative industry. Trust me, if you drop 1 million naira in this business, we know what it can do. Especially the costume side. I need partners because that one is good to go. People are already ordering. I just need capital to meet up with the demand.
So, please feel free to help us spread it. I need all the help I can get especially when it’s woman to woman. It’s really important to me. I didn’t get there by myself. Some of these women are CEOs, they can assist us, they can support the project. I don’t want you to come and dash free money.
I’ll make money when we’re successful. Little drops of water make a mighty ocean.
For more about Kaffy’s Little Magnets visit their Instagram page.
