Nigerian singer Spyro has opened up about the emotional impact of his childhood, revealing that he grew up believing he was a failure because of the negative words his father constantly spoke over him.
Speaking in an interview on Black Box, the singer said his father’s harsh remarks left him with little confidence and made him feel like he would never amount to anything.
According to Spyro, he was often called hurtful names by his father, leaving him without the encouragement he needed to believe in himself.
“There was nothing to build from because there was no positivity. I was like the black sheep of the family, so when I thought of myself, I thought of myself as a failure already back then,” he said.
The musician explained that those experiences followed him into different stages of his education, filling him with constant anxiety about whether he would be able to complete school.
“I was always anxious when I got into secondary school. The fear was there: ‘Can I even graduate or will I even graduate?’ University was the same thing because of some of the things that my dad would say and the words that he would use. It kind of made me feel useless,” he stated.
Spyro also reflected on the unique pressures of growing up as a pastor’s child, saying expectations from both family and society added to the emotional burden he carried.
“You know, pastor’s kids always face this thing where there is so much pressure on them to conform to a certain kind of lifestyle that their parents want them to live. I was under so much pressure, so I would never have thought…” he said, trailing off as he reflected on his journey.
Despite the painful experiences, Spyro has gone on to build a successful music career, with his story highlighting how childhood experiences and parental words can have a lasting impact on a person’s self-worth.
“My father would always tell me as a child that he wasn’t sure I could be successful, so I started seeing myself as a failure. I’d go to school and ask myself, ‘Can I even graduate from here?’ I felt like someone who couldn’t do anything right.” —Spyro 💔 pic.twitter.com/mq8HHmhyCl
— carter🌚 (@carter8f) September 16, 2026 PAT/EBSource: www.ghanaweb.com