TONI KAN@50 The Golden Age of a Wordsmith

Born Anthony Kan Onwordi, the award-winning writer popularly known by his pen name, Toni Kan, is one of the most formidable wordsmiths to have transversed the world of journalism, public relations and literature. A Master’s degree holder in English Literature from the University of Lagos, he became a magazine editor at 26 and left journalism to pursue a career in communications and public relations. He has also worked in the banking, telecommunications, and publishing industries. Toni Kan is the author of six books, including the story collection ‘Nights of the Creaking Bed,’ edited The Sunday Sun Revue, a literary supplement and recently co-edited ‘Who’s Who in Yoruba Pantheon.’ He has received many accolades, including the Ken Saro Wiwa NNDC Prize and a writing fellowship from the Heinrich Böll Foundation. As he clocks 50 today, he shares some exciting as well as bittersweet moments of his golden years in an interview with Yinka Olatunbosun

Let me start by saying my first encounter with you was with your writing- then you had a column at Hints Magazine. You have conveniently carved a niche for yourself as a very bold writer, unafraid to explore sexuality which was almost like a taboo at that time. How did you manage to do that? Did you receive any backlash when you started?

I started writing for Hints as a 21 year old undergraduate. I was young, brash and unafraid. My mantra was “Wetin dem go do me?” and I even anchored a column called “Shit n Stuff”. It is funny though how everyone talks about Hints and my name crops up. I did not start Hints neither did I introduce risqué stories. Hints Magazine was already nine years old or so, when I joined. I guess my name keeps popping up because I did a good job of it. I was hired by Kayode Ajala and Reuben Abati. Many people do not remember or realise that Reuben Abati worked at Hints. Yes. I had won an award organised by the British Council and my prize was some money and summer school at the University of Edinburgh. It was a competition for Nigerian undergraduates and I came second in Nigeria.

While I was getting ready to go to England, my good friend and roommate Ralph Bruce introduced me to the duo. They took a liking to me and said: “When you come back, come and write for us.”

Hints Magazine published anonymous stories which they called “true life stories.” I recall that I was writing six of those every month as an undergraduate. I wrote good stories that resonated and that was the beginning. There was really no backlash except for young girls caught reading the magazine. Many people remember the risqué and sexy stories but I also did tear jerkers. It is funny though because, as I said, the stories I wrote alongside others like Grace Orji, David Njoku, Chim Newton, Terh Agbedeh, Stella Dimoko Korkus, Chidinma Awa Agwu, Peter Okwoche, Terh Agbedeh were anonymous yet everyone assumes I wrote all of it. I guess it shows that I did a good job especially with my column while at Hints.

What difference can you draw between the environment for writers in Nigeria when you started and how it is right now?

It has changed a lot. Now, young writers have a lot of options from blogs to websites and social media; from television to radio and all sorts. These are options that can provide an avenue to readership and fame for good writers, if you will. We didn’t have those back then. And back then very few publications were available to pay a young 21-year old undergraduate. Things have changed a whole lot.

Looking back to your journalism days, many would argue that the condition of service was better at your time. Would you agree to that?

I don’t know for sure but I had a good time at Hints until I didn’t anymore. I was probably one of the highest paid editors in Nigeria then, before THISDAY came and changed the game. I was earning a good salary. I had an official car and housing allowance. My salary may not seem like much now but back then it was a lot for a journalist and I didn’t even realise it until year 2000 or so. An editor friend of mine had just left his paper and wanted me to take over his position. When I asked how much it paid, he said N19,000. I was shocked because my salary was almost four times that. He graduated from Jos almost 10 years before me and was a title editor. I sent someone else to meet him and take the job.

Online journalism seems to give owners of traditional media a run for their money. How can these media owners rise to the occasion in terms of news content and speedy delivery of news?

Many traditional media owners came late to the game and were left flatfooted by the emergence and growth of online publishing but today, especially in the past five years and more so in the last one year with COVID-19 decimating newspapers and their pages, there is now scant difference between traditional (printed) and online because almost all newspapers now have online versions which are doing very well too. So, the boundaries are blurring. I don’t think traditional media owners should be rushing to compete because the truth is many discerning readers prefer and trust the traditional media more. And I speak with some confidence because my partner, Peju Akande and I, came into the game in 2014 when we launched sabinews.com which we sold in a groundbreaking deal in 2018. So, the landscape has changed dramatically but I don’t believe newspapers (printed edition) will disappear completely even though they are being given a tough time.

Would you say that journalism prepared you for PR practice?

Yes. It did. I was Editor of Hints at 26. Back then, many of my age mates were reporters or just starting out. I left for the bank in my early 30s to work in communications and it was easy because by then many of my peers were becoming editors so I did not have to speak too much grammar to get heard. Today, as co-owner of a PR firm, I am dealing with those same peers, many of whom now own their own online publications. It is still easy to deal with them. God has been good.

Once, at TEDtalks, you spoke about the influence of your mother in your career as a child and how you overcame stuttering. What do you miss most about your mom?

My mother died on October 16, 2020 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s and it is the biggest loss of my life because she was my first love. My mother made me the man I am today while my father gave me the gift of books that made me the writer I am.

I have talked about coming to Lagos with a stutter and realizing that in a city where things happen at dizzying speed, I could not afford to stutter. So, my mother set to praying and that stutter disappeared. It sounds funny but if you are in PR where you have to give two minute elevator pitches to busy executives, a stutter can be an impediment. I miss her everyday; her physical and spiritual beauty, her sense of style, her kindness and generosity, her cleanliness and her loving heart. I could go on and on.

What other factors contributed to the person you are today?

Those who know me know that I always like to talk about the kindness of friends and strangers. My friend Ralph Bruce and his family, especially his mother, Ma Reggie, have had a huge impact in my life. They showed me love when I needed it and took me into their home when I needed a roof over my head. My father’s huge library introduced me to books and writing and helped turn my love of books and reading into a love for writing and a career. Today, with over 20 books to my name, I cannot speak of myself as a writer without thanking and acknowledging my father.

You have always wanted to write about Lagos and you did in several books. Why do you have such passion for Lagos?

I was 10 when I first came to Lagos on holiday and it blew my mind. I was staying with an uncle in Dopemu and hours after I arrived Lagos my curiosity had drawn me outside and right by our fence was a dead body with people walking past it like it was a piece of garbage. That had a profound effect on me coming as I had from Bendel State where people were more communal. Then I remember visiting Bar Beach and running mad just seeing the waves and what seemed like a million people frolicking. In fact, I have just finished a book of poems memorialising Bar Beach.

My parents moved to Lagos in ‘92 and we have lived here ever since. My state of mind back then was “anxiety” but I learnt to navigate the city as a journalist and today I stalk it as if I own it. There are very few people and places I don’t know in Lagos and if you want anything done here or you want to meet someone I know someone who knows someone who can make it happen. That is why my friends call me “The Mayor of Lagos”. The Financial Times even described me as “The Lagos Panglosian”. So, you could say I am in love with this small but big and confounding city and that love affair reflects in my almost compulsive need to capture slices of it in my writing as often as I can.

You have co-written several books with Peju Akande. How does it feel like to have a collaborator like her and what are some of the things that had made your collaborative projects succeed despite individual differences?

Peju Akande and I were classmates at the University of Jos. Her mother introduced us over 30 years ago, so our friendship and love for each other goes back a long way. That friendship has now become a business partnership and it is one of mutual respect. Partnerships are hard and I can tell you sad personal stories but because there is friendship and mutual respect, we make it work. We co-own six thriving businesses and have at the last count co-written and ghost written 10 books with three more on the way. I couldn’t have wished for a better partner.

How does it feel to be 50?

Well, I don’t really know what it feels like. I still use my glasses and have my usual backache which I have had since 23. I went for my annual check-up in May and doctors said everything checked out right but I should make some lifestyle changes. So, I am taking my exercising more seriously and jogging five kilometers a day and cutting down on alcohol. I am also learning to rest more and not get stressed. If you are 50 in this Nigeria and you don’t have high blood pressure, you are among the lucky few. I am thankful to God.

What kind of Nigeria did you expect to see at 50?

Not this one, my sister. I wake up and I go to bed anxious. The insecurity is crazy. On my last trip home, I spent almost N100,000 on transport over a few days because I couldn’t travel with my car. I had every opportunity to move abroad when many of my friends did but I wanted to stay here and make something of myself. I have but it’s so hard to enjoy life and your hard work in a fraught environment like this. I pray for Nigeria every day.

You are quite a private person. Tell us a bit more about your family.

I am separated from my wife and going through a divorce. I am saying this publicly for the first time because I am 50 and wetin go happen? As I turn 50, I realise that this is the biggest failure of my life and it hurts daily but some things just have to end. I have three biological children and many adopted. I live for my family. I am from Ibusa in Delta state. I have two degrees in literature from the Universities of Jos and Lagos. I also own a media training school. I don’t know anyone who works and plays as hard as I do. I am just kidding. That’s the private me, in a nutshell.