•Music maestro, Asuquo Cobhams
Renowned singer and producer Cobhams Asuquo has opened up about the challenges he faces as a visually impaired artiste, revealing that he puts in five times more effort than his peers to challenge stereotypes and prove his talent.
Speaking in an interview with HipTV, Cobhams urged people with disabilities to embrace their reality and draw strength from it rather than downplaying or denying their condition.
He highlighted the power of self-acceptance and resilience, using his journey as an example of how confidence can turn adversity into inspiration.
He said, “My awareness of myself as a blind person makes me work five times as hard [as others]. Because I realised that there is a stereotype around a blind person, and the general assumption is that you are incapable. And because of that, I work hard to show that I can be capable of so many things.
“I think it’s totally okay to be blind. Secondly, for all intents and purposes, I think the world has just gone soft to a certain degree. And that’s fine. I think it’s okay to be sensitive. But I think it’s also okay to identify where you are and what you are dealing with so that you are not living in denial and looking for all kinds of euphemistic ways and names to call it.
“Call it what it is. Deal with it for what it is and ensure your strength through your disability as opposed to all these very interesting names. Not everybody is going to agree with me, and that’s fine.
“I’m comfortable with being blind. Sometimes, we say impaired, and I think impaired is great. My understanding of an impairment is that it’s weakness; it’s not a complete absence of something. So, if you are impaired, you are either weakened or unable to fully function in that capability. I’m not visually impaired, I don’t have a little bit of vision.
“I’m completely blind, I can’t see a thing. And that’s totally alright. I’m good with it. As a matter of fact, there’s some dark humour around it sometimes, and I’m totally good with that. That is who I am. And I embrace it. I think it makes it even more special that I have been able to live the life that I’ve lived, and I’ve been able to do the things that I’ve done.”
