I Felt Like A Failure — Spyro Opens Up On Painful Childhood Experience With Father

Nigerian singer Spyro has opened up about painful experiences from his childhood, recalling how repeated accusations and punishments from his pastor father affected him emotionally and damaged his confidence.

According to Bush Radio Academy, the singer made the disclosure during an interview on Nevon HQ, where he recounted incidents in which his father allegedly accused him of stealing whenever money went missing in church.

Spyro said the accusations were sometimes made publicly, leaving him embarrassed in front of other people and creating a negative perception of him. He explained that even when the missing money or item was eventually found and his father bought him milk as a gesture of affection, the gesture did not erase the emotional impact of the earlier humiliation.

“My dad is a pastor. He will tell outsiders that this boy is a thief. The way he paints you in the midst of people, once money goes missing in church, he will point to me in church,” Spyro said.

He added, “All the public embarrassment, and then when he eventually finds what he’s looking for, he buys you milk. What is milk supposed to do to the damage that has been done?”

The singer also recalled another childhood incident involving a school cleaner, describing it as an experience that still makes him emotional whenever he remembers it.

According to Spyro, he once told his father that a school cleaner had scratched his head with her long nails. However, he said his father accused him of lying after the cleaner denied knowing him when they confronted her.

Spyro said the incident escalated after they returned home, alleging that his father beat him severely and left a mark on his back that remained for more than two decades.

“There’s a particular thing that happened, and anytime I think about it, it gets me teary always. I broke up with my dad after I told him a school cleaner scratched my head with her long nails, but he called me a liar,” he recalled.

“We went to confront her, and she denied knowing me. When we got home, my dad flogged me to stupor and left a mark that’s still on my back 22 years later. It broke me because I told this man the truth, and I suffered for it,” he said.

Spyro’s account highlights the lasting emotional impact he says those childhood experiences had on his relationship with his father and his perception of himself while growing up.