Nigerian rapper and actor Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz, has explained why he stopped actively representing clients in court, saying the demands of his music career made it difficult to continue practising law.
Falz, who trained as a lawyer, studied law at the University of Reading in the United Kingdom before graduating from the Nigerian Law School in Abuja and being called to the Nigerian Bar in 2012.
Although he initially combined legal practice with music, the 35-year-old artiste said maintaining both careers became increasingly challenging as his profile in the entertainment industry grew.
Speaking during an episode of the “Behind The Story” podcast, Falz explained that while it was possible to balance both professions, his commitment to music made active litigation difficult.
“It is balanceable. But for me, I was an active performer and the music was taking up so much. I thought it would be incredibly difficult. I was doing litigation. I was going to court. I was working with my dad at the time. I would represent clients,” he said.
### Falz recalls courtroom moment that influenced his decision
The rapper, who is the son of renowned lawyer and human rights activist Femi Falana, recalled an experience in court that made him realise continuing with litigation could become complicated.
Falz said that during one court appearance, a judge recognised his public identity and questioned whether he was the same person involved in entertainment.
“There was a day in court, I announced my appearance. And the judge said: ‘Are you not the one doing something on the side?’” he recalled.
According to Falz, the judge made the comment subtly because some lawyers in court were already familiar with his music career, while others were not aware of his identity.
He said he confirmed that he was the person the judge was referring to, after which the judge simply asked him to proceed with the case.
Falz explained that as his popularity increased, continuing as a courtroom lawyer could create distractions and potentially affect his relationship with clients.
“Imagine I am now starting to get more acclaim and I pull up in court, it would be chaos. It would distract everything. A client could say they do not want me, thinking I would be busy with other things. It would have been tough for me. My face is very much out there,” he said.
The entertainer has since focused primarily on music and acting, building a successful career that has earned him recognition as one of Nigeria’s prominent voices in entertainment.
