Super Eagles and Fulham midfielder, Alex Chuka Iwobi, has revealed why he named one of the songs “Don’t shoot” on his new EP, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 27-year-old has shown there’s more to him than life on the pitch, featuring in a vlog series with Calvin Bassey, while showing his musical talent with his EP release.
“It’s a certain way of just expressing yourself and letting yourself be. It’s a hobby, a way to escape from football. It’s just a sense of freedom and being someone else – not just Alex the footballer,” the former Arsenal man said in an interview with Standard Sport UK.
Iwobi, alongside Ajax striker Chuba Akpom, and former England youth international Medy Elito (Don-EE), produced the song ‘Don’t Shoot‘. The former Everton man shared some insight into how his background in London led him to write lyrics with a deeper meaning to people who grew up around street violence, urging them to channel their energy into something productive.
“Growing up in London, there is a lot of criminal activity, things that you don’t want to see or hear. With our powers, we are trying to say don’t do that, channel it into something else. Whether it is football or music, anything that keeps you on the straight path is what we are trying to show everyone.”
Last month, he hosted his annual Project 17 community day, staging a football tournament in Enfield with over a thousand people in attendance. All of the proceeds from the events were donated to the Christian Mbulu Charity to support young people between the ages of 13 to 18 who aspire to be footballers.
“I’ve always thought with football, and the influence I have, I’d be able to bring the community together on a bigger scale. Where I grew up in Essex and east London, we all loved football and it brings people together. It doesn’t matter how old you are, or what gender you are, when it is a hot day, you come to the park, you come to the cage and everyone is playing football. I’ve tried to carry that on the older I get. I try to show people that I am not just a footballer. At the end of the day, I am one of the people that was in the community, that likes to be with their friends, that likes to give back to less fortunate people,” the 27-year-old concluded.
Iwobi has set his sights on a top-ten finish with Fulham in the 2024/2025 English Premier League season after Marco Silva’s men finished 13th last season.
