The Nation Newspaper

Category: Entertainment

  • Monalisa fêtes Kirikiri Inmates

    AS has become customary with her, Nollywood diva Monalisa Chinda, on Sunday September 15, put smiles in the hearts of female prisoners at the Kirikiri Prison, Apapa, Lagos with an exhilarating charity visit.

    Addressing the inmates, Monalisa asked them to keep hope alive as there is nothing impossible for God. “Though we may not be in control of what happens to us in life, we are absolutely responsible for our reactions to what happens to us. It is our reaction that ultimately determines the results and quality of our lives. On getting here, I was told some inmates were recently released by strange interventions, so this can’t be the end for you,” she said.

    Although the inmates were not allowed to be photographed, they all had a great time bonding with Monalisa who made a commitment to regularly visit and send items to them from henceforth.

    Aside donating various items including food stuffs, cloths, under wears, toiletries, perfumes, provisions and the likes through her Arise Monalisa Foundation, the multiple award-winning actress took her time to interact and encourage the prison inmates who were overjoyed to receive her.

    The week, which also marked her birthday, saw her visit the Patrick Speech & Languages School in Lagos which cares for autistic children to make donations as well.

  • No woman can snatch my husband if I get a second shot at marriage—Aisha Falode

    No woman can snatch my husband if I get a second shot at marriage—Aisha Falode

    First Lady of Sport Journalism, popular TV sports presenter, Aisha Falode, needs little or no introduction. But what may be hidden from a lot of people is the measure of her passion for her TV talk show, Amazons, which she co-presents with Nollywood actress, Bimbo Akintola, and Lagos-based lawyer, Dolapo Awosika. In this interview with MERCY MICHAEL, Falode talks about her career, private life and relationships, among other things.

    YOUR TV programme, The Amazons, is solely about women. Are you such a feminist?

    No, no, no. It is not for women alone; it is for the family. It is just that women are the ones who drive the family. The home is set by the woman. The woman defines how she wants the home to be run. She is the bedrock of the family. She takes the initiative. She builds the foundation for the children.

    If you get the family right, you get the society right. A lot of the problems we have in the society now can be traced back to the family. And as women, we feet concerned that there is a lot of holdback when we want to deal with these issues, especially the non-traditional issues. Those are the issues that really affect us as a society. For the women, even though we talk about it in our private moments, we are never bold enough to bring them to the fore for public discourse.

    Take for instance sexual intercourse. Promiscuity is not only about the girl child; it is also about the boy who is just starting to discover himself. At what point do you start to talk with a child about sex and the consequences of being sexually active?

    We live in a society where you cannot place any restrictions on the children anymore. Learning and teaching is reality for the kids. If you don’t talk to them about it at home, they are going to have to find out themselves. We have a lot of outlets that will give you this information, whether you like it or not. So it is your responsibility as a family to sit the child down and tell the child that look, what you see on TV, a lot of it is the reality.

    Reality is what drives the television. It is basically for entertainment, but the reality of life is different from the reality of TV. The responsibility of them distinguishing between the moral, the ethics, and what is right and perceivable still falls on you as a mother. This is where we come in.

    Even as mothers ourselves, we have a lot of issues that trouble us. For instance, you talk about relationship and what really holds a marriage together. Even though you may not be married, you are exposed enough. You have friends who are married. You have relations who are married. So, you have a lot of experience and example to draw from.

    Women have a lot of health issues that we are not too comfortable to discuss.

    Take menopause for instance. A lot of us go through menopause at very early age now, but because of the restrictions, how will the society perceive us? You talk to your friends and they are like no o, I don’t want people to know that I am old. But, for God’s sake, it is not a disease; it is just a natural process that you have to go through in life.

    Menopause, these days, does not even come with age. And what if it comes with age? I mean gone are the days when a woman hides her true age. These days, I’m happy to tell you I’m over 50. The men will tell you without even thinking twice about it. Why do you want to hold on to this stereotype belief that with a woman, everything has to be kept secret?

    Even if it is a disease, should someone be afraid to talk about it?

    What does it take for a woman? If you know that something is wrong with your breast, why don’t you discuss it with your friend? Why don’t you seek medical help? Why do you want to leave it too late until, perhaps maybe, what you didn’t want people to learn about will eventually kill you and it will become public knowledge to rest of the world? We are just trying to break that barrier between what is permissible. Everything is permissible. This is what The Amazons is all about.

    It is not all about women issues. We also talk about politics. We talk about governance: how does it affect us as women? How does it affect our children? What is the guarantee for the future if we continue this way? What is the leadership role that a woman can take in order to effect the changes that we so deserve and desire as the bedrock of the family? What is our responsibility in ensuring that the quality of leadership that we put in place actually starts from the home? How do we prepare our children?

    Look, if you can’t beat them, join them syndrome has to stop in one way or the other. These are the moral values that you must hold on to as a family. Good name, in Yoruba parlance, is better than silver and gold. You have to protect the name and integrity of your family. I think if we can get these basics as a family, it will translate to the bigger picture of the quality of leadership.

    At what point did you conceive The Amazons?

    Well, it had always been there. You know you sit down with friends, and you just let go. But in order for you to now affect the larger society with what we discuss, I found that there was a lot of restriction among friends, saying we can only talk about it here. Men sit down and talk about relationships; they talk about their experiences with women. Why can’t we also talk about our experiences with men? A lot of women are going through divorce. They are patching their marriages. They want to make it work by all means, but a man will not care a hoot about it. We are not saying that as a platform of affecting the society, what is wrong is right. We are just saying that what is wrong is wrong and what is right is right. But there are some things you just cannot make happen the way you want them to be.

    What are the other options? How do you move on with your life? A lot of us are undergoing counseling in this Lagos State because of the pressure of marriage; because you want to have a relationship; because of the pressure of ‘look, I’m over 30 and I still cannot find Mr. Right.’ The family will put pressure on you. Your parents will put pressure on you. Friends will put pressure on you. But there a lot of bachelors who are in their 50s and nobody is pressurizing them. These are the issues we are talking about.

    But some of these issues also border on culture, ethics and values…

    We understand the ethics. We understand the values. But if there is nothing you can do about the ethics and the values, what is the way forward? What are the options in other for you to move on with your life?

    What are the highpoints of the show?

    The highpoint is when we are able to get people to break down the barriers and really come and talk about their experiences. We have had menopause discussed after several attempts to talk to people, saying ‘look, there is nothing wrong undergoing menopause.’ We have had women come to talk to us about their experiences and our feedback on facebook was quite amazing.

    Look, menopause has broken down marriages. Men could not just understand, why is my wife suddenly becoming depressed? Why is their sudden mood swing? Why is she not having interest in those things that used to interest her? They couldn’t find answers to it because they didn’t understand what was going on with the woman and, therefore, there is a disconnect in the relationship and that eventually affects the marriage to the point that they have to get separated.

    But if the men could understand, perhaps they will be more empathic. Perhaps they will be more understanding. Perhaps they could give that support that women need. We pleaded for advocacy; that the same way we are talking about cancer opening, that it is a killer, you need to do x, y and z, why don’t you also let women know these too? Let there be some kind of public enlightenment where it will really be discussed, where you have a forum, preparing women for menopause. Before you will hit the menopause, there is something called the pre-menopause; the periods are far in between. These are things you will experience in your body. The oestrogen and prostrogen are going to get depleted and it will affect your skin and your mood. You are going to break out in sweat. You are going to have internal heat. Perhaps, if you have any, it will shot up your blood pressure and this is where you seek help. Where is the support group? That information will really help in a long way.

    We’ve also had a boy who lived as a girl for so many years and because of the stigma couldn’t come out. Now the boy has realised that he cannot continue to pretend about his body. He was actually born with a defect where you have both the male and female genitals. When he grew out of it, he sought support and was able to undergo medical support in the United States. Now he is a full, handsome grown man. But he still needs one more surgery in order to complete the process. He was bold enough to come out and talk about it on The Amazons.

    We also had the people we call the run girls; girls who sell their bodies for money. Although they are not on the street, they do it through connection and network. We also have what we call the Aristos. They have proper jobs, but they still are not contended with what they have and still think that selling their bodies for money to keep up their social status is the only way they know. We brought them on the programme and told them that it is not the solution. We are able to now manage them and take them off that line of action.

    But it still depends on the free will of the individual. They know the consequences, the risk of getting involved in such act: you could be raped, killed or drugged. You could end up with STDs or HIV. They know all these risks and consequences and still, they are not able to pull back and say ‘look, I could die from this.’ But because this is the only way they know how to survive, they still continue.

    We have several other incidents. We have gone to the market and seen women who, although they are not literate, they understand the power of global currency because they are global traders. They have made millions selling fabrics in Oke Arin (market). They send their children to the best of schools in the world and live comfortably. You do not need also to be so much educated. We place so much importance on certificate as a nation, which is why we have so much employment.

    The government also has not helped with the fact that we need to diversify our education. Apart from this paper qualification, what happens to our technical colleges? Abroad, you see plumbers, painters, you know workmen. They earn much more than those who wear tie and suit to go to the office in the morning. Why don’t they develop this sector of education? Everybody cannot be a graduate.

    You turn out the graduates and there are no employments to absorb the work force. And what do you have? You have youth who do not know how to channel their energy and they are involved in vices, fraud, kidnapping and all kinds of things. It is a means to survive. So, you need to deemphasise this paper qualification and begin to also pay respect to technical qualification. That way, we’ll have jobs for our youths. There will be wealth creation. The youth can also create wealth for themselves and become self employed and employ others. These are serious issues that we treat on The Amazons. Ultimately, it is about the family.

    In this part of the world, women dread aging. Why is that so?

    I don’t have a problem with age. I tell people my age. I hit 50 last year. I’m proud to be 50. In a lot of ways, I can relate to the saying that age is in the mind. You are only as old as you feel in your mind. Once you feel that you are old, you begin to behave like an old person. But if you still feel young in your mind, you are what you perceive yourself to be. So I will encourage a lot of women to still deal with their mind as though they are young and still do the things that they used to enjoy doing although with moderation. I’m not saying go about still wearing your mini skirt. Now, you have to be conservative, respectable and still feel young. This is the way I think that women should start dealing with the issue of age.

    If you enjoyed clubbing as a young woman, get a group of friends together and have a girls’ night out. You may not go to the same club as your children. Don’t go and stay overnight. Go to the movies with a group of friends. Just go and hangout and come back home. It also helps relationships, where you are not suffocating one another. Your man is the outgoing type, you are at home nagging. He’s not going take you out all the time, he also needs his own time to be with his friends, hangout, go to the bar or go and hangout and watch the game with the boys. Pick interest in what your man is doing, but don’t suffocate him.

    The same thing with the man; don’t suffocate your wife. Give yourselves space. Of course, you also need time to spend with your husband. Take yourselves on holiday. It helps in a long way to maintain the freshness in a relationship.

    Over the years, there has been the argument over what really helps to keep the home. Is it food or sex?

    See no pretences. If you talk to 10 men, 90.9 per cent of them, that is almost a 100 per cent, will tell you that what goes on in the bedroom is much more important than what is in the plate on the table. Talk to them. That is what they go after when they go after girlfriends. The girlfriends don’t cook for them. It is what they do with these men that take the men to them. Let’s don’t pretend as women. Be creative. ‘Daddy, it’s me and you tonight.’ Recreate that old time and they will enjoy it. Even when they are in the process of straying, they remember that my wife can give me what I want. Even if they want to, they are held back because the woman is fantastic, and they are wondering why they are wasting their time with these small, small girls.

    Forget about food. Although it is also important, those people they are going out to see are not cooking for them. That is the truth. Let’s be frank about it. Perhaps, if I was as matured as I am when I got married, I could keep my home. But I wasn’t mature. If I get a second chance today, God help the lady that will come and take my place. Ase baba nla ise (she will have to toil for it).

    This is the time for women to wake up. Keep your relationship. Keep your man, whatever it takes. What is it that he is going to look for outside? I will give him double at home. This is what men want. We brought them to the programme on how to sustain your marriage, and they told us verbatim. Forget about the food. It is the food in the bedroom that is more important. Maybe in the days of our mothers, you know they were traditionalists, they were not adventurous.

    How many children do you have?

    A girl and a boy.

    For the girl, what was it like when she was growing up, considering your busy schedule?

    The thing is learn to be a friend to your children and they will tell you anything and everything. If you earn their trust, if they have anything, they will come to you and say ‘Mummy, this is it.’ If they are having problems or if it is about how to get back their boy, what do you think? Why is he behaving like this? Speak to them as a friend. If they earn your trust, they tell you before they do anything and they seek your advice. Your advice will become very important to them. Without your advice they cannot do anything. They will have to run it by you, even thought the decision is still for them to be made.

  • Nollywood shines at the NAFCA

    Nollywood shines at the NAFCA

    FOR the Nollywood and African Film Critics Awards (NAFCA) which held last weekend in Washington DC, filmmakers of Nigerian descent led the winners chart. The outcome justified the huge position which movies, filmmakers and outstanding entertainment industry icons had occupy in the nomination list released prior to the award show.

    Apart from the Best Film award being clinched by Cameroonian flick, Ninah’s Dowry, Nollywood’s Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah who were unavoidably absent at the show clinched the Best Actress and Best Actor categories respectively, through the flick ‘Weekend Getaway’.

    The legendary Warner Theatre shone that night with a celebrity red carpet that started as early as 5pm. Side attractions at the show included a stage drama, dance and musical performances.

    The show was anchored by Nollywood actors Benedict Johnson and Moses Efret and had actors, filmmakers and society celebrities from Africa, the UK and most parts of the United States.

    CEO of NAFCA, Dr. Victor Olatoye expressed gratitude to everyone who believed in the project and who had come from far and wide to be part of the show. He noted that he had lived with the dream of making the African film industry a better one through the reward initiative that tends to critique the creativity of the filmmakers. He said his organisation is poised for growth and will ensure that there is a bigger and better event in subsequent years.

    On the Diaspora category of the award, Ghanian actress Jackie Appiah Nigeria’s Igoni Archibong won the Best Actress and Best Actor laurels respectively for their lead roles in ‘Turning Point’, a film produced and directed by Niyi Towolawi and co-produced by Egor Efiok. This category also awarded ‘One Night in Vegas’ the Best Film laurel.

    The show had engaged celebrities for three days in Washington DC, starting with a film summit on Friday September 13 and rounding off with a celebrity boat cruise on Sunday, September 15, 2013. The after party sessions on Friday and Saturday nights were another aspect of the ceremonies that brought fanfare to show.

    The roll call of celebrities at the award include Robert Peters, John Dumelo, Majid Michel, Igoni Archibong, Vitalis Ndubusi, Efret Moses, Benedict Johnson, Lilian Back, Niyi Towolawi, Jennifer Oguzie and Elvis Chuks among others.

    Other winners include Best Drama Diaspora Film, ‘Unguarded’; Best Screenplay Diaspora Film, ‘Page 36’; Best Cinematography Diaspora Film, ‘Le Silence Pure’; Best Actor in Supporting role Diaspora Film, Jimmy Jean Louis-One Night in Vegas; Best Actress in supporting role Diaspora Film, KD Aubert-Turning Point; and Best Director in Diaspora Film, Agomuoh for ‘Ungurded’.

    In the general category,the other winning films include: Best Indigenous Film, ‘The Hands of Fate’; BEST DRAMA, ‘Weekend Getaway’; BEST COMEDY, ‘American Mama’, Best Short Film / Trailer, ‘Fetus’; Best Sound, ‘Turning Point’; Best Visual Effects, ‘Temperamental’; Best Costume, ‘Le Silence Pure’; Best Makeup, ‘The Blessed Curse’; Best Original Score, ‘America The True Dream-The Fetus’; Best Docu-Drama, ‘Boys Cry-Bullying’; Best Child Actor in a Film, Marisha Nayee-Angel & the Mailman; Best Actress in a supporting role, Ini Edo; Best Actor in a Supporting, Kofi Adjorlolo; Best Director in a Film, Charles Novia-Alan ; Best Screenplay, ‘Letters to My Mother’; Best Cinematography, ‘One Night in Vegas; BEST TV/ONLINE SERIES, ‘African Connection’ and Best Editing, ‘Ninah’s Dowry’.

    In the NAFCA People’s Choice category,the most favorite actors is Benedict Johnson, while Favorite Actress is Fatima Jabbe. Others are Favorite Director, Kunle Afolayan; Favorite Screenwriter, Andrew Campbell; Favorite Male Artiste Diaspora, Koby Maxwell; Favorite Female Artiste Diaspora, Twissa; Favorite Artiste of the Year, Yemi Sax; Favorite Song of the Year, ‘Ashawo’ by Flavour; and Favorite Video of the Year, ‘Personally’ by P Square.

     

  • Music is like a tattoo on my arm —Nivvy G

    Music is like a tattoo on my arm —Nivvy G

    AS a returnee artiste, would you consider yourself new to the industry?

    I would consider myself new because we just relocated down to Nigeria. My record label was based in South Africa. I used to practice music there. I have been doing music there for about three years before I came back to Nigeria.

    What is the music industry in South Africa like?

    Music has always been the same everywhere. It is just that they have their own kind of music they listen to just the way we have our own peculiar blend of music. For the records, I don’t think there is anything new. They appreciate African music so whether you are Nigerian or not, so long as you do good music, it is fine with them.

    Over there, what genre of music did you play?

    I was into RnB which I still do. I was doing that genre but I also mixed it with our Nigerian feel. My first single was done under Champagne Musiq. It was a collaboration in which I featured Da Les of Jozi Crew. They are one of the biggest crews in South Africa. That helped me to promote our own fusion of music in that country. It was cool.

    Considering the fact that the Nigerian music scene is bursting with talents, what are you bringing back?

    Nivvy G has always been a brand of freshness. I have always considered my music to be different. I know that in Nigeria we have a particular kind of tune, but I have always known that my tune is different. I want to portray my singing ability. I want to portray the freshness of my brand. I want to portray myself; I want to portray good music. I think that is what people should expect. I just released two singles. The videos of these singles will come out soon. So, I am expecting big things.

    Don’t you feel challenged by the Nigerian music industry?

    I don’t think I consider myself as being in a competition with anybody. The industry is so big and the sky is big so I want to create my own space. I want to create my own kind of thing. That is why I am different. That is why my music is different. I don’t really think it is a challenge. I know I am supposed to live up to expectation.

    So far, have you done collaborations with any artiste?

    Sure. I have some collabos under construction right now. I am still look forward to doing more.

    Who did you collaborate with?

    I have done one with Phyno, I have done with Frank De Nero. There are a couple of them I cannot mention but I have more stuff coming out. For now, I don’t want to reveal them but in a couple of weeks, there should b more fresh things. I am talking about videos, collabos and stuff like that.

    What is the concept behind your new singles?

    The first one is a mid tempo song. It is called Search for You. It is a love song about a guy meeting a girl. It talks about the affection people have for those they have never met. It is something that portrays my style, the kind of music I do as well as the level of intellect I put into my music. That song defines it. The second one is a dancehall song. It is titled All She Wants. It is a creative idea in which we brought back the old All That She Wants by Shabba Ranks, giving it a new feel.

    When are you expecting to release your album?

    My album is still under construction because I have a lot of things to bring out. I have a couple of songs that I would like the world to listen to so they can know what Nivvy G is about, so they can see my versatility. At the same time, they would know my brand and the level of class I portray. That is why I am taking my time before I bring out my album.

    Let’s meet you

    My name is Nivvy G but my full name is Gift Orji. I am a singer, a vocalist, a songwriter, a music composer and I am a producer. I am also a graduate of the University of Port Harcourt. I studied Geology so by profession, I am a geologist. I am a symbol. I am a brand.

    Being a Geologist, why did you opt for music?

    Music has always been in my roots. I grew up in a family where my mother was a chorister in church; my dad played the bass guitar. Music was in the house already. There is nobody in my house who doesn’t know how to sing or who is not involved in music one way or the other. The thing now is that for me, I found out that music is like a tattoo on my arm. Music is a passion that grew inside me and I found out that it is something I loved doing. Taking it from the business angle, I also found out that one could make a living out of this and like they say, when your passion becomes your profession, then living becomes fun. That is just how it is.

    For me, music has always been something that keeps me going and it has been a medium for me to send my message across. I understand Geology. I love the course and I hope to practice it one day but if I was to choose something that my heart wants, I would always go for music.

    Did your parents not raise an eyebrow when you left your field of study for music?

    I had to just finish school. Officially, I did not start music under a record label until I was out of school. I made sure of that and I graduated with good grades so I wasn’t in a situation where I had to use music to compensate for anything. Some people say they went into music because they didn’t have anything to do. That wasn’t the case for me. I had options. I had a lot of options but music was where my heart was, where my passion was. That is why I went for it. I am not saying that I am the best but I know I am getting to my heights. I am on the next level now.

    Having come from a music background, do you play any instrument?

    I was learning to play the piano but I skipped class. I am thinking of going to complete that. I can play the piano but there is a lot I still have to learn.

    What difference do you see between doing music in South Africa and in Nigeria?

    Over there in South Africa, they don’t have that huge exposure but in Nigeria, we consider it not just as an art form but as a business. They approach music as a secondary source of income. In Nigeria music is a main source of income. It is even more like company money as they say. That is just the difference. Apart from that, they appreciate their artistes. They have few artistes because not all of them get their music appreciated, not all of them have funds to push their career. In Nigeria here, we have people who are willing to push funds into it because they know the returns they would get.

    It is said that in South Africa, there is a lot of antagonism towards Nigerians. Did you at any point experience that?

    Not really. I had a club tour and I performed in a couple of gigs. I never experienced that. They appreciated my music.

    What is the next big thing for you?

    My fans should expect more and more music, more videos and more collabos. I am working on big things.

  • GIAMA: Houston agog for another black carpet fiesta

    GIAMA: Houston agog for another black carpet fiesta

    THIS appears to be an initiative beyond an empty buzz, as Africans at home and Diaspora appear set to storm Houston, Texas, United State for the second edition of the Golden Icons Academy Movie Award (GIAMA) scheduled for October 19, 2013.

    A Sneak preview of the debut edition which held on October 20 at the Morris Cultural Center in Houston recorded a star-studded outing, of a rare selection. And if the assurance by organisers, that veteran actor and Delta State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Richard Mofe Damijo has declared for the award show is anything to go by, then, the show may just be on another jolly ride to enriching its dossier.

    Leveraging on the success of the Golden Icons Magazine, publisher of the entertainment magazine and organiser of the award, Bode Ojo has turned Houston into another ‘Mecca’ where celebrities not only look forward to gracing, but also get competitive in fashion and creativity works.

    At a recent award ceremony in Washington DC last Saturday, side talks about the next stop for top celebrities rendezvous was the GIAMA and what celebrities will wear to the occasion.

    The success of the GIAMA, according to Ojo, “is currently the hottest gist in town, with over 1500 fans/guests present, it was noted that this turnout was one that Houston, the 4th largest city in the US has never seen in a predominantly African-dominated event.”

    Ojo revealed that following Jim Iyke’s anchorage of the show last year, there has been jostling for the next emcee spot, and Nollywood lover boy, Ramsey Nouah has been picked as the show host for 2013.

    The role call for last edition was explosive, feting A-list celebrity actors and actresses like Ramsey Nouah, Jim Iyke, Van Vicker, Desmond Elliot, John Dumelo, Uche Jombo, Majid Michel, Monalisa Chinda, Emem Isong, Frank Rajah, Susan Peters, Chigozie Atuanya, Uti Nwachukwu, Alex Ekubo, Belinda Effah, Pascal Atuma, Oscar Atuma, Chet Anaekwe, and Olalekan Akintunde among others.

    Golden Icon Magazine reported that last year’s award ceremony started with Nollywood Bad-Boy Jim Iyke, arriving in style at the event in a MayBach, with his usual swagger and style, even as MTV Africa was present at the event to cover Iyke’s reality show “Jim Iyke Unscripted” and his hosting of the awards ceremony.

    And just so the show can be better and bigger, venue for this year’s outing is the Stafford Center Performing Art Theater in Houston, Texas. The GIAMA organization is promising a captivating show with a great line-up of incredible performers.

    GIAMA’s inaugural event filled over a thousand seats with entertainers, international dignities, and movie fans to celebrate the very best in the African film industry especially Nollywood, which hit the CNN profile-chart as the 2nd largest movie Industry in the world. “This year, we raise the standards even higher, with a cutting- edge production, an elaborate theatre hall, and the most sought-after Nigerian actor Rasmey Nouah to host the proceedings,” said Ojo.

    The GIAMA boss noted that the show is being supported by Dure Events, Segun Gele, BellaNaija, Arik Airlines, Nollywood Access, Nollywood View, Bashman Entertainment, Naijapals, Jaguda, Sturvs and several other organizations listed on GIAMA’s website.

    Efforts by the GIAMA planning committee is said to be mind-boggling. The event was planned by Chioma of Dure Events, a well renowned Event Planner in the United States and Segun Gele, the internationally celebrated make-up and head-gear artist, while the media production was managed by Tosin of T and S Production. Zimbabwean-born Radio Personality based in Canada, MC Bonde did an excellent job with the voice over for the media production.

    On the eve of the GIAMA Awards, the Screen Icon Search (SIS) event was held with a sole purpose of identifying and recognizing young and future talents with the right qualities to get into the Nollywood/Ghollywood industry. The SIS was moderated by three top Producers/Directors in the industry Emem Isong (Nigeria), Frank Rajah (Ghana) and Pascal Atruma (USA). The audition was a day long and after hours of auditioning, the top five winners were selected by the moderators, and they were announced during the GIAMA Awards ceremony. Dianne Yekini, who travelled all the way from London to participate in the SIS event emerged the winner. The top three winners are guaranteed a movie deal with Emem, Pascal and Frank. Later in the evening, a welcome party themed “Meet and Greet” was held at the classy location “Signature Manor” to honor the Celebrity guest and Sponsors of the event, and provide an avenue for them to mingle in a most relaxing atmosphere.

  • AIFF announces nominees

    IN its 10th year running, the Abuja International Film Festival, AIFF, has chosen for induction as patron some eminent Nigerians who have supported the Nigerian Movie and creative industry called Nollywood. According to the organisers, patrons selected are Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi OFR, Mr. Ini Akpabio, Mr Chima Onyekwere OON, Mrs Onari Duke, Hon. Paul Kalejaiye, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Sen. Victor Ndoma Egba, Mr. Andy Boyo, Hon. Ben Nwankwo and Professor Abdusalam Nasidi.

    Also, the festival organisers have said that they have received over 100 entries from over 30 countries which are undergoing screening by the college of screeners. The Festival has also released the list of nominees 45 different movies from 37 different countries of the world would be screened at the 10th edition of the Abuja International Film Festival scheduled to hold between September 24, 2013 and September 27, 2013.

    Information has it that 45 films were shortlisted from the over 200 films from 37 countries for screening at the 10th Abuja international film festival at the Silverbird cinemas, Abuja.

    The films to be screened include The phoenicians(Malta), Andalusia my love(Morocco), Ogondah(Nigeria), Brothers Keeper(Nigeria), I-games(Nigeria), Mission to mamuro(Nigeria), Blood on the dance floor(Nigeria), Lies men tell(Nigeria), Rolling Dollars(Nigeria), Next President(Nigeria), Aiyekoto(Nigeria), Scandalous Mercy(Nigeria), Survival(Nigeria), Truth be told(Nigeria), Torn(Nigeria), Jand hustle(Nigeria), Dread(Nigeria), Paradox(Nigeria), Blue flames(Nigeria) and a host of others.

    The Jury for the 10th Edition, according to the organisers, has the following Professionals in the film and media industry; US Based Connor Ryan A fulbright Fellow on African cinema, Molara Wood Former Arts Editor Guardian & Next, Akofa Edjaeni Asiedu Veteran Ghanaian Actress, Emeka Ossai Film/TV Producer, Patrice Lamonn Curator of ShortImages UK, Victor Okhai festival Director of Inshort Film Festival. Attached to the release is the list of nominees.

  • Kate Henshaw tells her own story

    Kate Henshaw tells her own story

    WHILE giving life to characters might be an exciting field, it gets to a point where the storyteller becomes the story. And so it was that amidst fanfare and encomium that celebrities from the Nigerian entertainment industry gathered to support one of their own, Kate Henshaw as she launched her long awaited autobiography on Tuesday, September 17, at the Agip Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan Lagos .

    Titled The World of an Actress: My Story, the autobiography takes readers into the Kate’s world, from her childhood to the present days, through pictures. The actress studied Medical Biology from University of Calabar. To her credit, she has starred in over a 100 movies starting with When the Sun Sets, which was the movie that shot her to limelight in 1993.

    Present at the event, the First Lady of Ekiti State, Mrs. Bisi Fayemi showered the actress-turned-author with praise for being committed to her career right from when she first met her in 2006. She observed that she has the most important kind of beauty which is inner beauty. She also used the occasion to praise Nollywood for doing Nigeria proud. Nollywood actor and comedian, Basorge Tariah Jnr, who was the anchor of the event, also described her as consistent, persistent, good interpreter and a bundle of talent.

    Also present at the event were President of the Actors’ Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Ibinabo Fiberesima, Monalisa Chinda, Chioma Chukwuka Akpotha, Iretiola Doyle, Joke Silver, Funmi Fiberesima, Rita Dominic, Funke Akindele, Segun Arinze, Dakore Egbunson,Adesuwa Onyenokwe, Boma Dauury, Chico and Joy Ejiro, Susan Peters, Alli- Baba and Julius Agwu. Special guests include Mr. Keith Richards, Managing Director, Promasidor Nigeria; Ifie Sekibo, Managing Director/CEO Heritage Bank; as well as representatives from Samsung Nigeria.

    According to the actress who has been involved in various charities like Project Women, National Cervical Cancer Protection Council and most recently, The Global Initiative for Peace, Love and Care said; “I intend to raise the much needed funds to support the charities with the proceeds from the sale of the books. Nollywood has lost many lives since we started, because I am somebody who loves to keep things, I hope with this book, I will take you down from where we are going.”

    She expressed her gratitude to her colleagues and friends for the huge turnout, and also to the late Nollywood actor, J.T Tom West for being part of the people behind her success.

  • D’banj upstages Chidinma on Official Naija Top Ten

    D’banj upstages Chidinma on Official Naija Top Ten

    THE entertainer, D’banj has kicked Chidinma’s E Mi Ni Baller video from the number spot to number two after its two weeks reign. Also known as Banger Lee, D’Banj reached the top of the MTV Base Official Naija Top 10 with his hit video, Don’t Tell Me Nonsense.

    By the new list, Olamide and Skuki both jumped two places with the former’s Duro Soke moving to number six and Voom Va at number seven. Timaya also moves to the fifth position after two weeks on number six with Ekoloma Demba. DJ Xclusive also moves up one place to number four with No Time.

    Dammy Krane and Dr Sid have made it to the charts this week with Dammy’s Xteristics making an appearance at number nine and Talented by Dr Sid coming up last.

    Popular Tattoo-faced DJ Sose joins VJ Ehis in the studio to go through the charts as well as carefully analyse some of the biggest names rocking the Nigeria music scene.

  • Tony Okoroji gives London Police kudos

    Tony Okoroji gives London Police kudos

    FOR its recently launched Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU), Chairman of Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON), Chief Tony Okoroji has commended the City of London Police.

    Reacting to the development, Okoroji said that it is a very noble idea and the kind expected to be seen in Nigeria soon. “I commend the forward-thinking approach of the London Police and I am certain Nigeria can borrow a leaf from this action. The important role intellectual property plays in our lives and in the progress of a nation’s economy can never be over emphasized,” he said.

    The PIPCU was set up to protect the creative industries from online organized crime. “As you already know, COSON just signed a landmark reciprocal representation agreement with the London based PRS for Music and so we shall be beneficiaries of this development,” Okoroji added.

    It will be recalled that COSON in conjunction with the Nigerian Music Industry Coalition recently organized the first ever Digital Music Licensing Summit aimed at taking urgent steps to align the music industry in Nigeria with developments in other parts of the developed world in the digital space.

  • ‘My stand on child marriage’

    ‘My stand on child marriage’

    THE last time I spoke to you, you were with the Royal Art Academy. So how far have you gone with your acting career?

    Well, it’s been a very busy year. I have been involved in numerous projects. I did another film with Royal Art Academy this year. It should be released tentatively next year. I’ve done a TV series with Opa Williams. It’s already gone on air. It’s titled Living close to You. I also did a film with Renegade Theatre. They are the same people who performed the stage play, Waiting Room. That’s Wole Oguntokun’s theatre. I think he wanted to experiment a bit with film so he did Tarzan Monologue. He’s done it on stage before but he adapted it for film. I’ve done a couple of short films too.

    Let talk about the stage play, Waiting Room that took you to Scotland…

    It was amazing. I told myself I was going to do one stage play this year. So it just happened. When you are doing stage, you have to let go of everything else because you are having daily rehearsals so you can’t be doing any other thing. The play was staged in Edinburgh in Scotland. It was actually the first Nigerian entry into the Edinburgh Festival Fringe so that was like a big deal. People had not seen a Nigerian troupe performed there before. We were basically like representatives of Nigeria. I felt like a senator. People are watching your every move. But it was really fun. We got good reviews. We got good reception and it’s something that Renegade theatre is definitely looking at continuing because it’s an annual festival. It is one of the biggest theatre festivals in the world.

    Tell us about one particular troupe that wowed you and why?

    A troupe from Scotland itself, they called their play the Bloody Ballad. It was amazing. It was part drama, part musical concert. So they were basically singing and acting out the drama as well. It was just lovely and actors were incredible. They played live instruments. They had people playing different instruments. They were brilliant. I had to Google them and tweet about them. I started stalking one, just following her on Twitter. She was brilliant. Her name is Anna. There was also a troupe from South Africa; in fact one of them was awarded Best Actress while we were there. Her name is Robin Scott. She acted as an old woman. It was just two of them on stage but they held our attention for 1hr 15minutes. Just two people having a conversation on stage, they don’t move, they don’t leave the stage, the light might go off and on but they are still there just change position or something. The performance was brilliant. One of them, the one, who was awarded Best Actress, played an old woman who had Parkinson. Her hands were shaking. She was in character the whole time.

    You seem to be more involved in stage since your foray into the industry?

    As long as I am performing, I’m happy. I am comfortable anywhere.

    What were some of the lessons you drew from the experience?

    I learnt that I shouldn’t limit myself. When I came out of one of the shows, the one that was part drama, part musical concert, I spoke with Wole Oguntokun. I told him how one of the actresses blew my mind with her performance and he told me that it’s something a lot of us can do. It just occurred to me that it’s because we do not necessarily do that kind of genre; we don’t perform that kind of content maybe that’s why I thought she was so fantastic. We don’t get to see that content here.

    There is a show we do every other month, Open Mic Theatre, where actors get together and perform. I spoke with one of my friends with who we always do performances. I told her that we should stop limiting ourselves. We decided that next time we are doing Open Mic Theatre, we would put up a show instead of waiting for somebody else to get the content and come and tell us to come and perform it. That’s what I learnt. I’m not going to limit myself. I’m not going to sit back wait for the kind of content I want. I will create it myself before it comes.

    What the title of the movie?

    It’s titled Knocking on Heaven’s Door. It’s a musical as well.

    Tell us about your role in the movie?

    I played the role of Wunmi. She’s a best friend to the lead character which was played by Adesua. What Emem Isong did with this one was, she basically used the new generation of Nollywood actors for lead roles. Blossom Chukwu and Adesua played the lead role. There was also Majid Michel and Ini Edo.

    Your career seems to revolve around the Royal Art Academy. Why is that?

    I’m definitely doing other stuff. This year, I co-wrote two different TV series for different producers. I’m not sure about the name of first one. We just used a working title that might change at any time. The second is already in production. We worked with the title, What Are Friends For? So we would see if that changes or not.

    But they are already producing that. Also I’ve being trying to work on my own production for a while. That’s something I’m still working on. It’s going to take a lot of work. Talking about pitching my tent with the Royal Art, they are a good production house and you will want to relate with a product that has value and adds value to you. If they are going to do another production, I will definitely try to be part of it because they do a lot of good works. And it works for actors to project themselves.

    How do you intend to fund a movie project?

    That is definitely the toughest part for every filmmaker. But I strongly believe that a good product will market itself or at least draw people by its potential. For me right now, it’s all about tightening the scripts, the story, making sure it is brilliant.

    What is the hardest part of acting for you?

    I think as with every job, working your way from the ground up is the hard part. For a lot of people, that’s when they lose focus, that is when they run of patience. That is when they become despaired. It’s not exactly easy and sometimes, though you are getting a lot of work done, it does not necessarily translate into money in your account. Like lawyers, you have to put in some pro bono time as well, and that is not funny especially if one is a fulltime actor.

    This is why, you learn to diversify. I cannot afford to be idle for too long. I can’t afford to just be at home for two days. If I’m not on a film set, if I’m not shooting anything, I get writing jobs. I normally get referrals for writing. People call me more to write than to act. There are more actors, I think, than there are scriptwriters. So the minute I am not filming, I try to get writing jobs because the bills have to be paid. That’s the challenge for me, just trying to stay afloat while we are gradually working our way to the top. The downside is you can’t really dedicate time to starting a business on the side because business needs time as well and you don’t always have that kind of time.

    But I’m going to try to strike a balance. I’m looking into starting a clothing line. I’m going to try to find some ways to balance it because I like money a lot. If I’m not making money I’m not happy. I can fall sick if I don’t have money. So when I’m not filming, when I’m not writing, I will try to start a little business on the side.

    Why clothing line?

    It comes easily to me. I’m constantly sketching stuff even when I’m sewing back at home with my tailors. I hardly get time to sew anything in Lagos. Back in Kaduna, my dressmaker doesn’t do anything till I am there. When I’m ready to sew my dress, I spend the whole day with her. We cut it together and it’s usually my sketch. The problem is you can’t make sense of what I’ve sketched because you can’t seem to understand what kind of complex design it is. I have to be there.

    In fact there was a time when I wanted to make some skirts. I stayed at home, cut it, pinned it and then sent it to her. So I think it’s a talent and I enjoy it. I will definitely want to learn how to sew if I find a time. I might never get on a machine and actually sew something but I want to be able to speak the language of tailors. If I tell my tailor for instance, that I want her to helm something, meanwhile what I mean is I want her to tack it she won’t get it. I want to be able to understand and speak the language so that I will explain what I need my tailor to do and they will understand.

    So back to your acting career, would you say that so far it has been worth the while for you?

    It has been. I won’t lie to you. It has been. I have seen myself grow and for me that is very important. If I don’t see growth in what I’m doing then I get easily discouraged. I’ve watched myself grow. It definitely hasn’t been easy but for that growth that I see myself. I’m talking in terms of my craft. The way I will interpret a role now would be completely different from the way I would have interpreted it two years ago.

    In fact, I look back on the work that I did last year and I want to cover my eyes in shame. I could have done it so much better but that’s growth. I have also grown in terms of my value as an actress, other people’s perception and my networking, considering when I came to Lagos I didn’t know one single person but now I can’t say that. It’s almost three years now.

    You are one of the few up and coming acts who have been vocal about the childnotbride issue. Why did you throw your weight behind the campaign?

     

     

     

    It is something that I felt very strongly about, especially coming from a northern background. This is something that happens around us on a daily basis. You see young girls being given away in marriage. I don’t know maybe for some reasons, we didn’t sit up to make any noise about it until it was brought to our attention. This is something that has been happening for a while now and it is time we actually speak about it. It’s something that I feel strongly about because already prior to this time, I had been trying to do a little campaign against rape and other vices that affect the girl child up North. I just started talking about it with my State Government again so when this came up, I was like see what we are saying.

    In other developed countries, when you marry a minor, it’s considered rape. So it is something I feel strongly about and I just thought so why don’t we just make our own voices count. It might not go as far as Omotola’s voice would but it will go somewhere at least it will be registered somewhere in history that we made our point clear. We made our stand known. As Nigerians we face a lot of challenges from the government and we keep quite a lot about it. I guess sometimes, we are just tired, you can’t be talking everyday now but on this issue, I thought it’s an injustice and we should at least make our voices heard. I reached out to a lot of actors within my generation. A lot of people were filming, and I just said you know what? It’s not something we are going to procrastinate or say we want to do a month from now.

    It’s something I want to do instantly. I’m thinking within three days, I want to get you people together let’s do this video. So whoever is available for that day should let me know. There wasn’t a single person I spoke to who didn’t want to be part of the video. But it was more of an issue of time, schedule and everything. Someone like Bayray, she left the set and ran down with her makeup on, to the studio where I was recording the clip and did her bit and left. Everybody was interested. They wanted to make take a stand. They wanted to make their voices heard. I was really glad about that. The truth of the matter is no one will walk up to me and say he wants to marry my daughter but as a Christian, I’m supposed to be my brother or sisters keeper.

    Like I said, it’s not going to happen to us but it is happening to others. You’ve not already sorted out your life and you’ve already been handed over to somebody as his subject, to live his dream. Then you get up one day and you are 23 years old and you realise this is not want you want to do with my life but nobody gave you the chance to make that decision. Nobody gave you the time to chose, to grow and be aware. It is just unfair. It doesn’t matter if it’s about Christians or Muslims but it’s affecting somebody somewhere. So this is about that person.

    What exactly was the nature of the discussion you had with your State Government?

    Over the couple of years, I wake up to the news of rape here and there. So I just thought okay enough. Personally, I know so many people who were raped as children and I thought that I should probably start a little campaign about it. So I reached out to the wife of the Governor of my State. I went to her office to have a meeting with her Personal Assistant and a couple of other people who handle her project. We had a chat about it.

    I feel as if a lot of people don’t even know what rape means. My target was going to be the young ones from Primary to Secondary Schools. If you grow up as a girl not knowing your right first of all, even as a guy when you don’t know what it means to rape, you think it’s your privilege, When you don’t get it that no means no, then you are going to grow up into a person we hear about on the news who must have raped somebody. So I felt I needed to start from the background, from the root.

    I spoke with them about it and they had also outlined to me that these are the things that the wife of the Governor is focusing on so we were trying to work with her own project which was the stage we were when this whole intrusion came up. It’s something we are still working on. If we are not able to fit it into her schedule where she will be able to take it on as her own project, that’s what I wanted then. If we are not able to do that then I would just consider getting funding for us to do it individually. But what I would have wanted was for her to adopt it as one of her own project.