Category: Entertainment

Burgeoning actress, Blessing Patrick, is one of the emerging talents to watch out for on the movie scene. The industrious actress cum model is also the editor of Infinity Fashion magazine based in the United Kingdom. The fair-skinned actress who hails from Cross River State opens up on her life as an actress, a model and fashion designer in this interview with AHMED BOULOR.

WITH the name Blessing Patrick, most Nigerians would not be able to place a finger on your state of origin. What part of Nigeria are you from?

Blessing Patrick is from the Southern part of Nigeria; from Ikori Yakuur L.G.A in Cross River State. These days, we are nick- named Cross-Riverians. My mother is from Auchi in Edo State.

How did you venture into acting?

I must say I got into Nollywood by sheer fortune; a friend invited me for an audition and that was it. The rest, as they say, is history…

What does acting mean to you?

Well, acting means a lot me; acting is life and I get challenged and inspired whenever I am presented with a movie script. In simple terms, acting brings out the best in me and I have always wanted to be a movie star right from when I was very young.

How far do you intend to go in the world of make-believe?

I intend to go very far in the world of acting; I intend to go as far as God wants me to. I also would like to leave an indelible mark on the scene; I want to make a lasting impression that everyone will know me by, and I am seriously working towards achieving that.

How many major movies have you been part of?

I have been part of 10 major movies which are out now though more are yet to come by His grace. I have featured in movies like the World of a Prince, Enter the Place; Wave of Glory, Blast of the Mafia, Sexy Vampires and Masquerade Dancer, to mention a few.

Have you been getting acting roles as expected since you ventured onto the movie scene?

When I first ventured into the industry, that was the case, but not anymore. Everything will fall into place with time as long as you are dedicated. The keyword is patience; a lot of young actors want to become super stars over night forgetting they have to earn it, you have to work for it. Yes, I have been getting roles as expected, and I say glory be to God because it’s not easy!

How much will it cost to get you on set?

Well it all depends on the script and I believe my management is capable enough to handle that aspect properly.

What kind of movie script brings out the best in you?

Any movie I accept to do I will give it my best. For me I like challenging roles because I like people to see me in different lights and to be confused when they see me playing different roles and cannot exactly say if I am the one playing the role because I look different and I play the role very well. I can fit in every role because that’s what makes me an actress, but I think I will really love to do a story of a born-again girl filled with Holy Spirit!

How do you combine acting and modelling?

I’d say that if you have a passion for the things you do, combining all of them and getting the best out of them would not be a problem. That’s because those things are the things you love doing. Combining acting, modelling and fashion is not a problem; I just find a way to strike a balance.

Is it true that your greatest assets are your boobs and beautiful body shape?

(Laughs out loud) Yeah I am blessed with a captivating look, but that’s not my greatest asset, please. I believe my greatest asset is what the physical eyes can’t see. You have to look at me in the spiritual realm! Christ in me is the greatest asset that I have got!

Can you act nude and sexy roles?

What a question! I cannot act nude, but I can act sexy and I bet you it will come out better than nude.

What’s your involvement with fashion?

My involvement with fashion started from my growing up as a child through my mum who was a designer too.

You also edit a magazine ‘Infinity Fashion Magazine’ in the UK; tell us about it?

I must say that God has been so good to me. The Infinity international which also publishes the Infinity Fashion magazine gave me a platform to operate without any struggle. And so, l became an editor of the fashion magazine and a designer also.

It all started in one of my visits to the UK and a friend invited me to the runway of infinity fashion week. I met with one of the top executives of the magazine and he fell in love with my African outfit. He asked if the outfit was made by their fashion house but I told him I designed the dress myself. He was amazed and he asked me some questions about my dress which I answered and he immediately made me one of the judges of the fashion show that night. He later contracted me to be the editor for the Infinity Fashion and Style Magazine.

Tell us about your experience working as a designer

It was an interesting and eye- opening experience; I got to learn new things working as a designer. I also got to find out that you must be very passionate and highly creative in a field as ours.

Can you throw more light on the ‘Magic Lens Production Talent Hunt’?

Magic production talent hunt project is a platform to help our youths attain what they have always wanted in the area of getting jobs in the showbiz world. Unemployment is a major setback in the lives of the youths in Nigeria. So, even after graduation, they are seen roaming the streets looking for daily bread and all that, whereas they could be breadwinners in their different homes. It is sad that the same talented youths are the ones used by our politicians and drug barons to perpetrate their crimes, but if jobs were provided for them, crimes would be minimal in the society. The talent hunt project is set to create job opportunities for those who are talented enough to go into acting. Magic lens is coming out very big again soon, by the grace of God my other colleagues who got me in. My big uncles in the industry such as Charles Awurum and Charles Inojie are also trying to make it come great again this year.

What was growing up like for you?

Growing up for me was okay even though I got to learn so fast than my peer group.

My childhood was interesting because l grew up before my mates and if am asked to put it into words, l would say it was wonderful because l started doing what my mates were not doing at the time. I was always with my mother who was a great fashion designer and I practically learnt all that l know in fashion, designing and making of clothes. Who knows why my mother made it compulsory for me to learn how to make use of a sewing machine when l was only a child! Perhaps she knew that she won’t be with me for long. My mother left this world when l was only a teenager, but she left me with a legacy and today I am who l am because of that.

Which comes first: fashion, modelling or acting?

Hmmm…All of them come first, but it depends on which comes when I am available.

How challenging has acting been thus far?

There have been challenges encountered thus far but I don’t see them as challenges because they are price we pay to get to the top. His grace has always been sufficient for me as a child of God.

What kind of man will make you say “Yes, I do”?

What kind of man would make me say “I do”? That would be a man with the character of an Apostle (Laughs uncontrollably).

As a beautiful actress, do you sometimes get passes from movie producers and actors alike?

The entertainment industry is spiritual but most people are blind to that fact. Be you a dwarf or whatever you look like in the business, you will get passes from anyone; getting passes is not new again!

What makes you tick?

I believe my versatility on the job makes me tick. I can act any role provided it is not a nude role as I said before. I have the fear of God in me; I am very hard working and passionate about my career.

Tell us your experience as a young girl watching your mother cut clothes and march the sewing machine

I was always with my mother who was a great fashion designer and I practically learnt all that l know in fashion, designing and making of clothes. Who knows why my mother made it compulsory for me to learn how to make use of a sewing machine when l was only a child. Perhaps she knew that she won’t be with me for long. My mother left this world when l was only a teenager, but she left with me a legacy and today I am who l am because of that.

FANS of the late Fuji music icon, Alhaji Sikiru Ayinde Barrister, will be gathering to mark the 64th posthumous birthday of the musician. Tagged “Barry Day”, the concert has been scheduled to hold in Lagos on Friday, February 8, 2013.

Members, who will be converging under the auspices of Sikiru Ayinde Barrister Legacy Group (ABLE) reason that the musician may have died; his legacies were not interred with him. Since his demise about two years ago, his works have suddenly become golden, enjoying robust airplay on local radio stations.

The event, according to Mr. Kayode Seriki Adejumo-Bello, president of the group, will feature, among other things, a colloquium with the theme: ‘Music as a commentary on the society; Life and times of Dr. Sikiru Ayinde Barrister (MFR)’. The lecture is to be delivered by Professor Kunle Lawal of the department of History from the University of Ibadan.

Adejumo-Bello said an array of interesting programmes have been lined up to make the ceremony a big success. The activities, he said, include interactive sessions and music galore, featuring some associates of the late music idol like Adewale Akanji Barrister, aka Barry Showkey, and Barrister memorial band, led by veteran drummer Aderoju.

The statement further disclosed that the colloquium will be chaired by the former governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, with other eminent personalities drawn from within and outside the country.

Among those being expected at the event are the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, traditional rulers, ministers, political bigwigs, top musicians and associates and friends of the late music idol.

ABLE is a group set up after the demise of the fuji music progenitor, Sikiru Ayinde Balogun (MFR), by a group of over 3,000 people drawn from across the globe and they are on facebook.

Their mission was aimed at mobilising human, material, financial and intellectual resources towards the sustenance and institutionalisation of the imperishable legacy of the fuji music icon.

“The group is committed to organising annually, in memory of Ayinde Barrister, ‘Barry Day’ events, as well as periodic lectures, exhibition, charities and concert,” said Adejumo-Bello.

Sammy Oluwakayode Jerry, known as Alashe, is a gospel artiste who started his career in the Celestial Church of Christ in Lagos with a certificate in Sociology from Olabisi Onabanjo University. The artiste talks to DUPE AYINLA-OLASUKANMI about his reason for introducing Juju into his music, among other issues. 

HOW did your past albums fare on the shelves?

Trust me, they did quite well. But I would say my album is well known in the church. I mean my dad’s church, he is a clergy in a Celestial Church here in Lagos. I did Oro Ajuso, Alashe which brought about my stage name and some others. I play gospel music, but for now I would say I do more of gospel juju. I combine them now. The new one I have now is titled Unstoppable God, which is currently in the market. But I did one titled Asepe, which is a combination of so many things that happened in my life.

Out of the albums that you have done, which would you say brought you into limelight?

Alashe was the one that brought me fame. Actually the song Alashe is from an album titled Alashe, and of all the songs in the album, that was the one that people liked most. So anytime I go for events or functions people call me Alashe. That was how the name stuck.

Why the change of genre?

The point is that you have to go with what is in vogue. You either want to be on this side or that other side. As a musician you have to belong somewhere. Presently, people in different fields have decided to have an association in order to belong to a particular place. I am in gospel music purely, but at times as a way of appreciating my fans and those who appreciate me in return, I decide to take them along by praising them in my songs. It is like a game of sport where you have a person that is good in playing penalty kicks; you would want to do everything you can to keep that person. So, as a musician I sing their praises either by mentioning their names or companies in my albums. That is the reason for the change. In gospel music, though some do not see anything wrong in singing people’s praises, others say it is not accepted. That is the reason I had to add the juju because they believe it is their style. To avoid a clash, I decided to join the Association of Juju Musicians of Nigeria. So if I want to praise anybody or company, I add the juju flavour to it. But if it is just telling the story of Christ, I do purely gospel.

Are you saying you do these genres separately?

No, I do them together. In my new album Unstoppable God, I combined both genres. What I do is to have them mixed in the album. So there is juju in track three, and then gospel in the other tracks.

Don’t you regard adding juju to your music as a set back to your career?

I don’t think it is. I say that because juju of present is also linked to gospel. When we say gospel, it is about goodness and nowadays it is hard to listen to juju music without hearing good words. Back in the days, the juju played then had lewd lyrics but we hardly hear such things anymore. An example is Aiyefele. He sings gospel, but because he now says my God will bless you, which means he is referring to those blessing in him in different ways, he has started praising them in some ways. I see adding juju to my song as a way of gaining more fans to myself.

Presently I have fans that don’t go to church or know what the bible says; all they want throughout their life is just to be in the bar by saying they don’t know when they are going to die, so they want to enjoy their life. For people of that calibre, you have to use what they enjoy doing to win their souls. So when they come to the bar, you give them what you have, which is gospel, Christianity, Jesus. Therefore, I see it as a way of bringing those far away from God closer to him. Because they want to enjoy life, you have to take it to them, so that they can listen to you. Jesus said He came because of sinners, not you that already know him.

How is Unstoppable doing presently?

Well the new album, which is from Total Concepts theatre Group, is doing quite well. We started the production like a joke with just five thousand copies and right now we are back trying to produce more because we have more demands from our distributors and fans. And being an artiste, I like feedback a lot, so I was very happy with the response I got from people who have listened to the album. Hearing what they have to say will ginger me to do more and put in all my best in another work or production. I got to know about this feed back not from what people are saying, but from the page I opened for Unstoppable album on Facebook. What I was doing in the past on my albums was just to introduce them to the churches and stop there, but now with the electronic media, I believe that I could do better and that is why I am using the new method of getting to know my fans and their response by opening pages for them when they are released into the market.

Asides from music, what are you into?

Music is the only thing I do. At times, with the condition of the country, you just want to do some other things asides it.

Was music a talent or the church that made you become a musician?

I would say the music my father was unable to do is what I am doing today. My father is the origin of everything I have become today.

How do you mean?

My father is someone who loves life and had moved to different places with the likes of Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey, and some others but ended up being a clergy. When I got to the university, that was Osun State University, I had the intention of studying music, but there are stages you get to, that you do not agree with your parents. My father wanted me to be a banker or a lawyer but when I got to school, I managed to do my sociology course. Why I picked the course was because I love Public Relations so much; I love meeting people, seeing things that I have not seen before and travelling. In my first two years, I was busy searching for music department and I was told that they had it but it was not functioning. I tried all I could to make it work. The Vice Chancellor knew me for all my efforts but we could not meet up with the criteria and amenities. Immediately I was through with my four-year programme, I picked up a diploma form in music at the Polytechnic of Ibadan.

What countries have you been to?

I would say most of the African countries.

How do you create time for the family?

I thank God for the kind of wife I have. She understands my job and most times prepares me for my trips. Sometimes I can be away for up to five days and she will be the one to pack for me for those days. She is sincere; I married her when the time was right. I mean we were dating and the fear of what a musician can do was there, which kept us waiting for some years. Fortunately and through the help of God, we got married and we have three kids. And they all love music too. In fact I have one that does not leave the drum set, he is so attached to it and he plays for them in school. The other two, one loves singing while the other loves the keyboard.

As a celestial, you have privilege of marrying more than one wife; do we see that happening to you too?

I don’t see that coming. I say that because God knows our future. If I say tomorrow I have to be in Abuja by 2pm He knows that I would not be there at that time. If God says that is how it is going to be, fine. But left for me I don’t want to follow the lineage of the elders in this profession. People know Juju musicians to have more than one wife. I have an uncle who does the same work and always make sure that he marries a wife in any state he travels to. So whenever he is going to that same state again, he will just call and inform the lady that he is coming. Presently he has lost count. I want to be able to stand on my feet in the next decade, and say, I, Alashe, am married to just one wife. I know it is hard with the type of temptations I face when I go to shows. I believe in having girlfriends, other than marrying them, because being on a platonic level will make the person realise that one day, she has to get married too.

THE Chesney Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos last weekend came alive when A-list thespians and celebrities stormed the hotel for the birthday bash of Ibinabo Fiberesima, who is the president of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN).

Ibinabo was shown massive love with the attendance of top stars that partied with her on her birthday. The celebs that graced the shindig included: Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, Genevieve Nnaji, Rita Dominic, Stephanie Okereke Linus, Ramsey Nouah, Mike Ezuruonye and others. Others that partied with Ibinabo were Uche Jombo, Monalisa Chinda, Ini Edo, Chidi Mokeme, Desmond Elliot, 2face Idibia, Klint De Drunk and Gloria Ibru.

The emergence of Ibinabo as the president of AGN has also seen top Nollywood stars supporting her administration.