December 31, (THEWILL) – The sum total of the Nigerian entertainment scene in 2023 was a mixture of the good, the bad, the ugly and the ridiculous. IVORY UKONU looks back at some of these events and activities that defined the entertainment landscape this year.
Oladips’ Fake Death
After seeing the surge in the number of downloads, shares and retweets and even extended airplay on radio, television and nite clubs, of Ilerioluwa Aloba, aka Mohbad’s songs after his death, indigenous rapper, Oladipupo Olabode Oladimeji otherwise known as Oladips, decided to fake his own death to promote his upcoming music album.
In what social media users have described as “pulling a Skiibi,” referring to the first Nigerian artist, Abbey Elias aka Skiibii, to fake his death, Oladips was pronounced dead on November 14, 2023, by his management who stated that he had been battling an illness privately for two years.
At the time Oladip’s ‘death’ went public, social media users had not recovered from Mohbad’s death and the news was incredibly saddening. Unfortunately, the stunt boomeranged in his face such that it may have stunted his music career, which is yet to take off. Many of his close associates and friends confessed that he was indeed alive.
After unsuccessfully trying to push the blame to his friends who announced that he was still alive, including his management for rushing to make a public announcement of his death, Oladips succumbed to pressure and apologised to Nigerians for the fake death stunt. He expressed regrets for ‘the confusion’ created by his management, stressing that it was ‘never a prank’.
“To Nigerians and my core followers, I will never play with people’s emotions like that. It was never a prank. I was sick, sick. I am really sorry for the confusion, the false alarm and everything. I take full responsibility.”
His personal assistant also made an effort to douse the tension, claiming the rapper actually died for three days before he came back to life. Before his ‘death’, very little or nothing was known about Oladips.
Guinness World Records Pandemic
From the moment celebrity chef, restaurateur, Hilda Effiong Bassey aka Hilda Baci successfully broke the Guiness World Record for the longest cooking time of 87 hours, 45 minutes, and 00 seconds set by Chef Lata Tondon in India in 2019 and setting a new record of 93 hours 11 minutes, her stardom caused a frenzy among Nigerian youths who came up with impromptu decisions to engage in unnecessary competitions that yielded no results at the end of the whole show because they did not stick to the rules of the game. Two chefs who attempted to break Hilda’s record turned off their stoves and went to sleep during their attempts. A masseuse collapsed while attempting to complete a 72-hour massage performance to break the existing record. Another allegedly went partially blind during his attempt to cry for a complete week. He confessed to experiencing headaches, puffy eyes, and a swollen face during his attempt forcing him to re-strategize and reduce his wailing. Another landed in the hospital after completing 58 hours of hand washing by an individual. Guinness World Records is yet to formally recognise her attempt. Other attempts ranged from singing for 200 hours to frying the most snails. Even GWR struggled to keep up with the number of attempts by Nigerians. At some point, the organisation had to tweet, “Please enough of the record-a-thons,” a cheeky dig at Nigerians’ ridiculousness to want to water down the exercise. A previous tweet from the organization reminded Nigerians to first apply before attempting to set a record. The Guinness World Records honours people with exceptional feats across the globe and has been doing so since 1955. It is a British reference book published annually, listing world records both of human achievements and the extremes of the natural world. The brainchild of Sir Hugh Beaver, the book was co-founded by twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter in Fleet Street, London, in August 1955.
Davido’s wild oats?
Back in June 2023, the country was thrown into a huge frenzy when not one but two women popped up with pregnancy claims for superstar singer, David Adeleke aka Davido. Another one, a Ghanaian, even claimed to have welcomed a child with him. Nigerians were naturally taken aback especially because it appeared as if Davido got busy lusting after other women rather than mourn the loss of his only son. They also wondered how Chioma was taking the supposed cheating scandal. It began when an American woman named Anita Brown stated that she had an affair with the married singer and was pregnant for him. She would later retract the statement, citing a hacked Instagram account as her defense. Subsequently, she provided evidence of her past relationship with Davido, including messages where the singer’s cousin allegedly requested her to terminate the pregnancy. Anita’s rollercoaster of accusations, repentance, and forgiveness left Nigerians on edge, anticipating further bombshells. Surely, Nigerians came for her on her claims, calling them bogus. However, Brown didn’t back down. To prove her innocence, she took a pregnancy test live on Instagram and then posted screenshots of a conversation between Davido and her, and another with his cousin, Clarks Adeleke. When the backlash began, she defended herself by stating she did not know Davido was married to Chioma. Then there was a 22-year-old French woman named Ivanna Bay who also claimed to be pregnant for Davido. She also posted screenshots of her conversations with the singer, including one that showed him asking to meet her at a hotel in Paris. Both women have now fizzled out from the public’s consciousness leaving Nigerians to wonder if it was all a publicity stunt.
Raging Inferno Through Celebrities’ Homes
A few celebrities were victims of fire outbreak that raged and left nothing in its wake. First, it was Ayodeji Makun, the comedian, actor and movie producer, popularly known as AY. He lost his prized multimillion-naira home to a fire incident. The fire wreaked so much havoc that nothing was salvaged from it, even as the entertainer’s brothers battled to save a few valuables.
Then Fuji singer, Adekunle Temitope, otherwise known as Small Doctor, fell victim to a fire incident. The fire consumed the singer’s properties worth millions of naira, reducing everything to ashes. The year ended with the home of Bidemi Kosoko, a Nollywood actress’ home consumed by fire. The incident happened while she, her children, husband and domestic staff were at the residence of Jide Kosoko, her father and veteran actor. The fire gutted both hers and her neighbour’s apartment. Her apartment had to be forced open by kind neighbours. But by the time firefighters arrived at the scene, her home had been reduced to rubbles.
The Very Dark Man
The year 2023 became a turning point for Martin Otse, a 27-year-old Nigerian widely recognised by his moniker, Very Dark Man. A controversial social media personality, Very Dark Man made a significant impact this year through his social media videos, engaging his audience in humorous discussions on everyday issues and bold critiques of celebrities. His content spans a wide range of trendy topics circulating on social media. He first came to limelight by taking head-on, organic skincare brand, Jenny’s Glow, owned by Jennifer Igbinovia.
He had a running battle with Jennifer who he accused of selling products not registered with the National Food Drug Administration and control, NAFDAC to gullible Nigerians. He alleged that she used a fake NAFDAC registration number to sell her products. This prompted NAFDAC to wade into the matter and got her Abuja office sealed.
Very Dark Man was forced to take on Jennifer after the beauty entrepreneur had an altercation with one of her clients who called her out on social media for allegedly selling fake products which damaged her skin. Amaka was then whisked away by policemen from her parent’s house for calling out the entrepreneur. More users of Jenny’s Glow products also called out Jennifer, following the unfortunate arrest of Amaka, for selling fake products to them.
From calling out Jennifer to his controversial analyses of the death of singer Ilerioluwa Aloba, aka MohBad and who he believes was responsible for the singer’s death, to dabbling into the illness of comic actor, John Okafor aka Mr Ibu, Very Dark Man delved into all things controversial. Surprisingly, his confession that he once sold his nude pictures for money did not diminish his social media presence, this controversy surprisingly contributed to a doubling of his fame.
Mr Ibu’s Health And Family Circus
Veteran comic actor, John Okafor, aka Mr Ibu, was in the news in the latter part of the year after he cried out to Nigerians for financial assistance and prayers over his deteriorating health. He had cried out that one of his legs would be amputated if he did not get help on time. His emotional appeal touched many, as several people contributed money towards his treatment with the non-governmental organisation of former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, shouldering his medical bill.
Unfortunately, one of Ibu’s legs was eventually amputated to save his life. But, his family members got mired in controversy for fighting over how the money that had been donated should be spent. His adopted daughter, Jasmine, claimed that the actor’s wife, Stella Maris, wanted to use the money to buy a new car, an Iphone and undergo cosmetic surgery. However, Stella Maris, maintained that she was only calling for transparency over the way the money was managed. She claimed that Jasmine planned to elope with one of Mr Ibu’s sons, who is Jasmine’s lover, with the money.
In the course of the controversy, it was alleged that Mr Ibu had sexual relations with Jasmine. In another instance, Stella Maris claimed that the Actors Guild of Nigeria, AGN, neglected her husband in his time of need, an allegation she would later debunk claiming she was blackmailed to lie against the association.
Seun Kuti’s Not-so-Reflex Action
Seun Kuti, the youngest son of the legendary Afrobeat legend, late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, was caught on camera slapping a police officer on Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos. Seun claimed that the policeman tried to kill him and his family. He asserted that he had a child in the backseat of the car and that the policeman was reckless, thus endangering their lives. However, in the videos that made the rounds on social media, no child was seen in the back seat of the car. Kuti was arrested and handcuffed. He was arraigned in court for assaulting a law enforcement officer and later detained at the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, popularly known as Panti, in Lagos. The singer was later granted bail, but he was not released until May 23, 2023. The case is still pending in court.
Celebrity Politicians
This year, the year of Nigeria’s General Election saw quite a handful of celebrities deciding to stop being on the sidelines and get into the ‘ring’ with established politicians while using their celebrity status to appeal to the emotional sides of Nigerians for their votes. These are a few of them and how they fared so far. Nollywood actress and movie producer, Funke Akindele, decided to vie for a political office for the first time. As a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Funke contested as the deputy governorship candidate of the party. Unfortunately, she and her principal, Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran, aka Jandor, were defeated. Funke lost in her own polling unit to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Youthful, funny, talented and fresh-faced Nollywood actor, Olumide Oworu declared his interest to contest for a political position, the Lagos State House of Assembly seat in Surulere Constituency 1 on the platform of the Labour Party. Unfortunately, on the day of the election, he was not on the ballot. Instead, a certain Bode Adebayo was on the ballot. Olumide blamed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for failing to obey a court order issued directing the commission to open its website for the Labour Party to submit the names of its candidates or accept the manual submission. He added that INEC failed to upload the names on the list sent by the Labour Party in October 2022.
Tonto Dikeh surprised a lot of people when she indicated her interest to contest as Deputy Governor of Rivers State on the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). The Nollywood actress whose participation in the 2023 election brought a lot of enthusiasm and fun into the race, later dashed the hopes of her fans after she and her principal, Tonte Ibraye, announced that they were stepping down for the candidate of the APC in Rivers state, Tonye Cole.
Singer Bankole Wellington, aka Banky W, is no green horn when it comes to politics. He is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and he contested for a seat at the House of Representatives to represent Eti Osa Local Government Area. He lost.
Caroline Danjuma is another Nollywood actress who contested in the last general election. Like her other two female colleagues, Caroline vied to be the next Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State. However, her dream didn’t come true as she and her principal, Iboro Otu, who contested on the African Action Congress (AAC) platform, came a distant sixth to Umo Eno of the Peoples Democratic Party who won the governorship election in Akwa Ibom.
Veteran Nollywood actor, Femi Branch, was the deputy governorship candidate alongside his principal, Tofunmi Ogunronbi, under the National Rescue Movement (NRM). Femi Branch’s party came a distant 12th in the Ogun State governorship election.
Desmond Elliot, already a household name when it comes to acting in Nigeria, contested for a seat in the Lagos State House of Assembly, representing Surulere Constituency 1, on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC). The actor cum politician won his bid to return to the house for a third tenure, in an election that was keenly contested. It was not an easy ride for Desmond, as his supposed sins against the youths, from the past, threatened to ruin his return bid.
Although Nollywood actress, Hilda Dokubo didn’t contest for any elective position, the former special adviser on youth affairs to Peter Odili, a former governor of Rivers State, was appointed as Chairman of Labour Party in the state.
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