I’m proud of my Yoruba heritage - Adunni

Adunni Adewale

Adunni Adewale,White girl’ of the Nigerian movie industry, Adunni Adewale (aka Adunni Ade),the lady who was behind 'Date Gone Bad', a new comedy skit making waves online,is starting the New Year on a bright note. Her video skit, Date Gone Bad, released on Youtube about 10 days ago, has attracted so much attention that it has recorded over 100,000 hits.

That sounds very cool for an actress to entrench herself in aiming the Nigeria’s star-studded movie industry. The two-cast skit, featuring actor and producer Joseph Jayeoba and Adunni herself, was directed by Lagos-based Sanjo Adegoke, who has been involved in several other related projects.

In the comic film, the guy makes a deadly mistake on sighting a lady of Adunni’s complexion.  The colour of her skin portrays her as a white folk, who cannot understand Wa n pa o – the term Yorubas use in describing anyone who does not understand a single word of the Yoruba Language.
But Adunni is Yoruba-born of a Nigerian father and an American mother. This is the intrigue she plays upon in Date Gone Bad. The guy in the skit is an opportunist who wants to lure her to bed – and, indeed, rape her.

He invites her for a date. In the course of their conversation in English, the goon makes a phone call in which he boasts – in Yoruba -  to a friend that his trap has just caught an oyinbo girl. He swears that  he is going to unleash his manhood on her as soon as they leave the restaurant where they are meeting.

Unfortunately for him, Adunni understands everything he has said. After a slight suspense, she thus gets enraged and launches a Yoruba verbal war on the predator. The surprise here is bound to beat any viewer’s imagination and make them laugh profusely.

“I must say I am shocked at the kind of attention the skit has got,” she tells our correspondent in an interview. “I knew it would be good, but I did not imagine it would get up to this level.”

The success of the production, which Adegoke, otherwise called SOJ, also describes as exciting, has spurred Adewale on to do more in the sub-genres. Adegoke is also a music producer.

Adunni first attracted attention when she featured in Saidi Balogun’s movie, You or I, Fred Idika’s Behind the Cloud (a TV series), Dereck Obasi’s Babatunde Diaries and  a new film by Desmond Elliot – Rosemary Roses. Besides, the graduate of Accounting from the University of Kentucky, USA, also featured in Sound Sultan’s music video, Kokose, while she did same for Ice Prince last September.

Born in New York, USA, she grew up in Lagos where she attended Chrisland Schools and The Bells Secondary School, Ota, Ogun State. It was after her secondary education that she went to study at Kentucky, only to return to Nigeria a couple of months ago. She has no intention to practise accounting.

She says, “Entertainment has always been part of me. Even when I was young, I would stand in the front of a mirror, acting out the fashion part of me. I never wanted to be a lawyer or anything. God blessed me with a lot of talents.”

She adds that though her Lagos-based father, who she describes as a ‘big and well successful businessman’ inspired her to study Accounting, neither he nor her (Adunni’s) mum has any problem with her love for show business.

“My father supports me 100 per cent. My mum is very proud of me. Americans don’t care about this kind of thing. They support their children in whatever they choose to do. So, I have no problem building a dream in the entertainment industry. The fact is that I have never been a copycat. I am not looking for the fastest way to limelight. Rather, I want to express myself. My ambition is to be recognised worldwide. But I want to be known for what I have done. I want to be successful through hard work.”

PDP chairman Mu’azu in Close door meeting with IBB in Minna

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu on Friday held a closed-door meeting with former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida, in continuation of his nationwide consultation with elders of the party.

Mu’azu, who led a 15-man team, arrived the Minna Uphill residence of the former Military President at about 12.05pm and went into a closed-door meeting, which lasted till 1.05pm.

Members on the entourage of Mu’azu, which included the PDP National Youth Leader, Alhaji Abdullahi Maibasera; former House of Reps Speaker Gali Na’aba and the state PDP acting chairman, Tanko Beji, were excused from the meeting to enable the two leaders to have a confidential and private session.

Emerging from the meeting, Babangida declined to speak with journalists on the meeting.

The former leader bluntly told newsmen that he was not prepared to talk.

“I am not going to say a word. I am not talking,” he said.

Muazu said he was in Minna as part of his reconcilatory move and in continuation of his meeting with some elders of the party since he emerged as the chairman of the ruling party.

He said, “I am here in continuation of my visit to our elders and I had a fruitful meeting with the former President. It was a fruitful meeting.”

Mu’azu, while declining to give details of the meeting, said, “What we discussed is not meant for public consumption. All I can say is that we had a fruitful discussion”.

He also met with the Niger State governor, Dr. Babangida Aliyu.

$50m for Lagos-Abidjan Expressway, approves by ECOWAS

The Economic Community of West African States on Thursday approved $50m as contributory fund for the design and feasibility studies for the proposed Lagos-Abidjan Expressway.

The approval for the six-lane expressway was granted during a meeting of ECOWAS Ministers of Works and Infrastructure, which held on the sidelines of the ongoing 22nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The meeting was chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan.

Chairman of the Ministerial Project Steering Committee of the project, who is also the Nigerian Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen, had earlier briefed the meeting that the sum was to be used to prepare the ground for commencement of the project within the first quarter of the year.

Apart from the sum that will be contributed by the ECOWAS member states, Onolemenen said $16m was expected from the African Development Bank.
He said, “The feasibility study is going to be far in excess of $50m. So the AfDB offered that they have this money, that is the remaining $16m to contribute towards raising the total money for the design.

“Now for the full design to be paid for, we actually look forward to getting additional funds from development partners and multinational agencies. But to show commitment from member-states, that is why we are requesting for the seed money of $50m.”

Onolemen said the road, when completed, would transverse Ghana, Benin Republic and Togo, stressing that it would aid the achievement of proper regional integration in West Africa and also open up the sub-region for commerce.

He said, “For instance you can imagine what a six-lane dual carriageway leading from Lagos to Abidjan and in future from Abidjan to Dakar will do to the economy of the sub-region. It will certainly transform the economy of the sub-region.

“Nigeria alone provides 50 percent of the population of the sub-region. So that means manufacturers and businessmen in our country, entrepreneur in our country will now have unfettered access to the vast markets of ECOWAS and that is one of the major achievements this project will deliver in addition to bringing about better integration between nations and nationalities of member-states.”

Nigerian-American singer,Janelia to shoot Sexy Nana in Hollywood

Janelia

Nigerian-American singer, Janelia, is planning to shoot the video of her newly released single, Sexy Nana, in Hollywood, California, United States.

Born of an American father and Nigerian mother, she worked with a Nigerian producer, Young D, on the new song which is currently travelling round the social media and airwaves.

 “Plans are already on the way to shoot the music video in the US. Janelia is considering either shooting it in Hollywood, California or in Washington, DC which is known for having a lot of urban and exotic clubs that play Naija hip hop and afro beats. Either way, Janelia promises that the music video for Sexy Nana will be super hot and sexy,” her promoters say in a statement.

Pastor Chris give back to his alma-mata

Pastor Chris Oyakhilome (Ph.d) the President of Christ Embassy (a.k.a Believers Loveworld Incorporated) handed over the keys of a 600-seat auditorium donated by Believers’ Loveworld (Christ Embassy) to the Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma.
Governor Adams Oshiomhole,gladly collected the keys yesterday at a ceremony held in the auditorium.
God bless you Pastor Chris. We Love You.

Rihanna Body on the flashline, Narrowly Avoids Nipple Slip At Pre-Grammy Party [PHOTOS]

Rihanna dared the gods of wardrobe malfunctions as she attended the pre-Grammy gala in LA last night.
The What Now singer stepped out wrapped loosely in a yellow dress, baring her midriff and a whole lot of thigh, without any undergarments.
The singer knew she was close to showing off more than was necessary (even though she already had) and had to use her hand to prevent everything from shining like diamonds in the sky.
Check out pictures below.

NFL star Chad Ochocinco lost his cool on gay harrassment

 NFL star Chad Ochocinco lost his cool and decided to teach a few gay fans a lesson by calling them out on twitter and tweeting their private pictures to him to his over 3million followers
He probably was very playful and some mistook it for him being gay
“@ochocinco: I think I’m overly friendly and accepting of ALL that some are mistaking my kindness as an opportunity to try me… Check my next 2 tweets”