Queens of Nollywood

Who remembers when Nollywood actors suddenly started releasing albums and songs every other month? What a time in pop culture history! To celebrate that chaotic and beautiful moment, we are ranking the best and most chaotic songs released by Nigerian actors.

Genevieve Nnaji – No More

Let me start by saying that Genevieve Nnaji is my favourite Nollywood actress and I am obsessed with everything about her. Her music career is not an exception, however, I am not obsessed with it for the reasons I think she hoped for. That said, my unpopular take is that this song isn’t bad. It is slightly cringy and had me hiding my face a bit but this is a bop for the girls.

Tonto Dikeh – Itz Ova

I remember when I first came across this song. I also remember falling down to the ground minutes later unable to hold myself from having fits of laughter. This song was truly something. The fact that for the entirety of the song we don’t hear Tonto Dikeh’s actual voice is truly something else. I think if T.Pain and Rihanna on a bad day had a love-child and that child had a child with the love child of Genevieve Nnaji’s No More video and Cher from Believe (the song which invented autotune as we know it), it would be Tonto Dikeh in the Itz Ova video. I know that’s a lot but the music video for Itz Ova is a lot as well.

Omotola Jalede-Ekeinde – Get Busy

I don’t remember where I was when I first heard Get Busy by Omotola and Harrysong but I know I must have felt confused and intrigued and shocked. That said, I had no clue what I expected her voice to sound like but it wasn’t this. It is very different but that was the only good thing about the song. Everything else was chaotic. She took all the worst parts of the average Nigerian song and just poured it into hers.

Jim Iyke ft 2Face – Who Am I

Unlike the other music videos and songs in this list, I did not know that Jim Iyke even went into music at some point until relatively recently. I wish I could go back to when I did not know. To top it off, he has a music video with 2Face which made me wonder for a minute how he got it and if he maybe had something on 2Face. The video and song are very on-brand for Jim Iyke if we are being honest. Incredibly violent and frankly made me feel like I was being threatened.

Patience Ozokwor – National Moi Moi

Do you know the hill I am willing to die on? That Patience Ozokwor’s Mama G era was nothing short of iconic. That run blessed us with quotable bops. I am forever willing to teach a course on the socialist implications of Patience Ozokwor ‘National Moi Moi’ as well as how it satirizes the entire campaign systems of African countries and the expected failures of the leaders. Karl Marx who? Mama G ended him. An iconic queen.

Desmond

April 1, 2021

Pop

Old Nollywood, Pop, Queens of Nollywood
How do you make a Nollywood movie pop? You throw in a wicked stepmother to frustrate your protagonist. However, many times the stepmother just ends up being the star of the movie.

Today, we are ranking the five Nollywood step mothers who gave us unbelievable joy whenever they came on screen.

5. Shola Sobwale

Before I fell in love with Shola Sobowale in King Of Boys, I fell in love with her Super Story. During that era, Shola starred in several roles where she redefined the art of being a step mother and the art of insulting people.

4.Ngozi Ezeonu

In the earlier days of her career, Ngozi Ezeonu was the one who was victimized by her husband’s other wife and that was a fun watch. But when she turned the table around and became the one doing the victimization, I was intrigued. I won’t say much but this woman played so many roles taunting and torturing Mercy Johnson that I can’ t help but wonder if Mercy Johnson has nightmares featuring Ngozi Ezeonu.

3. Eucharia Anunobi

I would actually not mind having Eucharia Anunobi for my step mother. Granted, she would kill my dad by making her sugar baby throw him off a balcony but at least we’ll bond by doing each other’s makeup and drawing thin eyebrows for each other.

2.Clarion Chukwuka

Let me start by saying that as a kid, I was wildly obsessed with Clarion Chukwuka growing up. The sage and anti-men advice, the wild hair colors, her nails which rivals Cardi B’s and her general iconic-ness. I can’t believe Nollywood made her into the bad guy for wanting her daughters and step-daughters to decenter men and seek reparations.
1. Patience Ozokwor
If you google ‘step mother in Nollywood’ you are likely going to see loads of videos and images of Patience Ozokwor because this woman is the genre itself. No one else can be simultaneously oppressing a whole village, her step daughter and her husband. The devil works hard, Kris Jenner works harder, but you see Patience Ozokwor? She outworked, outsold, and outdid them. No one is like her. No one has invented and reinvented the act of shadiness backed by sly and unprovoked wickedness quite like she has in Nollywood. We salute a queen.
Desmond

March 25, 2021

Pop, Queens of Nollywood

Nollywood, Old Nollywood, Pop, Queens of Nollywood
One of the absolute best parts of old Nollywood has to be all the baddies that we had, and sometimes when we’re lucky we’ll have as much as five in one movie. Today, we are ranking all the actresses who often played campus baddies.

Mercy Johnson

Mercy Johnson was always the best choice to play the new girl who just came to the campus and is wearing unnecessarily baggy clothes but is going to dethrone the campus’ queen B in two weeks. The way Mercy Johnson always switched up from the baggy Mary-Amaka skirt and the village-girl naivety to a spaghetti top and denim skirt shorter than my pinky and with more street knowledge than all the city girls put together is a transition even Tiktokers today can’t recreate.

Ini Edo

I can’t think of a better way to explain it but Ini Edo is one of those sweet queen B’s that somehow always wins. She’s a ten over ten in every area and hardly ever chooses violence, but when she does, she wins.

Oge Okoye

The main reason Oge Okoye is in the top three is that she is always ready to go from the charming queen of the campus to breaking a bottle on someone’s head without even switching up her stride. The fact that she never plays coy or pretends to not know she’s a bad bitch is just everything to me.

Rita Dominic

It’s not often you see a Nigerian woman in a movie with a cigarette in one hand and a gun in the other and all during her free period between GES 101 and HST103. A what? A queen. All the other queens in this list – whom I love and adore by the way – often prefer to play the long game and ascertain their opponent before making a move etc. However, campus queen Rita Dominic doesn’t do all of that. She’s direct, she’s violent and her makeup remains on point.

Genevieve Nnaji

Do you know why Genevieve is number one? Look at everything I’ve written about the other actresses, she has done worse and done it better in her campus-queen movies. Campus Queen Genevieve is the girl all the other girls want to be. She sows chaos and discord and yet looks like she hasn’t made a move. Do you know what it takes to call a couple making out at your birthday ‘couple of the day’ before telling them to get out then turning to someone and going ‘I don’t admit pigeons to my party’? Iconic behaviour.

QUIZ: Which Old Nollywood Campus Babe Are You?

Desmond

March 11, 2021

Pop

Nollywood, Old Nollywood, Pop, Queens of Nollywood
An elegant queen.

She was born on the 3rd of May 1979 in Mbaise, Imo State as the fourth of eight children. Along with being an actor, she’s also a producer, director, entrepreneur, and former model. She attended Methodist Girls School and the University of Lagos, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in creative arts

Nnaji began her career as a child actor in the 1987 television soap opera, Ripples. She was just 8 years old at the time. During her time in university, she began auditioning for acting jobs. Her first major movie role was in the 1998 movie, Most Wanted. She went on to star in other movies like Camouflage (1999), Love Boat (1999), Sharon Stone (2001), Blood Sister (2002), Battle Line (2002), etc.

In 2004, Nnaji signed a recording contract with EKB Records, a Ghanaian record label, and released her debut album, One Logologo Line.^[12] It is a mix of R&B, Hip-Hop, and Urban music. The album spawned the single “No More” which was widely ridiculed by Nigerians due to how terrible a song it was. However, it was later praised for being a lowkey feminist anthem that was way ahead of its time.

She produced her first movie in 2015 titled Road To Yesterday, and it went on to win the best movie at the 2016 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards. Her directorial debut, titled Lion Heart, was released in 2018 and was immediately acquired by Netflix (making it the first Netflix original film from Nigeria). In the same year, she also starred in the movie Farming, the directorial debut of American based Nigerian actor, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. She appeared alongside Kate Beckinsale, Damson Idris, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw.

She has featured in many commercials. In 2004, she was the face of Lux beauty soap, appeared in ads for Omo detergent and Pronto beverage. In 2008, she launched the clothing line, St Genevieve.

All hail a queen!

Astor George

September 23, 2019

Queens of Nollywood

actress, Genevieve Nnaji, Nollywood, Queens of Nollywood
When it comes to old Nollywood realness, we all know that the women were the ones who came on the scene and served hard. We’ve decided to take a week to honour seven legendary actresses who still impact the movie industry decades after their debut.

Today, we honour the magnificent Omotola Jalade Ekeinde.

Born on the 7th of February 1978, Omosexy (a nickname she was given by fans for obvious reasons) is a Nigerian actress, singer, philanthropist, and former model. She wasborn into a family of five and attended Chrisland School and Command Secondary School for her secondary education. She started her tertiary school education at Obafemi Awolowo University and completed it at Yaba College of Technology where she studied Estate Management.

Omotola’s original ambition was to work in Business Management. While waiting for her results after university, she began modelling to earn a living. During this time, she accompanied a friend to the auditions for the 1995 movie, Venom of Justice. She somehow ended up getting the lead role in the movie and caught the acting bug. Her role in the 1996 movie Mortal Inheritance gained her critical acclaim and mainstream recognition, shooting her into the list of A-list actors in Nollywood. She went on to star in such movies as Scores to Settle (1998), Lost Kingdom (1999), Blood Sisters (2003), Games Women Play (2005) etc.

After over 300 straight-to-video releases, Omotola starred in her first cinematic release in 2010. The movie, named Ije: The Journey, reunited Omotola with her Blood Sisters co-star, Genevieve Nnaji and was shot in parts of Nigeria and the United States. It became the highest-grossing movie at the time (until it dethroned by 2012’s Phone Swap).

In 2005, Omotola launched a music career with the release of her debut album titled, Gba. The album produced the singles Naija Lowa and the less commercially successful The Things You Do To Me. The singles Feel Alright and Through the Fire were released to promote her sophomore album. The album, though recorded, was never released for unknown reasons.

She married Captain Matthew Ekeinde in 1996 and had a white ceremony in 2001 that took place onboard a Dash 7 aircraft flying from Lagos to Benin. Together, they have four children.

Here’s to many more years of Omosexy gracing us with her many talents.

Astor George

September 20, 2019

Queens of Nollywood

actress, Nollywood, Omotola Jalade Ekiende, Queens of Nollywood
When it comes to old Nollywood realness, we all know that the women were the ones who came on the scene and served hard. We’ve decided to take a week to honour seven legendary actresses who still impact the movie industry decades after their debut.

Today, we honour the resplendent Clarion Chukwura.

Clarion Chukwura (real name: Clara Nneka Oluwatoyin Folashade Chukwurah) is a Nigerian actress and humanitarian. She was born on the 24th of July, 1964 and comes from Anambra state.

She had her nursery school education in Lagos and then attended Queen of the Rosary College, Onitsha for secondary education. Knowing that she wanted a career in acting, she proceeded to study Acting and Speech in the Department of Dramatic Arts at the Obafemi Awolowo University.

She began her acting career in 1980 and got her first movie role in 1982’s Money Power, a film by veteran Nigerian filmmaker, Ola Balogun. She gained more recognition when she landed a role on the popular 1984 television soap opera, Mirror in the Sun. She was the first Nigerian to win the Best Actress award at the 1982 FESPASCO film festival in Burkina Faso.

Chukwura is known for playing rich, wealthy, and flamboyant characters. Since her Nollywood debut in 1984, she has starred in the following movies: Fiery Force, Money Power, Farewell to Babylon, Igbotic Love (LMAO), Forbidden Choice etc.

Chukwurah with her son, Clarence Peters.

Chukwurah has been married three times and is the mother of popular music video director, Clarence Peters whose father is musician, Shina Peters. She met him while they were both filming Money Power. She is the recipient of many acting awards and has been recognised as a peace ambassador by the United Nations for her charity work across Africa.

Here’s to many more years of this legend living her best life.

Astor George

September 19, 2019

Queens of Nollywood

actress, Clarion Chukwura, Nollywood, Queens of Nollywood
When it comes to old Nollywood realness, we all know that the women were the ones who came on the scene and served hard. We’ve decided to take a week to honour seven legendary actresses who still impact the movie industry decades after their debut.

Today, we honour the eloquent Joke Silva.

Born on the 29th of September 1961, Joke Silva attended the secondary school Holy Child Girl’s College in Lagos, after which she went into acting. During this time, she moved to London to study drama at Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Arts, a decision her parents were initially opposed to but eventually came to terms with (when her career began to take off). She later returned to Nigerian to study English at the University of Lagos.

Silva has starred in many English and Yoruba movies. Her earliest known role was in the 1990 English language movie titled Mind Bending. In 1998, she starred in the British-Canadian film titled The Secret Laughter of Women alongside Colin Firth and Nia Long. Some other movies she appeared in around that period are Owulorojo (1993), Violated (1995), Keeping Faith (2002), Shylock (2004), and many others.

Her performances have garnered her critical acclaim and many awards. For her role in 2006’s Women’s Cot, she won the award for Best Actress In A Leading Role at the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA). She won another AMAA – this time for Best Supporting Actress – for her role in 2007’s White Waters, and again for her role in 2018’s Potato Patahto. She has a knack for appearing in critically acclaimed movies like 30 Days (2006), Amazing Grace (2008), Phone Swap (2011) etc.

In 2016, She won the lifetime achievement award from the AMAA.

Silvia is married to fellow thespian, Olu Jacobs, who she met at the National Arts Theatre in 1981, and together, they have two children. Below is an excerpt from an interview in which Jacobs describes his first meeting with Silva:

“I was having a meeting at the National Theatre and the door opened a young lady came in. I looked at her. I have never met her before in my life and I said to the people in the room ‘ladies and gentlemen, this is the lady I am going to marry’. Everybody laughed. She looked at me up and down, hissed and left. Today, she is my wife.”

Jacobs and Silva in 1988, performing at the National Arts Theatre in a play titled Holy Child.

In addition to her continued work as an actress, Silva is a strong supporter of women empowerment and emancipation. She helps the cause by contributing to their education at the Lufodo Academy of Performing Arts, at which she is the director of studies.

Here’s to many more years of this once in a lifetime talent gracing our screens.

Check back tomorrow (19/9/2019) when we honour another Nollywood actress.

Astor George

September 18, 2019

Queens of Nollywood

actress, joke silva, Nollywood, Queens of Nollywood
When it comes to old Nollywood realness, we all know that the women were the ones who came on the scene and served hard. We’ve decided to take a week to honour seven legendary actresses who still impact the movie industry decades after their debut.

Today, we honour the delectable Regina Askia.

A literal queen of beauty.

Along with being a (former) actress and model, Regina Askia-Williams (born Imaobong Regina Askia Usoro), is a healthcare and educational activist, television writer, producer, and public speaker.

In 1988, Askia was crowned Miss Unilag (after transferring from the University of Calabar as a medical student). She competed in that year’s Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria contest and came in second place (even though she was the crowd’s favourite). She eventually held the title position the following year when the girl that won, Bianca Onoh, resigned.

Her time in the pageant circuit helped her launch a modelling career on the runway, along with print and television commercials. Her big break in the world of acting came in 1993 when she was cast in early 90s television soap opera, Fortunes, as the gold-digging Tokunbo Johnson.

Askia’s was able to parlay the critical acclaim she got for her role in Fortunes into a full-fledged acting career in Nollywood. She starred in a ton of movies during the 90s and early 2000s like Most Wanted, Full Moon, Highway To The Grave, Suicide Mission, Man Snatcher (LMAO), and many others. At the height of her fame, she was compared to Elizabeth Taylor and commanded N300,000 per role. Remember that this was in the 90s and early 2000s, so N300k was a huge deal.

With a degree in Biology, Askia quit acting in 2007 and moved to the United States to become a registered nurse. She earned her nurse practitioner degree from Wagner College and is now a family nurse practitioner in New York City. She is married to Ruldoph Williams and they have three kids together.

Askia has no regrets leaving the glamorous world of Nollywood behind. During a question & answer session on her Instagram page, she said that she is fulfilled with being a nurse, as it is a career that feeds her body and soul.

Though we miss seeing her on screens, we’re just happy that she’s out there living her best life. Because isn’t that what we all hope for?

Check back tomorrow (18/9/2019) when we honour another Nollywood actress, Joke Silva.

Astor George

September 17, 2019

Queens of Nollywood

actress, Nollywood, Queens of Nollywood, Regina Askia
When it comes to old Nollywood realness, we all know that the women were the ones who came on the scene and served hard. We’ve decided to take a week to honour seven legendary actresses who still impact the movie industry decades after their debut.

Today, we honour the incomparable Liz Benson.

The Queen of grace and radiance.

Elizabeth Benson Ameye (popularly known as Liz Benson) was born on the 5th of April, 1966. She started her career as an actress at the age of 5 and went on to attend Sylvania State College in the United States of America, bagging a degree in Dramatic Arts.

Now we know the source of her superior acting skills.

She appeared in a few things but didn’t cause any buzz until she got the part of Mrs Agnes Johnson on the popular early 90s television soap opera, Fortunes (which ran for about two years). Her role in 1994’s controversial movie, Glamour Girls, shot into the limelight, turning her into one of the most sought after actresses in early Nollywood.

By 1996, she had warmed her way into the heart of movie lovers in Nigeria. However, during this time, a period which is considered the height of her career, Liz suddenly quit acting. Rumour has it that she gave her life to Christ and began preaching the gospel. She returned a year later in 1997’s Back To Life. It was after this quick break that she played one of her most iconic roles till date in the movie, Diamond Ring (1998) and its sequel (released the same year).

Liz Benson in Diamond Ring (1998). In it, she plays a rich dead woman who is super pissed about her tomb being robbed and proceeds to haunt the shit out of all the people involved. Go check it out if you haven’t. It’s a blast.

She went on to grace television screens in movies like Witches (1998), Chain Reaction (1999), World Apart (2004), Women in Power (2005), Crazy Passion (2005) and many others. Benson took another break from acting in 2007 when she met the man who would become her second husband, Bishop Great Ameye. They got married in 2009 and, together, run a church ministry named Freedom Family Assembly.

She returned to screens in 2014 and appeared in films like Dry (2014), Dearest Mummy (2015), Hilarious Hilary (2015), and Lizard Life (2017). Benson doesn’t act as much as she used to. She says she has found her purpose in “counselling people based on the word of God” but still appears in movies that, according to her, pass on good morals and propagate the gospel.

Here’s to many more years of seeing this goddess on our screens.

Check back tomorrow (17/9/2019) when we honour another Nollywood about actress and one time Most Beautiful Girl In Nigeria, Regina Askia.

Astor George

September 16, 2019

Queens of Nollywood

actress, Liz Benson, Nollywood, Queens of Nollywood