Entertainment
Nollywood Actors, Actresses Lead EndSARS Protests
Top Nigerian entertainers have been lending their voices to the endSARS protests in Nigeria. In the eleven days since the protest commenced, top Nigerian entertainers have made major moves in ensuring that their voices are in solidarity not just with the protesters, but against the system needing reform.
In no particular order, here is a list of Nollywood stars actively protesting.
Genevieve Nnaji: The revered film maker has been very vocal about her stand on the protests since its inception days ago.So far, she has remained active on twitter with tweets reiterating the demands of the people. In addition, the actress wrote an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Toyin Abraham : After her daylong episode with aggrieved twitter users, the actress took to the streets of Ibadan where she is currently filming to speak up against police brutality, but it doesn’t end in the streets for Abraham. The actress has been actively sharing air time to online protesters. Recently, she engaged NIDCOM chairperson, Abike Dabiri via twitter on Nigerians in Cairo, who were arrested for protesting.
Let the whole world know that the peaceful protesters in Cairo were arrested by Nigerian Embassy, another case of you people failed us again.
Ken Erics: Amid the actor’s offline and online protests,he has been very vocal about his personal experience with officers of the now defunct Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) as a youth corp member. The actor shared on Facebook how he was arrested and detained for one week and how the trauma nearly ruined his life.
Omoni Oboli,Uche Jombo and Chioma Akpotha: It has been the whole nine yards for the colleagues turned close friends since the protests began, the actresses have taken to sensitising market women protesting at popular spots and providing funded refreshments for protesters.
Kate Henshaw : From joining other protesters at major protest spots, Henshaw has also lent her resources to supporting the online protests with tweets, retweets and Free airtime for users.
Funke Akindele-Bello: While the filmmaker has been quite vocal, she has also taken the extra step to provide online protesters with airtime.
Richard Mofe Damijo (RMD):The veteran actor is currently flooding his Instagram account with useful information on the SARS protests
Spotify yesterday revealed a significant surge in heartbreak song streams in Nigeria during the Valentine’s Day season, with a 626 percent increase between 2022 and 2024.
This was disclosed in a statement issued in Lagos, Nigeria by Spotify’s Head of Music, Sub-Saharan Africa Phiona Okumu.
Okumu said, “Spotify data reveals a surprising trend, a massive surge in heartbreak song streams.
“Nigerians are turning to their playlists to express their emotions, with a staggering 626 per cent overall growth in heartbreak streams from 2022 to 2024.
“This Valentine, the sound of love is accompanied by the sound of heartbreak, and the data shows it’s louder than ever before.”
She said on Valentine’s Day, most surprisingly, male listeners streamed heartbreak songs at a significantly higher rate than female listeners, with a 362 per cent increase compared to 169 per cent among women.
“This could suggest that men resonate with the feeling of heartbreak more and turn to music as a private outlet for processing emotions.
“Whatever the reason, one thing is clear, when love is in the air, so is heartbreak and Nigerian men are pressing play on their pain more than expected.
“While Valentine’s Day is often celebrated with grand gestures, heartbreak is a common theme on Valentine’s Day -more than what’s publicly shown,” she said.
Nigerians will join their counterparts across the world to mark the 2025 Valentine’s today.
Grammy-winning Nigerian singer Temilade Openiyi, popularly known as Tems, has joined MLS side San Diego FC’s ownership group as a club partner.
SDFC announced today that Tems joined the ownership group through her company, The Leading Vibe.
In the process, Tems became the first African woman to be involved in MLS ownership.
“We are delighted that Tems has joined San Diego FC as a club partner,” SDFC chairman Sir Mohamed Mansour said in a statement.
“Tems is a globally significant artist who will help us reach new audiences and spread the word about our unique project, which, of course, has its foundations in sub-Saharan Africa through the unique Right to Dream organisation.”
Reacting to her addition as the latest partner in SDFC’s ownership group, the singer said: “I am thrilled to join San Diego FC’s ownership group and to be part of a club that celebrates creativity, culture, and the power of community.
“Football has a unique way of bringing people together, and I am excited to help build something special in San Diego, a city that thrives on diversity and innovation.”
Fashion and beauty entrepreneur, Toyin Lawani, has claimed she is enduring back pain and that her spine is degenerating.
Lawani revealed this in a video posted on social media last Tuesday.
In the clip, she opened up about her experience with epidural anesthesia, an injection administered to pregnant women in the spine to reduce pain during childbirth.
The mother of three claimed that since receiving the injection, she has not felt like herself.
She accused doctors of not fully informing women about the long-term side effects of epidurals.
According to Lawani, she received the anesthetic injection during the birth of her last two children.
She said, “When you hear ‘epidural,’ run. Doctors tell you about the side effects but do not tell you about the long-term effects on your body. I have about three friends having the same issues that I am having.
“Like, I am just 42, how did I end up with spine issues? I have a degenerating spine. I have implants in my spine. I go paralyzed. I can’t stand for a long time. I can’t even breathe properly sometimes because it affected so many things in my body when I had the surgery.
“They will not tell you because you just want the pain to go away. I have had two epidurals. I had my first as natural birth. The last two were epidural. The last one I had epidural because I had to undergo a surgery and I had no choice.
“See, the pain does not stop. My back is killing me and my spine is degenerating.”