Nollywood actress, Ebube Nwagbo, tells Ademola Oloniluaabout her career, business and love life
My greatest asset
Some people say it is my smile, some say it is my hips. I think it is my personality; nothing in particular for me. People out there have different opinions about me. I think it is just me, Ebube as a whole. The smile, the body, and the personality, everything put together. That should be my selling point.
Ebube on set and Ebube off set
A lot of people tend to attach me to what they see on set. When I started out, it was with the roles that endear people to me, so everybody thought I am that accommodating and nice, I am not saying I am not nice. I am nice, but I am not that naïve girl everybody thinks I am because most people tend to take advantage of it, thinking what they see on screen is the way I am. I still have some sides to me; I am not that perfect person they think I am. I am not that person everybody takes advantage of. It is totally different for me. I am not that loud but I could be when I want to.
Being in Nollywood for a decade; the journey so far
I started acting when I was very young, I grew up in Nollywood. It was in 2003, I was about 20 years old then. I was still in school, so it was shuffling school and work. I learnt the good and bad things here. It has been a journey for me. It is like growing. I started fending for myself and my family at that age. I grew up like that and Nollywood kind of moulded me into what I am today based on where I am coming from as a person. It became the family I know because those early years I was always on set. All I knew at that time was making movies. The journey so far has been smooth, it has been rough, it has been sweet, it has been bitter, but so far, I am thankful to God for where I am today. At least, I am alive, I still have people out there that still love me. In as much as I do not expect everybody to love me, I can still boast of a lot of people that admire me for what I have become today. It has been a smooth and rough journey so far.
Rough side of the journey
Firstly, it is the public. As much as we have to live our life for the public, we still have to be who we are. They should not forget that we are human beings at the end of the day. People expect us to be this perfect person, they expect a lot and believe because you are in the limelight, you have to live your life in a certain way. Yes, that is true but we are all human beings and we make mistakes. Everything I have done in life, I wouldn’t call it regrets. I have learnt my lesson and it has taught me something positive. I believe what ever happens in my life has been destined to happen that way; I am just acting out a script written by God. I do the best I can and leave the rest to him. Because of what we do, a lot of people believe that they know us better than we know ourselves. They expect us to do certain things, forgetting that we are just like them out there. Yes, we have to be role models to people which I personally try my best to be. But people should not condemn me when I do not live up to expectation. As human being, when we are in relationship or marriage, what we do affects it a whole lot. That is the basic true, we can’t pretend about it. I don’t think it is every man or woman that is with a celebrity that likes to be in the limelight. As much as a lot of them try to understand what their spouses do, at the end of the day, this is Nigeria, they might not understand all the time. It is all about getting the person that understands and make him believe that what you are doing is your job. It is hard, it is quite hard but we have to live.
Hair business
As an actress and a business person, I always wanted something I could fall back on because I knew I would not be an actress forever. I would not be in the limelight forever so there should be something I am doing outside acting, where I can invest my money. Everybody had this clothing line, or shoe line, I wanted to do something different and me being a lover of fashion, I love looking good. I believe a woman should look good from head to toe, it is a total thing. I was thinking on what to do and make money from it at the same time. The hair thing was the rave of the moment then and it was so expensive. I was trying to do something that even a student can afford and look good. You can wear the hair pieces and not spend that much money. Business has been very fine.
Quitting acting
I will not quit acting totally. I will definitely be behind the scene doing something. I just set up my own production company; that is me planning for the future you never can tell.
A kiss scene I recall the most
The kiss scene I recall the most, not because of how good it was, was my very first kiss on set. I was caught unaware as it was my first time doing it and I had to do it over again as we had to prove to the audience that we were in love. Shooting it was very tedious for me because I had to do it several times, my first movie. It wasn’t funny unlike now I can do it because I see it as my job. The first kiss is something I will not forget.
The boy I will never forget
It has to be my school boyfriend. Even till today, people see me and still ask me about him. We met in my first year in school, second semester. We won the best couple on campus. We had this bond and everybody wanted to be like us. I got into the movie industry and it didn’t work out again. I really liked him. So far, I think that is the first relationship I had that I can really call a relationship. That is the first time I actually knew what love is. That is somebody I still think about today and there is no regrets.
The rumour about me going to church to pray for a man
What happened at that time was that I went to church and the pastor said if you want to do something for God, you come out and make a pledge with any amount. It was running into hundreds of thousands of naira. He said we could come out and do it for God, any amount that came to mind. I was one of those people that wanted to do it because I felt I was led to do it. That was it and they assumed that for me to do it I was looking for a man. The next thing I saw in the paper the next week was that I went to church to pray for a man. I really did not find that funny at all. I was not the only one that came out that day to do something for God but because it is Ebube, they assumed things.
About my feud with Anita Joseph
I really do not like talking about it. I do not know her, I have not met her. Maybe it is some writer’s imagination or hers. I do not know. I have not met her, she is not my friend. It is something I really do not like talking about because it is making her more relevant for nothing. She is not my friend, she is not my enemy.
My parents’ reaction when I got into acting
Actually, when I got into acting, I did not tell my parents because I knew that there was no way they were going to support me. I really needed to do something at that time for myself and family and I did not know the next thing to do. The opportunity came my way and I grabbed it. I was on my IT and I wanted to do something and I did not want to work in the office. I thought about what I could do to get me fast money without having to work in an office. I called a friend who is in the industry, I told him I would love to try out acting just for the fun of it and see if I could get money. He always spoke about Nollywood and he told me there was an audition coming up and I should come and try it out. That was the first and last audition I ever went into.
My parents found out
My dad came back home one day and said he saw a poster of a girl that really looked like me and I feigned ignorance. I told him people look alike. I did not have the nerves to tell him it was me. When the movie came out, I had to leave home for a while because I did not know how they would feel. Luckily for me, the movie came out, I acted a good role. They liked the fact that I did something nice. I did not give them any reason to be angry, upset or disappointed in me. I do not think I have given my family a reason not to be proud of me as an actress. I think I have made them proud in many ways and they have given me their love and support. I am not perfect, but I never forget where I am coming from or heading to, no matter the madness and craziness that comes with my profession.
About me being single
Yes I am still single. The reason is that I am someone who has always believed in love. It is a big deal to me so if I have to do it, it has to be right. I am a strong believer of love. I get lots of proposals; it is so crazy I do not know who to give a chance to. I think it is a price I have to pay for stardom. Sometimes when anybody comes my way, I do not know who wants to be with me for the right reasons. I believe when that day comes, I will definitely figure out who that person is. It is not easy. What I should be talking about is not relationship but marriage. I want to go into marriage and be in it for ever. No one goes into marriage thinking of divorce, but it happens. We try our best. I think I am kind of scared, but I just have to give it a try whether I like it or not. It just has to happen and happen right; at the right time.
Punch Nigeria
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