When asked why she doesn’t feature in home videos any more, top actress, Ronnie Dikko replied"When they started the home video industry, we were there from the days of Tears for love, When the sun sets, Self defence, et al with Liz Benson. We were there together but with time, I don't want to say the industry was hijacked by the Igbos because they were the ones that put down the money. 'He who pays the piper dictates the tune'. And if you are very observant, you will find that the celebrated actors and actresses that we have in the home video industry are Igbos. That should explain it all to you"
Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, Rukky Sanda, Ini Edo, Ramsey Nouah, Kate Henshaw Nuttal, Mercy Johnson, Funke Akindele, Keppy Ekpeyoung...etc are all top actors and actresses... and they are not Igbos, so I don't understand where she's coming from.
But does anyone agree with this statement and why?
25 comments:
Dont know what Igbos are but the thing i agree with is what she says "he who pays dictates the tune" that much is true and well put
Zack Orji, Kanayo, Jim Iyke, Emeka Ike, Mike Ezuronye, Emeka Enyiocha, Muna, Nonso, Rita Dominic, Genevieve, Uche Jumbo, Chioma Chukwuka, Chiege Alisigwe, Patience Ozokwor, Ngozi Ezeano, Stephanie Okereke, Uche ELendu, Pete Edochie, Clem Ohaneze, Bruno Iwuoha, Bob-Manuel Udokwu, Nkiru Sylvanus, Ejike Asiegbu, Kenneth Okonkwo, Eucharia Anunobi, Ernest Obi, Aki and Paw-paw, Ebube Nwagbo, Oge Okoye, Benita Nzeribe.... Do you need more names?
Don't be daft Linda..
Just don't be daft....
This lady's statement is just rekindling an unnecessary flame of tribalism. We don't need that at the time. We need to unite and make Nigeria strong.
So what? who told the other actors that are not igbo to be mediocre? If you want to stand out, don't be different; be outstanding. All these Ghanaian actors and actresses that r the rave now, are they igbos? Yet it's igbos that are backing most of their movies. Abeg she needs to see past ethnicity and be a part of what they r trying to realize. afterall it is called Nollywood not Igbowood.
Igbos are the Jews poeple of Nigeria. They dominate Nollywood by doing what they always do......
@anon, 7;29, how am i being daft? i cant make a statement or ask a question again??? on my blog? mind yaself...*smile*
Add to the list:
Desmond Elliot, RMD, Stella Damascus, Yemi Blaq, jide kosoko, bukky wright, Nuhu Aliyu,joke silva, olu jacobs, dakore egbuson,bimbo akintola, fred aseroma, caroline ekanem, anita joseph, Robert Peters, Shan George, Alex Usifo, Ibinabo Fiberesima, Nobert Young, Julius Agwu (he is from Rivers),Chico Ejiro (a producer...so is he also a hijacking tribalist too??), Grace Amah, Sam Dede, .... should i continue????
Not to mention the leading ghanaian actors and actresses that r actively doing it big in nollywood today....
Segun Arinze is obviously half igbo, half yoruba.....Monalisa Chinda and Kingsley Ogoro (producer); i dont really know if they're's igbo but their names don't sound it.
Abeg all these people complaining of "tribalism" in the industry should go and play in traffic jor ....there r many other non igbo actors/actresses that i can't even remember at the top of my head (plus the ones Linda mentioned) yet, the fact that igbos possibly outnumber in this one sector is paining the heck outta y'all!...please!...this is like the umpteenth time i am reading something like this,
If y'all wanna go there, please name all the igbos in government/politics or high places of power in Nigeria, and then name their yoruba/hausa counterparts....and while you're at it, also tell me how many times and when was the last time an igbo man was the president of Nigeria.
I am not trying to justify tribalism atall...all i am sayn is that u all claiming there's one in nollywood need to remove the big logs in ur eyes b4 looking for where to bring asunder. As far as i am concerned....there is no lopsidedness at hand. So what if one tribe is most represented??Are the other tribes (especially yorubas) as shown in my list above not also represented?? This is ridiculous...this is just like a case of a student who has been taking 1st position in every class, but as soon as another student takes over in just one class it becomes an issue! ...i really doubt these so called "hijackers" care so much about who is acting in their movies....but of HOW MUCH THEY ARE BRINGING IN!.....
That explains the new infiltration of the ghanaian crew bcos they're young and fresh, and people PAY to watch them...not bcos they r from the producer's/marketer's village!
Nma
The time will soon come when Nollywood will be representative of all Nigerians no matter where they are from. The Northerners have kannywood but then kannywood and nollywood nad mainframewood might come together one day soon and roles will be given according to ability and not according to where u are from......(Hope itz not too tall a dream o!)
I agree with her...you could only count a handful Linda...can u compare that to the other igbo actors...i myself too often wonder why igbo's were d ones mostly featured in homevideos...it is a different case if they are igbo movies..
This is what irritates me about some of these so-called "pioneer" actors. They whine a lot. Her comment was definitely unnecessary. Granted, the igbos have an advantage, but like she rightly pointed out, "He who pays the piper..." And this attitude is the same in ALL facets of the Nigerian Industry. It's in the Yoruba Film Industry, it's in Kannywood, it's in the government and so on. Most of all this talk we hear now from these "oldies" are stemming from the fact that the present Nollywood actors are more successful in regards to popularity, money and company endorsements. The music industry is also going through the same issues with the "old" musicians. They are not happy with the young successful ones. They'd rather castigate them and talk about how disrespectful they are than praise their efforts and its becoming sickening. The fact that you are a "pioneer" entertainer in naija doesn't give you a free pass to movie roles or music contracts. If you still want to be relevant in the industry, get up and do something. I don't see Olu Jacobs and the likes crying. Going publicly to whine about not getting roles bcos Igbo people yada yada yada won't make a difference. The producers will cast who they want to. Remember the film industry is also a money making business. Just like in Hollywood or bollywood, the producers are in it to make money. They are not casting you bcos they like you, rather bcos you can act and your presence will sell their movies. In other words, if the audience keep buying movies of a particular actor, they'll keep casting him/her. Suffice it to say Ronnie Dikko, if you are not getting scripts, it's not bcos you can't act, it's probably bcos there's someone else who can act as well as you AND in addition, sell movies. For example, If you give me a choice to watch a movie with Ronnie Dikko and Joke Silva, I'd go for Joke Silva. That's life. It's either you fight for what you want or deal with it. Heck!!...you can even produce your own film and cast whoever you want. You don't have to be in their "Igbo" movies. All this "cry me a river" don taya me joo.
- Omoge
She has a point but really nollywood si split. Igbos control the english, yorubas have their own, then there's kannywood. doesn't prevent her from working though. some actors straddle all or at least two
she soundsdefeated ...am surprised she didn't say all the leading stars are light skinned ...RUBBISH!!
Every failure has a reason why they failed. Linda dont mind them JARE.....
There is no excuse for failure.
....Linda has every right to say what she likes on her blog. If you dont like it, PISS OFF
I totally agree with her. The industry is Igbo dominated. You watch a movie and the issue and the setting is all about Igbo culture. And as she said 'He who pays the piper dictates the tune'. Even Omotola you are talking about plays Igbo village girl in her viillage roles. I cannot remember any recent role were she play a yoruba or Hausa village girl. I am not trying to play the tribal card here, I am just saying the obvious.
Thats why Yoruba movies have started to do very well, it provides a different setting.
Nollywood may be dominated by the igbos but just like you pointed out some handful of renowned actors actresses are not igbo. Be that as it may, I think it boils down to the fact that an average Ibo man,apart from being bussinessman also has a kindred spirit, so its no wonder that they encourage their own since they put the money down.The few ones that are not Ibo are not doing so badly, so its okay if you ask me.
Funke Akindele after her i need to know fame wanted to act in nolly wood movies i meant (igbowood movies) but because of her tribe she was not given the chance. Fathia Balogun adviced her to stick to yoruba movie industry and she make her mark here and everybody is now shouting funke akindele blah............. anyway sha ronnie dikko is right it is igbowood not nollywood. Cherio
Funke Akindele after her i need to know fame wanted to act in nolly wood movies i meant (igbowood movies) but because of her tribe she was not given the chance. Fathia Balogun adviced her to stick to yoruba movie industry and she make her mark here and everybody is now shouting funke akindele blah............. anyway sha ronnie dikko is right it is igbowood not nollywood. Cherio
if experienced and good hands of the industry say their work environment is dominated by igbos, then maybe the rest of us should pause to think about it.they wear the shoes, they know where it hurts. this topic can only be better understood if the members of nollywood tactfully address it.
i know that they are in the best position to state this fact, we are only onlookers!
abi linda, if you blog that the modelling industry is dominated by ibibios, who we be to dispute?!:-)
x
D
Linda,
I dig your blog and you're a pretty cool lady but come, please do not be deliberately obtuse.
We all know what the lady is talking about, Funke Akindele, AKA Jenifa was forced to quit the 'English' Nollywood. For every non Igbo actor you name, there are twenty Igbo ones. I think this silly idea still prevails that Yorubas cannot speak English as well as Igbos... I am getting rather tired of it now.
That is why I am looking forward to Daniel Ademinokan's latest, 'too much it is truly representative of Nollywood as a whole, it has Yoruba and Igbo actors and I would love to see more of that.
L.
Linda, I agree with her 100%. You need to be there or get close to them to understand the politics. This is a known fact in Nigeria.
Those ones you mentioned are just a handful and they are just extra-ordinarily good for them to be able to "belong"
I am very close to some of them and I know what I am talking about
people,grow up abeg!good aint enough where best is possible,all these bla bla bla aint worth it ,accept it or leave it.itz just like watch pete or olu jacobs speak.u get da kind of speeches and idiomatic exp.they use,unbeatable!it just makes one wanna learn the more .fashy all these igbo or yoruba or hausa levels ,in which century are we living in??grow in taste
Everyone of you that made comments here has spoken well. Let's look at it this way, If I have to put my money down for a project that will yield me good result (especially money), I must go for the affordable best.
In the early 90's the movie "Living in Bondage"(the early days of Ritual story lines) made a hit. One would have expected that the producers of this work of act would continued with Igbo movies. Since it appeared they want to entertain everyone and also maintain a large market share, they decided that English movies will be it for them.
Haven said that, I think the Yorubas did well in restricting it to the Yoruba movies. But then; If the Igbo producers have done the same, what would have happened to the great talents of the likes of Justus Esiri, Ini, and other none Igbo speaking Actors? and would there still have been Nollywood or Igbowood?
Like every other facet of Nigeria, the film industry is not supported by the government and not lucrative enough for investors. Film is an art to be practised by those with passion for it. The practioners could not get funds, so the industry was taken over by risk takers in business, they have no passion or skill, what they have is the money to make the film and reap maximum prfit. You cant blame them, but for them the industry may have been dead by now. Omotola and the other few survivors are just lucky. Nigeria has to wake up from slumber. If we are not careful Nollywood may become history like the groundnut pyramids of Kano.
Linda stop being a fool. Common sense should tell you that she's right.
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