Tuesday, 16 December 2014

Photos: Jay Z attends his best friend's wedding

Jay Z attends weddings...just not Kanye's...hehe! Jay Z without Beyonce attended his best friend's Memphis Bleek's extravagant wedding to his longtime girlfriend Ashley Coombs this past Saturday Dec. 13th at The Merion in New Jersey. See photos after the cut...



‘When He Loves You Do You Think He Should Wait?’ Chika Ike’s #CelibacyMode

ChikaNollywood actress Chika Ike took to her Instagram page this evening to share that she is in a celibacy mode.

She posted a picture of herself in bed and captioned,He loves, he spoils ,he pampers….. But I’m not your regular breakfast in bed kind of girl….not regular…..celibacy mode!!!! When he loves you do you think he should wait? #oldschoolkindoflove #yousmartyouloyaliappreciateyou #dontgetittwisted #dubai’
Chika Ike
Currently in Dubai for the production of her upcoming movie ‘Miss Teacher’, it looks like Chika Ike might be taking some personal time to unwind as well

Stella Damasus’ Most Candid Interview Yet! Addresses “Husband Snatcher” Jabs, Being Happy with Daniel & New Music

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Now this is a must watch. Stella Damasus gives the best interview ever.

The Nigerian movie star is living life to the fullest right now and we can tell. In an interview with Golden Icons, Stella opens up about a lot of things like never before.

She speaks to host Emma Emerson, on her late husband Jaiye Aboderin, her happy life with Daniel Ademinokan, and criticism about their relationship. Yup, she confirmed their relationship.

Stella also dishes about her daughters, rumours of her dating Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD) and training young talents. She also plans to release a new song “My Man” on December 20th.

If you know Stella from all the interviews she has done as well as her web series, you know that she doesn’t hold back. That is why it is worth the watch. Part 1

 

On tying the knot with Jaiye Aboderin at the age of 21: “I always wanted to start early. I always wanted to have children early. I wanted to have a marriage early, I wanted to grow with a family. I wanted to learn the inside of it, I didn’t want to wait and grow, and mature, and become big and famous then start to wonder ‘oh, will anyone marry me now’.

I didn’t want that to happen because at 16 I was already popular. I was making money, I was travelling. So at that point looking at my life, I said, if I do this for another five (5), six (6), seven (7) years, and I don’t start a family, it will become more difficult for me later on. And so, I decided if I find somebody who I love, who will love me back, we will go together. We will fight all the fight, make up, we will do whatever, but we will grow old together. And that’s what happened.

And I am happy I made that decision, because today I have a 15 year old. I grew up with my children. When you see the three of us, and you see my daughters, you will think we are sisters. And we talk as friends. So it was an important thing for me. To have a family, and have that…I needed something to check me. We have a tendency to be crazy and do whatever we like because we could get away with anything, we could travel all over the world, we could get people to like us like this (snaps finger), we had money to throw around. If I don’t have that family unit to check me, I don’t know what I would have become and I won’t lie about that.”

On recovering from losing him: Recover? Do you really recover? They say time heals. I say, I have a different definition, I say time numbs. It is not something that heals, and then that’s it, it’s gone, it’s gone, No. This is someone you planned to spend the rest of your life with, and grow with.

We made plans, like every other couple. And when that happened…he died when I was 26 with two children. I just felt that my life had ended. So, but with time, this year, December 3rd will 10 years, one full decade. So it is not healing, I won’t call it healing but I will say it numbs it and once in a while, it comes up and the pain is as fresh like yesterday but it is how you deal with it that matters.

And that’s what I have had to do for the past 10 years but I am very grateful for the family I have, for the people I have around me. For that, you need a lot of strength. God helped me through it all.”

On Widow being her story: “Widow is a true life story but not my story. The woman who I played lives with her children in the UK. I did Widow, months before my husband passed away. So I saw the lady that I played, so when the movie came out, the movie came out after my husband had died.

It didn’t come out before. So when it came out, everybody thought ‘oh that’s her story, she was telling her story’. It wasn’t my story. I wasn’t upset, I was actually grateful that I did such a great job that people believed that it was me. Because as at the time I was doing it, my husband was, in fact he was the one dropping me off on location. So it means I must have done a very good job for people to actual feel it and say oh that’s her story.”

 Stella Damasus - December 2014 - BellaNaija.com 02

 PART 2

On her relationship with Daniel Ademinokan: “Let me put it this way. Let me help you hit the nail on the head. One of the comments I have seen consistently, over and over again, is ‘Stella snatches somebody’s husband’, ‘Stella the husband snatcher’, which is what has been going on. And I had sworn that I would never talk about it, or even listen or stress myself about this thing but I have decided to do this now, so that I end this once and for all.

First of all, let me paint a picture for you and you let me know what makes sense to you. When I looked up the word snatch or steal, ehh, let’s go to the dictionary. It means, forcefully taking something away from its original position. Forcefully. From its original position to another position. Something that does not belong to you. That’s what I gathered from the word snatch or steal.

So I looked at me, Stella, and I wondered to myself, how is it possible to go to somebody’s home, and take a man, and take his son, away from his home and say follow me. You are a man, and according to their story, he is happily married inside his home. With his family complete and I walk into that home, to forcefully take a man, abled bodied man, and a kid, away from somebody’s hand and you are there looking at me. How does that work?

Did they accuse me of using voodoo? Yes or no? They said no. Okay, did I put a gun on anybody’s head and remove somebody from somewhere? They said no. So logically, if people actually sit down and think about it intelligently, how do you snatch somebody from somebody and the person is there looking at you?

So when you see a man who has settled ties with a woman and decides to move on with his life and you feel that there is something in this man that you like and he likes you. I am not a kid. I am 36 years old. I am not about to start hiding myself. I was waiting for somebody to actually ask me this question, because all I have heard for the past two, three years are rumours. They said, blogs said, this said. Nobody has been bold enough to confront me and ask me. So I say, if I steal something from somebody, and the person is really the owner of the thing, you come and ask me, ‘you took something from me, give me back’.

But nobody was able to that. And I am like, if I meet an abled bodied man that has left and moved on. That is not even in the same house with whoever and is not doing anything with whoever, and both parties have decided this thing is not going anywhere, and they have gone their separate ways, why is it that it easier for the world to blame the woman that the man has decided to end up with?

Why is it that it is always that woman that scattered that home? The two people that did things that nobody was there, nobody said something must have happened between this two people but it is always somebody else that is the problem. And I always say, I do not tolerate blaming anybody for your own problems. I have had problems.

After my late husband’s death, I got married again and the marriage didn’t work. After eight (8) months, it crashed. People didn’t hear much about it, why? We were both mature to understand that we came together, we knew that the thing was not working, instead of us to become enemies we will remain friends, let’s just let it go quietly. And we let it go quietly. I didn’t blame anybody else for doing it, he didn’t blame anybody else for doing it. So I am wondering, two people come together they go their separate ways, this one meets somebody, all of a sudden, it is that somebody that is the problem. Did anybody ever ask, what went wrong? Why would a man pick up his son and walk away from his marriage?

Was there anytime another woman was the problem until the man moved on with another woman? Nobody brought up Stella’s name, then all of a sudden, ‘oh he’s moved on with somebody else (snaps fingers), it must be her’. How? I am still waiting for somebody to come with proof to say ‘oh when they were still in marriage, when they were still in a house, you came and did this.’ So the reason why I don’t like talking about it is that, there are some things I would say to you and you would look at me like ‘oh wow’ but I don’t want to be derogatory, I don’t want to tow the line that other people have towed by talking bad about people.

I would never do that but the stories started coming. At first I ignored it, I just kept quiet, and then it was all over the place, Google, blogs, and I am like, one day, one day, I would tell my story. There’s a reason why I am respecting certain people, respecting certain legal issues that are going on. So there might be some things I may not hammer on, but whenever you hear this person snatched this person’s, you will ask the person, the person that they said was the original owner, what was the person doing when they were snatching the person from him or her? I don’t get it. Do you understand?

So I look at it, I am not ugly, I am not dumb. Of all the men in the world, I will now go and look for somebody else’s own and say this is the one I want. If he didn’t come out of it and say I want to be with you and you want to be with me, how? Why would I come and grab…? Am I that bad looking? Am I that old?.”

On if she ever thought she and Daniel, should go their separate ways: Not at all, not at all. You know why? Because my conscience was clear. Whatever issues a man has with his wife or whatever, when they deal with it, they deal with it, I don’t come into it. And once you are done with it, and ready to move on, and you want to move on with me, and I want a life with you, it’s me and you. I don’t care what anybody else is thinking or saying.

People have said this, it hurt because of the impression people tried to create but I looked at myself and asked myself, Stella in your heart do you believe you did anything bad? If my answer is no, then my dear, there is no looking back. Because I am not a kid for me to make a decision and say I want to be with this person. If I marry 10, it concern you? That’s what I used to say.

If I have 50 husbands, how does that affect you? Does it change my work? I do my work, you enjoy it. Enjoy it. It’s not about what I do in my bedroom that is your issue because you don’t really know what happens in people’s bedrooms. You don’t know what happens in marriages, you don’t know why people like us are very weary of people knowing our business.

You don’t know how many marriages are suffering in silence. The issue of domestic violence that I am fighting for, it’s part of it. There are marriages that they will tell themselves, especially celebrities we suffer from that, you are in a marriage and because you are worried about the press, the media, you stay in. You just stay in, you act, you play for the camera, you act like everything is okay. Then you get home and everything is hell because you know the moment you take that bold step and walk away, the backlash will be so bad.

But you now ask yourself, to stay in and become a monster or to just quietly live and preserve my sanity. When you leave to preserve your sanity, then the world wants to make you crazy. You understand. So it’s a matter of choice. People make choices everyday. They’ve made theirs, I have made mine. If you can’t deal with it, no problem. It is my life. Live yours, and I will live mine. And I am Happy. I am not ashamed. Never a moment of regret.”

 

Monday, 15 December 2014

Another young girl from AJ city wins Nigeria's Next Super Model 2014

Nigeria's Next Super Model 2014 has emerged. At the finale of of Africa's International Fashion week and the launch of Vogue Talent for Africa, the 2014 Nigeria's next super model was crowned. Queen Onyemaechi from Delta State was by far the best. The Judges, Ingrid Tamorin representing Vogue Italia, Joan Okorodudu the originator of the model search and Deon Redman the creative director of Mercedes Benz fashion week Africa all agreed that she was the one with the potential of making it anywhere in the world.

 

Already booked for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Africa and Music Meets Runway, this 17 year old  is on her way to stardom and we wish her the best. The Queen went home with a brand new car donated by Studio 24 official sponsor of Nigeria's Next Super Model. Africa international fashion week was sponsored by Access Bank and Baileys Nigeria.

10 Things Grateful People Don’t Do

10 Things Grateful People Don’t Do

True happiness and inner contentment happens when your heart is grateful for everything your life experiences – the good, the bad, the hard, the easy, the defeats and the victories. To achieve this level of gratitude, there are some things you should endeavour to remove from your life.

Stay away from these acts that grateful people avoid and watch your life turn around for the better.

1. They don’t compare themselves to others.
2. They don’t need to “feel” happy in order to be happy.
3. They don’t compare their journey to anyone else.
4. They don’t run from their imperfections.
5. They don’t allow time to control them.
6. They don’t forget the importance of relationships.
7. They don’t overlook the value in everyday people.
8. They don’t expect to get something in return.
9. They don’t take life for granted.
10. They don’t neglect themselves

Happy WEEK everyone! I wish you a fab week ahead.

Saturday, 13 December 2014

Access Bank Donates Hilux Van, Bulletproof Vests, Walkie-talkies & More to Nigerian Police + Bags Financial Institution Award


 

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One of the leading financial institutions, Access Bank Plc, has once again restated its commitment to the safety of life and property in the country with the presentation of a police patrol vehicle with state of the art technology, and other operational items to the Lagos State Police command of the Nigerian Police.

The Commissioner of Police Lagos State, Kayode Aderanti and the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Kenneth Nwosu were presented with the operational items which includes a Hilux patrol van, bullet proof vests and walkie-talkies by Access Bank.

Speaking at the presentation, Cornelius Aderanti, Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Police Command said, “We want to thank Access Bank for their zeal and commitment to the maintenance of peace and security in the state. The presentation of the brand new patrol vehicle and other operational items will go a long way in helping the police effectively fight crime“.

According to him, “We are going to access a lot of prosperity for the people of Lagos state. Access Bank has shown us what partnership in progress is and we really appreciate them. I want to also use this platform to ask other banks to follow suit and support the police“.

In his comments Pattison Boleigha (Head, Compliance and Internal Control, Access Bank Plc) said, “As a bank we believe in delivering world class service embedded in Speed, Service and Security but there is no way we can achieve security which is a very important part of the banks’ values without partnering with the Nigerian Police. How else can we ensure the security of our customers deposit than by supporting the Nigerian Police. We are indeed proud of our partnership with Nigeria Police Force. The presentation of the Patrol vehicle and other operational items also signifies the banks desire to always remain the front runner in the safety and security consciousness in line with our business continuity strategy” he said.

Similarly, Yinka Tiamiyu (Head, Internal Audit, Access Bank Plc), said, “We are grateful to be part of this service of giving back to the society from all we receive from the public. You are going to see more of this in years to come“.

Access Bank has continually spearheaded sustainable growth and partnership in the country. As you will recall the Bank built a waiting lounge at the Ikoyi passport office of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) in 2013. It also empowered 17 physically challenged with the provision of fitted prosthetic limbs this year amongst other numerous projects.

The Bank was earlier this year adjudged the ‘Best Nigerian Company in Corporate Citizenship’ in the first ever competitive index on corporate social responsibility in Nigeria, by CSR-In-Action. The bank has also won the World Finance Magazine ‘Most Sustainable Bank In Nigeria 2014′ and the BusinessDay ‘Best Bank In CSR 2014′ award. Access Bank is rated B(Fitch) and A+ Agusto & Co.

***

Access Bank has also emerged the winner of the 2014 ‘Financial Institution Award’, organised by the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN).

The award was given at the PETAN 2014 Annual Oil Industry Award Dinner, held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Wednesday 10th December 2014.

Access Bank, as part of its continued growth strategy, has focused on mainstreaming sustainable business practices into its operations, striving to deliver sustainable economic growth that is profitable, environmentally responsible and socially relevant.

Speaking with newsmen after receiving the award on behalf of the bank’s management and staff, its Relationship Manager (Oil and Gas Desk), Charles Odum, said Access Bank had been financing the oil and gas sector for several years, in compliance with the Local Contents Act.

So, it is in recognition of our efforts and support, that is why PETAN has called upon us and nominated us to receive the 2014 Financial Institution Award of the Year. That is why we are here. Access Bank has been very creative, over the years, in packaging loans for the oil and gas industry-upstream, midstream, downstream, indigenous companies, oil traders and international oil companies” he said.

Disclosing that the several millions of dollars were budgeted by the bank to finance the oil sector, Odum said the award had been a long while coming, adding, “It is in recognition of all the things we have done for the industry and for other industries as well.

He said the award would spur Access Bank to continue to do more for the industry and added, “To whom much is given, much is expected. So obviously, this will give us the added drive to do more to ensure that our recognition is not just for the sake of it“. “We will continue to support the oil and gas companies; we will continue to be a key financial institution supporting the whole industry in Nigeria. So, it is definitely going, in long way, to spur us to do more for the industry, for the Nigerian economy in general“.

Earlier in his welcome address, PETAN chairman, Emeka Ene, commended Access Bank, saying it applied ‘out of the box’ strategies to support the Nigerian oil service companies with long term financing solutions.

He said the association had been championing the local content initiative in the oil and gas sector for more than 14 years, adding that the theme of the event, ‘Monetizing Our Gas Resources for Transforming Nigeria’s Economy’, was relevant to resolving the growth and capacity development challenge of the industry in the face of the global oil dynamics.

We still have lots of ground to cover in the local content journey. Nigeria is no longer a low cost producer of oil and needs to leverage the cost advantage of local content in a consistent and deliberate strategy from policy makers to IOCs, to Nigerian independent…”. “The Nigerian oil service industry represents the anchor for our economy during these turbulent times. The skills and best practices honed in the oil industry already trickles to the rest of the economy. Gas is high on the agenda for power,” he said

Tuesday, 9 December 2014

An Experience to Remember! Over 600, 000 People Attended ‘The Experience’ Lagos 2014 Event

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A lot of people were looking forward to this year’s ‘The Experience’ event and it was not a letdown as over 600,000 people turned up to the event with the sole purpose of being a part of the gospel music concert.

The 9th edition of ‘The Experience’ held on Friday 5th December 2014 at the Tafawa Balewa Square.

The theme of the night was ‘1 God 1 Voice’.

The night was opened with a performance for the Lagos Metropolitan Gospel Community Choir alongside Sammie Okposo. Thereafter came ministrations from Freke Umoh, Onos Ariyo and Midnight Crew. There were also moments of prayers for Nigeria, the nation’s economy and other state matters led by several Christian leaders such as Pastor Taiwo Odukoya of the Fountain of Life Church, Rev Sam Adeyemi of the Daystar Christian Centre, Bishops Mike and Peace Okonkwo of the TREM church, among others intermittently .

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Micah Stampley

Micah Stampley

Midnight Crew

Midnight Crew

Onos Ariyo

Onos Ariyo

Angela Christie

Angela Christie

One remarkable moment of the Experience 2014 was Nathaniel Bassey. Micah Stampley surprised the delighted audience when he joined the trumpet playing artiste on stage for a rendition of his popular song, Imela. Not long after, Grammy award winning singer, Donnie McClurkin joined the duo into what became an awesome trio as the Americans belted out Imela like it was sang in their native language.

Notable figures who attended the Experience 2014 included Jimi Agbaje, the First Lady of Lagos state, Dame Abimbola Fashola, former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani Kayode, Lady Maiden Ibru and more.

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Ribadu, Agbaje, Nyesom Wike, others win PDP Governorship tickets

The Governorship primaries of the PDP held today across the nation. Some results are out! Former EFCC Chairman, Nuhu Ribadu clinched the PDP ticket for Adamawa state, while serving senator, Ifeanyi Okowa won the primaries in Delta state. Former Ministers Labaran Maku and Emeka Wogu who both resigned their appointments as Ministers in October lost the tickets in their respective states of Nassarawa and Abia. While Jimi Agbaje won the Lagos state primaries.

Find a list of some of the flag bearers that emerged from the various primaries after the cut...

Lagos State: Jimi Agbaje

Rivers state- Former Education Minister- Nyesom Wike

Adamawa state- Former EFCC Chairman Nuhu Ribadu

Delta state- Senator Ifeanyi Okowa

Oyo state- Senator Teslim Folarin

AkwaIbom state- Udom Emmanuel

Cross River- Senator Ben Ayade

Niger state- Umar Nasko

Abia state- Dr Okezie Ikpeazu

Kaduna state- Incumbent Governor Mukhtar Yero

Enugu state- Senator Ayogu Eze

Saturday, 6 December 2014

Saro The Musical returns this December to rock Lagos for 6 days!

As the city of Lagos prepares for the highly anticipated return of Saro: The Musical, we are very excited to share some very exciting inside scoop on this year's shows! As part of the vision to improve last year's outing, this year's shows will see huge and exciting changes, all in a commitment to produce the best experience for our audience. 

In that spirit, we are excited to announce some new additions to this year's Saro cast! This Christmas, joining the already amazing cast and crew of Saro the Musical will be prolific actor Gideon Okeke, celebrated television show host Dolapo Oni, and revered movie veteran Bimbo Manuel.

 

 

Rturning with a 100-man cast, Saro – a Bolanle Austen-Peters Production – will deliver 11 outstanding performances in 6 days, all taking place at the prestigious Shell Hall, Muson Center, Lagos from the 23rd of December, 2014. This year’s show - proudly sponsored by Access Bank PLC - will be delivering an even bigger showcase of dazzling performances in lovely and colorful costumes, enigmatic and well-choreographed dance steps, and an exquisite fusion of jazz, afro-beat, hip-hop, highlife, juju, apala, and such other contemporary Nigerian music genres.


Show Schedule

23rd - one show - 6pm

24th - two shows - 3pm and 6pm

25th -  one show - 6pm

26th - two shows - 3pm and 6pm

27th - two shows - 3pm and 6pm

28th - three shows - 1, 4 and 7pm

 

Tickets available here>>> http://bit.ly/1t6hTIo


Saro is the story of four young people in an age-old search for greener pasture, who migrates to Lagos with little else but an abundance of hopes and dreams, where they are duly reoriented by the people and experiences they encounter on their journey of self-realization. Weaving together the trials, misfortunes, love, and destinies of the foursome into a 14-act masterpiece, Saro tells the unforgettable and inspiring story of the journey to success in a city filled with broken dreams, as we see Lagos personified by its numerous colorful and unforgettable characters, frenetic pace of living, and endless drama.


Its successful showing at the grand ballroom of the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, drew notable names in the Nigerian arts sector such as Prof. Wole Soyinka, Olu & Joke Jacobs, Taiwo Ajai-Lycett, Odia Ofeimun, Tunde Kelani and Femi Odugbemi, Teju Babyface, and Steve Onuh aka Yaw, as well as dignitaries like Ex Governor of Lagos State; Bola Tinubu, Disu Holloway, Edem Duke, minister of tourism, arts and culture, Arunmeh Otteh DG SEC, various ambassadors and other notable names from government and the private sector, and garnered critical praise and attention from media as well as critics all over the world. With high praise showered on the play and its production team, a number of impressed audience members expressed their hopes that the show would tour the country, and eventually be showcased to the world. This year, Saro will return to fulfill the demands of Nigerians who have clamored for its return.

 


Boasting a 100-man cast performing on a one-of-its-kind custom-built stage, Saro traces and pays homage to Nigeria’s rich musical history by beautifully rendering some our greatest hits over the years, while also delivers its own ingeniously composed original music. Masterfully combining this with the impeccably choreographed dance routines and unforgettably charged performances delivered by a talented and attractive cast, Saro is a theatrical joy that gallops swiftly through its fourteen acts to tell the story of Lagos settlers; immigrants who come from all over the country and indeed the world, to create a new and hopefully successful life in this bustling and exciting melting-pot.