To My August People

Femi Akintunde-Johnson

August has always been a special month in our household – but the “my” in our headline today is not indicative of a narrow personal celebration. It is about selected Nigerian entertainers born in the month of August (if the online details of their birthdays are to be trusted). But what makes August people special? The internet is awash with experts (and pseudo-experts) on zodiac imputations and personality trait adherents. A careless ‘follow-follow’ of their wares can lead the unwary into mental exhaustion, and traumatised unreal lifestyle.

Let us take a quick look into the personality traits of August people through the offering of a fairly serious website: (https://www.jagranjosh.com/general-knowledge/born-in-august-know-interesting-personality-traits-career-and-love-life-facts-).  “August-born people value self-respect and being self-reliant. This quality makes them good with money also. They are quite proficient at saving their own money or managing different sources of income. They love luxury… (They) are self-motivated, enthusiastic, stubborn, and energetic. They are always one step ahead to foresee obstacles ahead in your path… They are crazy about being on the top or being successful. They do not give up easily.

“They are quite social yet selective about who they let in their close friend circle. They are slow to open up to anyone or let in on their secrets… (They) are effective communicators… Their inquisitive nature makes them quite well-learned about many things and hence they are able to strike up a conversation about almost anything with ease.

  “August-born people are also a lot of times the center of attention in a room of people..”. There you have it.

Globally, the roll call of famous personalities born in August is quite impressive: Kobe Bryant, Michael Jackson, Barack Obama, Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Dua Lipa, Neil Armstrong, Usain Bolt, Kylie Jenner, Roger Federer, Napoleon Bonaparte, Warren Buffet, Cameron Diaz, Madonna, Satya Nadella (CEO of Microsoft), Mother Teresa, Saif Ali Khan (Bollywood star), Rajiv Gandhi (ex-Indian PM), Dorabji Tata, etc.

So, who do we celebrate here as the auspicious August 2024 bids us farewell today? Below are our entrants and a shortlist of  their accomplishments, even as they continue to live out their talents and enterprise.

KINGSLEY OGORO (29 August)

Music producer, studio owner, movie director, etc. His first love is music, perhaps followed by studio production management…(well, long before that, he was struck by the thunder of dancing – as he got to the finals of the then popular John Player Disco Dancing Championship). Then he fell in love with movies, and he has not stopped acquiring the most modern production equipment (another of his passions)…beyond digging out a massive one-shop studio facility in Surulere, Lagos.

Ogoro also scripted, produced or directed the following flicks: Osuofia in London, Dangerous Babe, The Return (all 2003), Osuofia in London – 2, Veno, Across the Niger (all 2004), The Widow (2005) and Heartbeats (2008). In a number of the movies, he did all the works! Another of his strong points is composition, and soundtrack productions for countless movies, either produced by him or via his studios. 

Ogoro graduated from the university in 1988 with a first degree in Banking and Finance, no wonder his first love, entertainment, received the benefits of a keen financially sound enterprising mindset. A couple of days ago (on the 29th), Ogoro ticked 59 on the age calendar.

NGOZI NWOSU (1 August)

Unpretentious and open as a solid book, Ngozi Nwosu compels attention, if not affection, by the sheer force of her wit and presence in sundry roles she has undertaken. 

Adept in English, Yoruba and Ibo languages, Nwosu started her acting career quite early… rolling across locations with the Yoruba dramatists of the eighties, before landing on the epochal set of Living in Bondage as Ego (1992). She was effervescent in Zeb Ejiro’s Ripples (1988) as Madam V-Booth, and in Amaka Isaac-Ene’s fantastic sophomore, the TV sitcom, Fuji House of Commotion, as Peace (is there any pun more stretched than this?)

 Nwosu, who hails from Arochukwu in Abia State, lost her father to the Biafran/Nigerian Civil War, while she had all her education in the mainland area of Lagos State.

 In 2012, the 61-year old thespian fell ill, and a very serious diagnosis laid her prostrate for a few years. Now, hale and hearty after the trauma of a health challenge that received mindless media speculation, the avant-garde actor continues to stun her audiences just as she did in LIB with a kissing scene which flummoxed the 90s audience for many years.

  Disarmingly charming and affable, she pulled her weight admirably in several works, including most of the following: as Ego in Living in Bondage (1992), Circle of Doom (1993), Thunderbolt: Magun (2001), A Cry for Help, Fake Doctor (both 2002); Dry Fish, No Shaking (both 2003); Dark Secret (2004), Adun Ewuro, Greatest Weapon, Tanbóló (all 2006); Old Cargos, The Prof and Den-Gun (both 2007); My Darling Princess, Throne of Tears (both  2008); Stigma (2013), Skinny Girl in Transit (2015), Isoken (2017), Little Drops of Happy, My Wife and I, Benson Ville (short, all 2017); Sade, Knock Out (both 2019), Sweet Face, Light in the Dark (both 2020); and Dream Job, Crazy Grannies, (all 2021). She has not stopped hitting locations: she was in Before Valentine’s, Ije Awele, Finding Ireti, The Silent Baron, The Pattern (all 2022); and in 2023: Domino Effect, The Hunter, High School Magical, (etc.) Unrelenting.

FUNKE AKINDELE (24 August)

This multi-talented woman kicked off her acting career with spots on a fairly long-running sit-com, sponsored by the UN Population Fund, I Need to Know (1998 – 2002). With her popular moniker, Jenifa, the grouchy self-inflated role has etched her image into popular imagination – a staple that was ripped from the fairly successful original two-part movie, Jenifa (2008), directed by Muhydeen Sasiliu Ayinde; and shredded into a weekly TV menu, Jenifa’s Diary (2015 – date).

  Remarkably, in spite of its sometimes turgid plots, the lively and unpretentious characterisations give the sitcom a real-life feel, thus making it a very successful franchise. Olufunke Ayotunde Akindele has continued to squeeze the franchise, and the current reality is that even after over 300 episodes, it’s still capable of giving more. A credit to the live wire the concept has become.

As a spin-off, she has also wangled out 18 episodes of Aiyetoro Town, on YouTube (from July 2019), so named after the fabled village Jenifa initially sprung from, in the break-out Yoruba video. 

Some of her later titles include Dwindle (2021), Chief Daddy 2: Going for Broke; Far From Home, Battle on Buka Street (2022); She Must Be Obeyed, No Way Through, A Tribe Called Judah (all 2023); and House of Ga’a – Ayinba (2024).

Akindele has starred in more than 60 movies, mostly in Yoruba; however her (first) biggest box-office (was) Omo Ghetto: The Saga (2020) which in 2021 was reported to have outstripped the highest grossing film, by a fair mile. The 40-year old movie mogul became a bankable project subsequently. Her next work, Battle on Buka Street, outstripped Omo Ghetto as the highest box office when it grossed,  according to media reports, in excess of ₦640 million in 2022. 

  As if that was not staggering enough, figures in public space gave her current movie, A Tribe Called Judah, the suggestion of the African champion box office spectacle with sums globally collated to be in the north of ₦1.5b!

Yet, she is not just a money spinner, she is also critically acclaimed for her acting prowess. With Jenifa’s Diary, Akindele has won the Best Actress in a Comedy award at the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards in multiple years: 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2022, 

 To all my August people, some of whom – for lack of space and recollection – we can only mention in passing, may your days and legacies be long.

(To Continue)