Toyo baby’s role in JENIFA’S DAIRY is quite an interesting one, we all saw her as a good actress but just few people are aware that Juliana Olayode is also writer. In an interview with MRH, she discussed her disappearance in the popular Tv series, JENIFA’S DAIRY, her ongoing project and her new book REBIRTH
PLEASE TELL US ABOUT YOUR EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND?
Errrrm… I don’t want to talk about it, If you want to know more about my educational background please go get my book ‘REBIRTH’ (laughs).
HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO WRITE YOUR BOOK?
Well, it took me a while because when I wanted to write the book, I wasn’t sure if I’m ready to share my story. Rebirth is an autobiography; I used to tell people that autobiographies are the most difficult books to write. It is not a fiction that you will just write about anything, you have to tell your real story and it reminds you of some things you don’t want to remember and you have to write it all down. It’s really emotional writing an autobiography, so you will get everything you need to know in my book, Rebirth.
WHO INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE THIS BOOK?
I have two fathers, my biological father, and another father. His name is Timileyin Adigun; I call him my father too. He was the one that inspired me to write and of course, I am a Christian. When I got the instruction from God to write a book, you know because we can’t see God somehow we just try to delay some things that He is telling us to do. When God instructs us to do something sometimes, we keep procrastinating. The moment ‘DEE’, I mean Timileyin Adigun that God instructed me to write a book, he was on my neck and made sure I wrote the book. He is one of those people that really pushed me to write a book aside getting an instruction from God.
WHAT WERE YOUR CHALLENGES?
Like I said it’s an autobiography, I wrote about sexual abuse, I wrote about not being a virgin because I am an advocate of sexual purity and over time people think that because I am an advocate of sexual purity means I am a virgin. So coming out to tell my story about how I lost my virginity and a lot of other things I went through as a young girl was very emotional for me. There are times when I picked up my pen, I drop it back because the world will read my story and I wasn’t sure I was ready for people that have no clue of what I went through to criticize me. It was hard for me to write it but then again I have the book today. I overcame the fear of what would people say, what would people not say. Firstly, I did it because God instructed me to do so and to let people know that no matter what happens, you can be who you want to be.
HOW DO YOU HANDLE CRITICISM?
Well… you just move on, I don’t reply because I know that some of those people are just looking for attention and I know that some of those people who do that are not even happy as well the best thing is to ignore. Really…how many people do you want to reply? Sometimes it hurts to hear/read negative comments about you. It could be really irritating and annoying too.
WE ALL KNOW YOU GOT YOUR STAGE NAME FROM THE POPULAR TV SERIES JENIFA’S DAIRY, ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU STOPPED APPEARING IN IT. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT HAPPENED TO TOYO BABY?
All I will say about that is, it is a Tv series and in a series, a character comes and go, according to the story Toyo baby is in France at the moment. Who knows, you just might see that Toyo baby is back on your Tv screen.
WHO IS YOUR CELEBRITY CRUSH?
I have a lot of celebrity crush. First of all, I love Genevieve Nnaji so much, I cannot overemphasize it. For fitness, I totally admire Kate Henshaw. I admire a lot of celebrities for different reasons, I love Mercy Aigbe and of course Funke Akindele. I love Aunty Funke Akindele Bello so much, she loves people, she helps people, she’s hardworking. I love Chioma Akpotha, Ufuoma McDermott.
ITS VERY DIFFICULT IN OUR SOCIETY TODAY TO BE AN ADVOCATE OF SEXUAL PURITY, HOW HAS IT BEEN SO FAR?
Well…I have a community for my ministry. We do world virginity day every second Saturday in the month of June every year, telling virgins that being a virgin is not old school and to those that are not virgins that they can stay sexually pure. We are in a society where people talk about sex that people don’t even care anymore. God gave us this life and this is God’s standard for our lives and that we should keep sex till marriage. I think that is why most people have marital problems, I am not saying that marrying as a virgin will give you the best husband or you have the best children, just saying that God wants us to keep sex for marriage which is the most reason why I’m advocating sexual purity.
