I didn’t go to BBNaija to ride on Awolowo’s name — Seyi

Former Big Brother Naija contestant, Seyi Awolowo, recently revealed that he went to great lengths to ensure his family legacy remains unknown to other contestants upon his audition for the reality television program in 2019, noting that he wanted to prove himself based on personal abilities and not the celebrity status of his last name.

In an interview at the Nigeria Meter Podcast, Awolowo stated that he had no intention of revealing his family lineage during his time in the Big Brother House to the other contestants.

Awolowo further explained that everything changed once the host of the program, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, pronounced his full name during the introduction.

“I didn’t want anybody to know I was an Awolowo in the house. I didn’t want the housemates in particular to know that’s who I was, but when I got to the stage and Ebuka called ‘Seyi Awolowo,’ that’s when everyone knew,” he said.

Seyi explained that his intention had been to participate in the competition simply as “Seyi,” without the weight or expectations that came with his surname.

“My own plan was just to be there as Seyi, but immediately he mentioned it, my whole plan went away,” he added.

The reality TV star also dismissed any suggestion that his family name gave him an advantage during the show, insisting that he went through the same audition process as every other contestant.

“I did the audition proper, I stood in line. I didn’t get my golden ticket until about 3 a.m. on the third of February that year,” he said.

He recalled attending the audition with a friend, while one of his stepbrothers also showed up but arrived too late to participate.

“Me and my guy went for the audition. One of my stepbrothers also came for the audition but he got there late,” Seyi said.

Seyi was among the contestants in the 2019 edition of Big Brother Naija, where he became one of the show’s most talked-about housemates.