By Agatha Emeadi
Dr Alexandra Okoroji is an actor, media personality and creative consultant. She is also the founder of The Brag Media Group and a member of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN). She is the daughter of Chief Tony Okoroji, former president, Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN), which later became Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON). Alex, as she is popularly known, has worked hard to make her own name in the industry, instead of hiding in the shadow of her father. Being the daughter of Tony Okoroji at some point became a little pain in the neck: “The moment I introduce myself at a gathering, the next question would be, ‘are you Tony Okoroji’s daughter?” Like a chip of the old block, she has been able to achieve success in her own right through determination and hard work.
The same bug that bit your father has also bitten you in the entertainment industry, how do you feel being in the same trade with Chief Tony Okoroji, your father?
It runs in the genes. One cannot really avoid what you have inside you. I grew up in a home filled with arts of various designations. There were movies, films, even my mother who is a fashion designer is also in the class of arts on its own. When something is in the blood, even as it is traced back to our old generation, we had great-grandparents who were musicians and artists in the family as well.
How do you feel when people ask you at events, ‘are you Tony Okoroji’s daughter?
Honestly, I used to deny him. It is so embarrassing that when I get into a place and introduce myself, the next question is ‘are you Tony Okoroji’s daughter? I am like what is that? In fact, it became my strong push to work hard to change the narrative. I guess I achieved that because my dad said something to me recently. He said: “Before, everybody used to say that is Tony Okoroji’s daughter, but today the narrative has changed. People now say that is Alex Okoroji’s father.” It simply meant that people saw me through him then, but today they see him through me. He is now being recognized because of me, instead of me being recognized through him.
How was growing up?
I grew up in a home filled with arts, movies and music. It was nice seeing my father do what he does and my mother which inspired us a great deal. We understood it. I am actually one of those who grew up in the industry. As little children, we attended events even when the enemies were doing their part. I remember running around the PMAN House at Oremeji with Charly Boy’s son when we were back from school. I saw the events through my father then and what it meant to put together a spectacle. Everyday when we were coming back from school, we would stop at PMAN Headquarters at Oremeji. I was inspired by how one could use their talent to literally influence people. While growing up, I thought I was going to be a doctor and that was the thinking of my mother as well. My father was a bit different, he was of the opinion that my education is important and all that but then, you cannot run away from the thing that gives you joy passionately. It is where one feels completely free. What I am doing is what I do effortlessly. I just realize this is my hub and that is pretty much what it looks like really. That is what it was.
What has been your highpoint since you have been in the industry?
Well, the highpoint of my career in the last 18 years could be summed up into excellence. I came into the industry in 2005. I have also been doing other things like speaking motivationally, doing radio shows, writing books, leading organizations in the printing sectors especially on the global side of things.
Any low point or challenge?
Yes, for the low points, I guess everyone has his and her low points in life. But somehow, I guess the bad news spreads faster. When I started my career, it was pre-social media era, one had to buy City People, Encomiums and Double Excellence magazines to get the gist of the day. But obviously one’s failures were magnified. When my marriage failed, it made front page news. That was a low point. Again, there were a lot of comparisons for someone like me, it was a bit hard when I started. There are people who have expectations of you because they know your father, know what you do. I went through it the hard way because I wanted to separate myself from him. I didn’t want people to think I am in the industry because of who my father is, or that I got something because my father is this or that. So, I did my thing to separate myself from his identity to earn my own respect. I punished myself the hard way to separate myself from my father’s influence.
If you were not in the entertainment industry, where would you have loved to be?
I don’t not know where I would have been, probably to be a teacher because I have a lot of respect for teachers. I respect the lot of work that teachers do coupled with the fact that they are under-appreciated here. Teachers are literally the second parents, if not co-parenting with parents, and the foundation of much work not known to all. I love the work teachers do and it is also a lot of sacrifice and I do not think they are fully appreciated. That is what it should have been that wasn’t, but I am doing a lot within the arts and I love what I am doing.
How do you relax working in a busy industry?
There is no relaxation at all. My relaxation is like 10 minutes of listening to music or spending time with my son. I rarely have time to relax, because people always want me to tell them something funny and maybe, I do not sound funny, but I am always working round the clock, maybe because of my involvement in other media company where we do a lot of work that lead to working round the time zone. So, it’s difficult to explain why when people are sleeping, you are working and vice versa.
What message do you have for the upcoming actors?
The first thing I would tell them is to associate themselves with the Actors Guild of Nigeria. When I was coming up in the industry, I used to ask what is the guild doing for me? I have been a member since 2006. So, where we are now, we should not be asking what the guild is doing for us, but rather what we are doing for the guild because the guild is made up of everyone, every member. It is a collection of the members’ responsibility and as you grow in the industry, when you start up fresh and hot, it might not last for the entire generation. A time will come when everybody has his or her season. There was a time I was in every soap opera between 2007 and 2010, but the moment I got married and had a baby, attention shifted from me as new faces came up. One will not always be hot forever. This is why we all need the association, because one has to think about areas of welfare. Ultimately, there is nothing like the power of support system where one thinks about collective growth, not individual growth anymore. So, I would advise the upcoming ones to join the guild and be engaged in the activities and find ways to work and support and contribute their own quota. It is a bit difficult to correct things from the outside of the organization. You can criticize from the outside, but when one is inside, you can make better input.
What good has the entertainment industry brought your way?
Oh, it has given me a platform to express myself and connect to people; sometimes in situations where you may not ordinarily have that opportunity to connect with them. It also allows me to understand the society better. People think that the entertainment, the work we do in the arts is just entertaining. Please be informed that it is also educating and the mirror of society. We use our storytelling to educate people on what is happening in the society that regular people might not be able to see and recognize.
What support system led to your success, being a mother and an entertainer?
To be honest, the support system is my family: my parents, siblings and other extended family members. It is not easy parenting and having a career at the same time. But God is faithful, by the time I had my son and went through the process of nursing, it took me a bit away from the industry because I could not be on sets, could not travel to places that needed presence. But in all, all things worked well and we are all fine.
What is your style sense?
Very comfortable and a very old-fashioned chick. I do not follow trends.