Women should be trusted with blockbuster projects – Director Pink What message would you like to convey to women around the world in celebration of International Women’s Day? To every woman out there, I want you to know that your voice, your vision, and your dreams are powerful. Keep pushing, keep creating, and never let the world define your limits. We are rewriting the narrative, and our stories deserve to be told boldly and unapologetically. What is your favourite thing about female friendships? The unspoken understanding and unwavering support. Women uplift each other in ways that are deeply rooted in empathy, strength, and resilience. Having a tribe of women who truly see and support you is a gift. Who are some of the notable women who have shown immense support towards the success of your career so far? There have been incredible women who have shown up for me in different ways including mentors, colleagues, and even those who simply believed in my vision. Their encouragement, opportunities, and solidarity have played a huge role in my journey. What are the biggest barriers women still face in the industry today? I believe they are access and representation. Women still have to work twice as hard to be taken seriously, to secure funding, and to be trusted with major projects. There’s also the challenge of breaking into leadership positions where decisions are made. What message do you hope to convey to young girls through your work? I want young girls to see that they belong in any space they choose. Whether it’s behind the camera, in front of it, or leading an entire production—your dreams are valid. Be bold, be fearless, and never shrink yourself to fit into someone else’s expectations. How do you envision the future of women, especially female directors in the entertainment industry? The future is bright, but we have to keep pushing. More female directors are stepping into the spotlight, telling powerful stories, and proving that we are just as capable. I see a future where women are not just directing but owning studios, leading film industries, and setting new standards. What are some valuable lessons you have learned in the industry? I have learned that you have to demand your worth because no one will just give it to you. I have also learned that relationships matter. One needs to build one’s network with intention. Another lesson I have learned is that the journey is tough, but consistency and resilience will take you far. Also, never compromise on your vision. Stand firm in your creativity and let your work speak for itself. If you could change one thing about the entertainment industry for women, what would it be? I would change the lack of trust in women for big-budget projects. Women in entertainment, especially directors, producers, and creatives, are often overlooked for large-scale productions because there’s still a bias that men are better at handling high-budget, high-stakes projects. We’ve seen time and time again that women deliver exceptional work, break records, and create cultural moments, yet the industry still hesitates to put them in charge of major films, music videos, and productions. I want to see more women trusted with blockbuster budgets, major brand campaigns, and global projects without having to prove themselves twice as hard. Women in entertainment are ready and it’s time the industry fully invests in us. Women shouldn’t allow mistakes define them – Mercy Aigbe How do you often celebrate the women around you? I love celebrating women around me by always showing gratitude. I show appreciation either by kind words, posts on my social media networks or gifts. I love supporting my women. What is your favourite thing about your female friendships? My favourite thing about my female friendships is that we are a community, we encourage and support each other always. Can you share a moment in your career that shaped who you are today? I have so many moments, one of such moments was when I got my first award as an actress. It was the City People Awards and I was so overwhelmed with gratitude because it felt that I was been noticed and that I was doing something right. It also inspired me to do more. Who were some of your female role models growing up, and how did they influence your journey? Oprah Winfrey, Patience Ozokwor and Sola Sobowale. I just loved them for their craft and how much they put in to be who they are. That inspired me greatly. In what ways do you believe your craft has contributed to changing the perceptions of women in showbiz? As a female filmmaker, I have told stories that talk about women’s experiences and amplify their voices. I have made movies that have outstanding reception and gotten accolades. Also, as an actor, I have played roles that show a woman’s strength and I feel these have helped in changing perceptions of women. How do you envision the future of women in the entertainment industry? Let me start by saying I am so proud of the women in the film industry. Women are doing great things in the entertainment industry including women in film, content creation, music and many others. Many of them have gotten international recognition. I believe the future of women in the industry is bright and as a matter of fact we are just getting started. What is the one lesson you’ve learned that you wish more women in the industry knew? One of the lessons I have learnt that I wish more women in the industry knew is the fear of failure. For the longest time, I had stories to tell but I was sceptical it would not be welcomed. That delayed me a bit. I would love women to continue being fearless. If you make a mistake, it should not define you. Rather it should be a learning curve, an experience and a stepping stone towards greater success. Fertility issues fueled my passion for health advocacy – Stephanie Coker How will you be celebrating women this year? For International Women’s Day, my foundation, ‘Her’ is organising an event called ‘The Future is Her’. The event is focused on women’s reproductive health. So for International Women’s Day, we are going to be educating women on their reproductive health, as well as giving them an insight into things that are harming their bodies. This year, we are focusing on endocrine disruptors. There’s a lack of information and knowledge about how things that we use, wear and eat affect our health as women. This also affects men, but we’re focusing on women because it’s Women’s International Day and the foundation is focused on women. We’re going to be discussing how things like pots, hair relaxers and things we consume daily affect women’s fertility and hormones. That’s how we’re going to be celebrating it – by informing women and helping them make informed decisions about their bodies. What inspired your decision to become a women’s health advocate? What inspired me to be a woman’s health advocate was truly having a platform and also understanding my own lived experience of having reproductive issues. I understand what some of these women are going through, and that’s why I decided to dedicate my platform and my voice to helping other women because there’s a lack of attention to women’s reproductive health instead, fertility takes the centre focus. For instance, there are women who don’t want to have children, but they still have reproductive issues that affect their quality of life. So, if somebody doesn’t want to have children, because they’re having issues with their hormones, they should still be a focus. So if one has PCOS, but doesn’t have kids, doctors don’t really focus on the other things that can develop from PCOS, like type II diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. They usually focus on fertility, that’s why some say ‘Come back when you want to have a baby,’ but it should be about the well-being of that woman and the quality of life. What are some women’s health issues that are overlooked that you think the public needs more enlightenment about? I think the public needs more enlightenment about products that affect women, especially young girls, including children. If you are using a relaxer on your five or seven-year-old daughter’s hair, you don’t necessarily know how it’s affecting their hormones and I think parents, and mothers need to be more knowledgeable about these things that are affecting their children. They need to understand that there have been studies linked to certain diseases from continuous exposure to some of these products. So I think there needs to be more work done. NAFDAC can also help in regulating some of these products and giving people the will to make informed choices. Products can be warning signs the same way cigarettes have a warning sign that they can kill. Products that may have endocrine-disrupting ingredients in them should come with a notice to help people make informed choices. Can you tell us about an experience where a woman helped you progress on something? Women helped me with motherhood. My friend who was already a mother really helped me adjust because it was my first time, and I didn’t really know anything about being a mum obviously. How do you feel about the increased representation in the industry? So it makes them feel like there has been change and women are creating their opportunities. I think we’ve really stopped the conversation of being given a seat at the table and we brought our own tables and we’re sitting there. So it’s not about someone giving us opportunities anymore. We’re creating our own opportunities. What area of the industry would you love to see more female representation? I would like to see more women behind the scenes in production, sound, lights and the likes. I have been seeing a lot of that actually. When somebody looks attractive, it doesn’t necessarily mean they must be in front of the camera. They can also do other things, like directing. Also when they are behind the scenes, many people don’t take them seriously because they feel like an attractive girl should be in front of the camera. So I think women shouldn’t be judged based on their appearance. They should be taken seriously regardless of their looks. Gender representation has improved in showbiz – Kaffy What have been the highlights of your experience representing Nigerian female dancers on the global stage? For me, it has really positioned the idea that the creative industry has a lot to give when it comes to Human Resource development. As a female, it has given me a lot of access to young girls and women to help them on the journey of self-recovery and empowerment. Being in that capacity has also given me the power and the voice to refuse to be in certain kinds of agenda that women experience in the entertainment industry, such as sexual harassment, sexual favour, or just over-sexualisation of a woman. It has given me some sort of autonomy to do what I want to do. It has also given me opportunities in the health sector to help a lot of women find their body confidence and raise more self-awareness. During my pregnancy, it also gave me the opportunity to let people know that pregnancy is not a disease. You can be an expecting mother and still be active through your term, especially when it is healthy for you to do so. I am really blessed to have had such an opportunity for this narrative on a global level How do you perceive the current state of gender representation for female dancers in the industry? I would say that it has improved greatly. There is now space for dancers, vixens and models, especially as Afrobeats have switched up a notch. What stereotypes do you aspire to challenge and change within the dance industry? I would like to change the stereotype that dance is only limited to performance. There’s a business side of it, there’s the management side of it and even the entrepreneurial side of it. There’s an ecosystem of economic relevance that dance has to play, so people should stop limiting dancers, especially females to that sexy, eye-candy act. There are dancers that are creatives, directors and designers. One stereotype that I have been able to work on is the push for equality amongst women in the industry. That narrative of dark-skinned girls has been broken. I have lots of dark skin, and beautiful girls to be on the screen and now, artists even ask for more dark-skinned ladies. There is now a balance in terms of representation of women with different skin colours. In what ways do you celebrate, and support women around you in your professional and personal life? From a professional perspective, I am always looking out for young girls and women pushing through life against all the patriarchal limitations and societal conditioning. Naturally, such a woman earns my support or admiration and I would want to give her some flowers, either by putting her on my platform or putting her on a project. What do you think about the trend of pregnant women dancing? From a scientific perspective, dancing in itself has multiple benefits for the human body. Dancing is the best thing a pregnant woman can do for herself and her baby. Dancing during pregnancy helps a woman with the risk of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She might not even experience it because she has built her mental framework. It develops you physically and mentally at the same time because you cannot dance and be sad. Even in church when we dance, we are releasing negative energy so the importance of dancing cannot be overemphasised in a human life not to talk of a human producing another woman. The only thing is one just has to be careful and be sure they are healthy enough to take on certain activities while pregnant. Also, one needs to have had a fitness lifestyle beforehand. It makes it easier during pregnancy. An already pregnant woman can pick up the fitness lifestyle but one needs to be very careful if not used to it. What do you envision as the future for female dancers in Nigeria? We already know that commercially, it is widely accepted. It is a part and parcel of the Afrobeats movement. It has also been an excellent driver of the culture globally. Music capitalises on the back of dance to penetrate a certain society. Many international artists connected to our songs mostly from our dance but that is still on the entertainment side of things. For the dance business, we still have lots of work to do to showcase the ecosystem that allows other systems to thrive off dance like shows, fashion, movies, and education. These areas are yet to be properly explored and that is the focus of my expo coming up in August. My aim is to bring to awareness the economic proposition of dance in connection to other industries like advertising, communication, health and wellness. We need more narratives to showcase that dance pays. What encouragement do you have for women interested in dance but shy away because they feel too old? If you want to dance, dance. If you want to be a professional dancer, just be realistic depending on the age you are. I don’t think there is an age limit to dancing. I have been on sets where they need women in their 40s or even 50s. It’s just the same with movies. Of course, younger actresses will get certain roles but there will still be a need for other actresses of other age grades. There are now older people that walk the runway and it started with one person. It is social conditioning that has made age look like a factor. There is dance for you at every age. If you love to dance and you are a 60-year-old woman, learn how to dance and open a dance club for 60-year-olds like yourself. How I handle criticism rooted in gender bias – KieKie What inspirational message would you like to share with women around the world? My inspiring message to women around the world is to continue to push and believe in themselves. That dream you have, you have it because it exists and for it to exist, it means you have the strength and power to make it happen. Take every opportunity like it is your last and one day, you will be where you want to be. What do you cherish most about your female friendships? What I cherish most about my female friendships is the spirit of community. It is very important to have women around you, who feel what you feel and what you are going through and who are constantly ready to hold your hand through any kind of storm. What do you believe are some of the most pressing needs for women today? I know it might sound cliche but one of the most pressing needs for women today would be the need to be heard. I know we have spoken about it over and over again, but women are not heard enough in terms of what they can do. We bring more to the table aside from being a fantastic wife or mom. There is also that wisdom, skill and talent that we have that is being put into us to make the community and society at large a better place. We need to show what we got. In what ways are you actively working to challenge negative stereotypes about women in showbiz? For me, I have challenged negative stereotypes by putting out great works. The numbers out there can prove it. I have done that without having to sexualise myself or sell my body at any point in time. Hard Work pays because it has paid me and this is a gentle reminder out there that you don’t have to use your body to get what you want. What you need to get what you want is your brain and as long as you constantly charge your brain to do the work, you are going to get the result that you desire. What do you see as the most significant barriers still confronting women in showbiz? Interestingly, one of the barriers women face in the industry is age. When one clocks a certain age, one might start to experience age shaming with some believing that you are too old for certain things. People forget that the older the wine, the finer. The older one is on any field the better they get on that field. Women need to be treated as talents and their age should have nothing to do with that. How do you envision the future landscape for women in showbiz? The future of women in the entertainment sector is very bright. Right now, at the top list of directors and producers in the film industry, we have women like Funke Akindele, Jade Osiberu, Kemi Adetiba, and Toyin Abraham, just to mention a few. We also have lots of women in the government whom we are also relying on. For example, the Minister of Art, Tourism, Culture and Entertainment is a woman. So, yes! The future is bright. What core values do you believe are essential for women to thrive in the industry? One of the core values you need is discipline. In everything one does in life, one should be very disciplined and this is not something that is limited to women alone. Discipline results in great standards. It is something we should hold in high-value How do you navigate criticism that may stem from gender bias? I navigate such criticism just by doing what I do and showing results. When you see my results, you have to ask yourself if it makes sense that a woman can do it. Then, also ask yourself if a woman is as equal to the task as any other person you want to put the task on. Individual strengths and capacity are actually what should define who we are and not our gender. What motherhood lessons have you learned that have influenced your career in showbiz? The biggest lesson I have learned from motherhood is love. My child taught me love on another level and it is with this love that I deal and associate with people. Before now, people would tell you that KieKie is such a fun person with great energy and vibes all the time but after I had my baby, I will tell you that this even increased. Before, everyone knew that I kept my content decent because they are family oriented but after having my child, I felt more responsible for the world at large and for every content that I put out there, I make sure that it is safe and not causing any mental harm to anyone. This is what motherhood did to me. Women in showbiz raising the bar globally – Etinosa What is your message for women in commemoration of International Women’s Day? It is a great day to celebrate and honour a great gender. Today is not about comparison or competition with the opposite gender but a day to reflect on how far we have come in making our voices count, our dreams valid and our spirits alive. What do you cherish most about your female friendships? To be very honest, let’s not lie to ourselves, women need to do better among themselves in friendship. I cherish honesty and transparency but I personally have not been so lucky in this department with women. What do you believe are some of the most pressing needs for women today? Women need education, love and acceptance, inclusion, empowerment, gender equality and security. In what ways are you actively working to challenge negative stereotypes about women in showbiz? I believe so much in education as an important tool of empowerment. That is why, apart from the youngsters I currently sponsor through school, I run a free mentorship programme for both males and females in the entertainment space. Also, as the Chief Executive of E.P.I projects, I have a staff strength of 45 professionals including men and women with over 20 feature-length productions and counting. I also employ labour in my engineering company which majors in procurement. After my engineering degree, I went further to get a postgraduate diploma in construction planning in Liverpool which I practiced for 3 years before kick-starting my acting career. My screenplays have been produced and premiered not only in Nigeria but also in the UK, Ghana and France to mention a few. I have also bagged international awards as an actor. Women in entertainment are raising the bar globally and I want to use this opportunity to urge news outlets, and the media, to focus more on these wins than radicalising scandalous news that brings disrepute to women in showbiz. How do you envision the future landscape for women in the entertainment sector? As the awareness for equal opportunity and gender emancipation continues to rise, more women will have greater prospects than the generation before them. Even in this present generation, women in entertainment are going over and beyond to create opportunities not only for themselves but for the masses both nationally and internationally and I believe the stakes will keep getting higher. What core values do you believe are essential for women to thrive in the industry? My production company thrives on the following core values and I believe this should be every woman’s watchword as well. They include integrity, respect, a positive mindset, continuous self-development, grace, confidence and intentional work (Hard work, smart work, dedication and commitment). What lessons have you learned from motherhood that have influenced your career in entertainment? Oh! The biggest lesson has to be patience. I used to be short-tempered but over the years, since I became a mother, I would say I have really really changed. Like Nigerians will say, ‘I don calm down.’