Who’s Ronke Tiamiyu and what attracted her to the entertainment industry?
I am a creative person naturally and entertainment is the venue that I express myself, whether it’s through my beauty pageant, my clothing line, my blog, or even my personal modeling. I’m drawn to so many different parts of the industry that each expresses a different side of me. For example, those who know me as a beauty queen might be surprised by the writing I do on my blog, discussing news of Nigeria and the world.
You have described yourself as ex beauty queen, model, pageant organiser and actor, what have you done in each of these roles?
Well, first, I was Miss Charismatic at MBGN 2013.This inspired me to launch the Miss Charismatic Nigeria pageant. Also, I have modeled for various outlets and was on the cover of House of Maliq. Finally, as an actress, I have been a guest star in ‘My Flatmates’ and a few other shows.
As a beauty queen what were your high and low moments and what experiences have they added to your life?
My high was definitely being onstage at MBGN and winning Miss Charismatic in 2013. I don’t really see any lows because, even though I didn’t win, that experience was such an amazing memory. It helped me transform into the woman you see today. I made so many new friends and have lifelong relationships as a result of MBGN, so, how can I ever look at any part of it as a negative?
As an actor, what turns you on and off about the industry?
What turns me on is definitely the ability to be creative and express myself. To be able to step into a character’s shoes and bring her to life. What turns me off is all the drama and gossip that surrounds the industry. The negative stereotypes people place on you because you are succeeding. Entertainment is a serious and successful business not unlike many other industries, but you never see this level of hatred, jealousy, drama and gossip in other businesses.
Why is it that entertainers find it so hard to find true love?
I think it’s hard for anyone to really find true love, not just entertainers. The difference is that our personal and dating lives have become public news whereas other people in other businesses get to live their love lives outside of the public’s eye. When we date, fall in love, have a lover’s fight, get our hearts broken, it’s all over the gossip sites. This fact probably does make it a little harder to date in entertainment because you have to keep your guard up.
Most girls in entertainment are thought to be promiscuous with poor moral values, what brings about this perception?
I think this is a big topic and there are two things that come into play here; hypocrisy and sexism. First, I could flip your question and say that most men in entertainment are thought to be promiscuous, the only difference is that it’s acceptable for men to be this way. It’s hypocritical. Furthermore, entertainers, men and women, don’t live in this closed off world that operates differently from the rest of society. Nigeria is a promiscuous place, but again, it’s acceptable, sometimes even expected, for men to be promiscuous and cheat. I believe women hold themselves up to higher standards overall than men, but when an individual does fall below them, it’s this terrible thing and when a man does it, it’s just a man being a man. The second part is the sexism. Somehow it’s perceived that a woman can’t be beautiful and sexy and also smart and a hard worker, whereas a man can be. If a woman embraces her femininity and her sexiness, she must be sleeping her way to the top. If a woman succeeds, it must because she slept her way there. Whereas a man can be sexy and risque and if he succeeds, it’s because he worked very hard and is very smart. Because of this, it’s even harder for women to succeed because they have to work hard but also fight against these preconceived notions.
What makes a woman sexy?
I believe sexiness comes from inside a woman. It’s not just beautiful pictures. To be sexy, a woman must be bold, she must embrace her femininity, she must have confidence and a true belief in herself and who she is and not live her life based on the judgments of others. Sexy is an attitude and that’s what separates it from simple beauty.
Between being beautiful and being sexy, which works for you?
When it comes to me, I believe that I have a combination of both. As I said, sexiness to me is an attitude. I live my life and I’m true to myself and don’t care what people think, only those closest to me truly know me.
Who’s your crush in the industry?
I crush on talent so it’s not really some sort of school girl crush. There are so many powerful people I admire for their talent, skill, and hard work, as well as who they are. We have so many incredible people working in this business that inspire me to do better. But as for a romantic crush? I don’t really have one.
The Instagram has become the market place for all entertainers to showcase their selling points, what are your major turnoffs concerning the platform?
I just think that the major turnoff of all social media, including Instagram, is that people, especially the bloggers, think that they know you as a result. Yes, it’s way to connect with your fans and your audience, it’s a way to market yourself, your talent, your company, but there’s this idea that everything you do or say on there defines who you are in your private life. Instagram and social media is nothing but a mere instant form of public relations that connects you to fans without the middle man of Tv, magazines and newspapers. It gives an artist direct access to their fans, that’s all.
All entertainers want fame and fortune, what sacrifices can you give in this regard?
If an entertainer is only in this business for fame and fortune, then they are in it for the wrong reasons and eventually it will consume them. We sacrifice too much on a daily basis to be in this business to just be in it for that, there must be something deeper. We sacrifice the steady pay of regular jobs like a bank or a telco. We sacrifice our private lives. We work really long hours and have to constantly have the energy to give our best performance every time out. In regular jobs you can have off days where you are tired and be lazy at your desk. You can’t ever do it in entertainment. So with all that you give up, you have to have a true creative and artistic passion to succeed for a long time. It has to be a part of you, a part of who you are, not just what you do, otherwise, this industry isn’t worth the sacrifices you make. The fortune and fame will come, but it’s the love of your craft that will truly make you successful.