Every year comes with controversies and the Nigerian entertainment industry never seems to disappoint in that aspect.
In 2022, some Nigerian celebrities made the news for a series of controversial moments, ranging from marital issues to industry fights, and provoking comments.
Here are some controversial celebrities who made the headlines in 2022:
Portable
Popular street-pop artiste, Habeeb Okikiola, popularly known as Portable, has always found his way to the news since his big break in December 2021, with his hit song ‘Zazuu Zeh’ featuring Olamide and Poco Lee.
In May 2022, the singer threatened other artistes nominated alongside him in two categories of the Headies Award— ‘Rookie of the Year’, and ‘Best Street-Hop Artiste’.
As a result, the award organisers, sent a notice of warning to the singer.
After a video of him ordering some boys to beat up his estranged friend, DJ Chicken, surfaced on the Internet in June 2022, the Nigeria Police Force issued an ultimatum to the singer to report to any police station in Ogun State because the incident happened within their jurisdiction.
Barely had the dust settled on that, it was reported that the singer’s range Rover SUV was involved in an accident with an okada, leading to the death of the motorcyclist. However, the singer’s camp quickly stated that though it was indeed the singer’s vehicle, it was one of his aides who drove.
The accident happened on the day Portable’s third child was being christened, where he ‘wedded’ his second baby mama, Bewaji, at the ceremony.
In July 2022, Portable had in a viral video boasted to have formed the ‘One Million Boys’ cult group, leading the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, to order an investigation into the comments.
In the heat of the investigations, the singer was disqualified from the Headies as a nominee in the two categories.
In November, the singer had impregnated his lover, known as Keji, and had introduced her to his wife Bewaji. This was even as he allegedly brought the pregnant lady to live with him and his family.
The 27-year-old Sango Ota-based singer welcomed his fourth child with the third baby mama in December.
His latest controversy was his arrival at his concert in a coffin at Fela’s Shrine in Lagos State, on Wednesday, December 28, 2022.
Nkechi Blessing
Actress Nkechi Blessing left tongues wagging following her messy breakup with her supposed husband, Opeyemi Falegan.
Shortly after Falegan showered her with praises in February on her birthday, the duo began a war of words on social media as their breakup became public in April.
However, many had lambasted the actress for the messy social media drama, considering she had said just weeks before the event that she would not drag her partner on social media if the relationship ended.
In the heat of the social media battle, Nkechi claimed that she fed the UK-based military man as she denied getting married to him.
After a few months of calm, their feud was reignited in September after she spoke about him in an interview, leading to another round of the Instagram fight between the actress and the Ekiti State politician.
In November, Blessing began flaunting a younger man as her new lover, as she shared videos of their romantic moments on her social media pages.
The actress also caused a stir on the Internet during her visit to the Ooni of Ife’s palace, where she was filmed dancing in the presence of the monarch.
Yul Edochie
Nollywood actor, Yul Edochie, broke the Internet in April 2022 after the announcement of his second marriage to actress Judy Austin, revealing that they both had a son together.
Following the announcement, Yul’s first wife of 18 years, May, called on God’s judgment over the couple and unfollowed her husband on Instagram.
Yul’s family members also publicly disassociated themselves from his decision after the announcement.
A few weeks after the announcement, Yul stated that it felt good breaking the Internet, adding that he had become the most talked about man on the planet.
In May, Yul’s first wife and mother of his four kids openly stated that her family and her faith did not support polygamy, though it may work for some people.
In June, he alleged that some people were wishing death for his family, claiming that critics get angry when they see him happy.
He also boasted that polygamy brought him blessings and elevated his two wives, likening himself to the Biblical David.
November saw Yul announcing that he has been called to become a minister of God and in mid-December, the actor once again boasted about being a “proud polygamist”.
On December 21, Yul, however, decided to publicly apologise to May for his actions, as he stated that he meant no disrespect to her.
In her response, May maintained that she would not be cajoled into accepting polygamy, stating that she refused to be numbered in her home.
Wizkid
In November, Wizkid surprised fans when he revealed that he made a shocking revelation about his relationship status, lamenting that he has “been single for so long! Gotta find one or two.”
Many were shocked by his remark because the singer had recently shared a rare family photo of himself, his son, Zion, and a then-pregnant Jada Pollock.
Reacting to the comment, Pollock, music executive and Wizkid’s baby mama, said, “Taking arguments to social media is never going to end well.”
She also followed up with another tweet that read, “controlling emotions,” with a padlock and key emoji. The tweets by Jada have since been deleted.
This happened shortly after the Ojuelegba crooner unfollowed his colleagues and other celebrities on his Instagram account.
In early December, Wizkid broke the Internet when he made a controversial statement, “Rap is dead,” during an interview.
The comment caused an uproar in the entertainment industry, especially from rappers like MI and Ycee, who countered the artiste for his comment.
Wizkid doubled down on his comment when he called rappers “broke boys”, after he claimed some rappers sent him rap videos.
He further added, “Y’all not even rappers! Nasty C/Sarkodie/Black Sheriff the only rappers in Africa.”
