•As We Celebrate Our 25th Anniversary
When City People started 25 years ago, we started out mirroring the lifestyles of celebrity women, one after the other. We were on top of our game as we captured the activities of all the celebrity women across the country from Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Kwara to Abeokuta, Ekiti, Ondo, Kano, Kaduna, Adamawa, Osogbo. Fifteen to twenty years ago, these celebrity women dominated the social scene. They were in their 40s and 50s. Now, many of them have clocked 60 and beyond.
As we celebrate our 25th Anniversary, we want to recall about 500 celebrity women City People can’t forget in a hurry. They are the woman who dominated the scene over the last 25 years.
Below are the list of these women we have admired over the years and who we have written a lot about.
When City People Magazine hit the streets in November 1996, Chief (Dr.) Mrs. Onikepo Akande (OON) was one of the celebrity women we wrote about. She is one woman with an intimidating profile. She has been a top Minister in Nigeria and a boardroom giant. And over the last 25 years, this ageless beauty has continued to wax strong.
She is a woman of great style. She is beautiful and very polished in her ways.
Let’s tell you about Erelu Olusola Obada who turned 70 recently. We started writing about her way back when she was in her late 40s. She is a top female politician who rose to become a Deputy Governor and a Minister of State for Defence.
Talk about one celebrity woman who has always been so confident of herself and who oozes confidence all the time, it is Mama Bakassi. Senator Florence Ita-Giwa has seen it all. She is the best example of a rounded woman, one who has conquered the terrain she has operated within. She is a politician of repute and a style icon par excellence.
Another ageless beauty is HRH Yewande Onile-Ere. She has always been stylish all her life. She has also been an ageless beauty. For very many years she ran a highbrow fashion store on Bode Thomas in Surulere, Lagos.
How about Hajia Abah Zainab Folawiyo, popularly called Sisi Abah by her admirers? She is one of Nigeria’s most celebrated society women and successful fashion designers.
We also wrote a lot about the very successful fabric merchants behind OYEOG Fabrics on Opebi Street, Lagos.
Back then, up till now, her shop was the place where the celebs all go to buy their latest lace fabrics at affordable prices. Her name is Bisoye Usman. Her daughter too is into fabrics.
Yeye Ayo Julius is another woman we wrote about then. On account of her unique dress sense and stunning beauty, she commanded the admiration and respect of other society women. It is a tribute to her sense of style that at any public function she attends, her regal presence never ceases to get people’s attention.
We also wrote about Sade Adesoye. Then, she was Sade Aleshinloye (Sade Alesh). She has a staying power that many other society women lack. She is a jewellery merchant.
One other woman who arrested our attention was Senator Daisy Danjuma, one of Nigeria’s most celebrated female celebrities. She is the celebrated wife of Lt. Gen. T.Y. Danjuma. She has always been one of Nigeria’s most stylish women.
Chief (Mrs.) Cordelia Agboti also rocked the scene. She has always been an established member of the Lagos social circuit, though of Igbo extraction, she had so many Yoruba celebrity women as friends. She is the wife of former Ebonyi Senator, Emmanuel Azu Agboti.
Queen Ayo Balogun is also one celebrity woman who we admire so much and we have been writing about her for over 20 years. So, good is that City People crowned her the Queen of Juju Music. She has been a leading Juju musician for decades. We started writing about it since she was in her 40s. She is now in her early 60s.
There are others like Alhaja Mosun Masha, Fausat Carew, Mrs. Ijeoma Bakut, Deaconess Detoun Olubi-Filani (Super Q), Chief (Mrs.) Josephine Fingesi, Mrs. Dupe Adelaja, and Chief Mrs. Stella Okoli, the owner of Emzor Pharmaceutical.
In those days, we used to write about Maiden Ibru, the pretty wife of The Guardian Publisher, late Alex Ibru. She was in her 50s then. And she looked great. Now, she has celebrated 70 and she still looks fresh, vivacious and charming. Each time you look at her, what you see instantly in her is her stunning beauty. Reason?
She is of mixed parentage. She is Greek and her mother is Itsekri. She is the Publisher of The Guardian newspaper.
Chief (Mrs.) Olateju Maria Phillips, the former Lagos Commissioner has kept a low profile. In those good old days, she was one woman of substance that could not be ignored. She is a Chartered Accountant. She is the Mojiroba of Egbaland and the Okanlomo of Lagos.
She is the daughter of late Ambassador Deinde Fernandez and the wife of Engineer Lanre Phillips.
What of Deaconess Detoun Olubi, the Super Q Aso-Oke woman? She is one woman who has dominated and still dominates the Aso-Oke fashion world for very many years, she has dictated the pace when it comes to wearing Aso-Oke. Now over 70, she has slowed down a bit, but she is still involved in the production of good quality Aso-Oke. We began to write about her when she was in her 50s. She is fondly called Iya Ibeta, because she is a mother of triplets.
Where is Sisi Dupe Lawale? Where is Vicky Onigbanjo? Where is Sisi Dupe Sagoe? Where is Mrs. Olayinka Onabokun? Where is Joan Elumelu Okorodudu, the Ageless Beauty/CEO Lagos Ageless? Where is Oloori Tokunbo Eko, the popular Lagos society woman? She is into Beads. One thing that endeared Oloori Eko to a lot of celebrity women is her exquisite bead designs.
Where is Chief Mrs. Ireti Asemota? She is one of the Matriarchs. She is the wife of Chief Sunny Asemota, the auto magnate. She is one of the matriarchs who have dominated the Lagos social circuit for over 5 decades. Although she was born in Lagos, Ireti Asemota is a native of Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State.
We also used to write about Fifi Ejindu. In those good old days within the Lagos social circle, Offiong Ejindu, better known as Fifi Ejindu, was highly rated as a top celebrity woman. She is an Architect. She is stylish she was so popular at that time. But she has kept a low profile for years. She has given parties wide berth.
Where is Abuja celebrity woman, Tokunbo Adeola? In those good old days, she was very popular in Abuja where she was the former Special Adviser to Vice-President Atiku Abubakar. This beautiful lady of style, who is now born again was born to an Egba father and a Jewish mother. She is now 65. Right now she is serving God. She is more dedicated to the service of the Lord.
Where is stunning beauty Funmi Goka? She is ageing gracefully. In those days, when she reigned, she was a top Executive at AGIP. She was in her 40s then. Funmi is the daughter of late Trade Union Leader, Lawyer and former Federal Minister, Chief H.O. Davies. She is married to Frankie Goka, her Ghanian husband.
There is also a Lagos celebrity woman, Chief Mrs. Moji Dokpesi. In the early days of City People, we wrote a lot about her. This is because each time the list of Nigeria’s stylish women got drawn up, her name always appears on it. Chief Mrs. Moji Dokpesi is the lovely wife of Daar Communications boss. She is a woman of great style. Whether she is dressed in formal wears or in Iro and Buba, she looks good all the time.
She also had a great shape. She is ageing gracefully now. Years back she was always permanently on the exercise machine.
She didn’t use to joke with her aerobics. Many women love her because she has a good heart. She is a happy person.
We can’t also forget, Ngozi Christy Nkoloenyi, the top society woman and fashion designer/ fabric merchant. She ran Bloomingdale, her fashion house which was then on Toyin Street, Ikeja, Lagos. Over the years, this very elegant and highly graceful lady has walked her way to the top as the lady whose shop celebrity women go-to for exclusive lace fabrics.
Not only did she stock them, but she also made these fabrics into exquisite designs. She is now ageing gracefully.
Let’s also tell you about Sisi Dupe Sagoe the top Lagos Fabric Merchant. She is regarded as one of the notable matriarchs within the Lagos social establishment. She has a solid clientele base. In those good old days, it was as if she was the only fabric merchant celebrity women go to for their lace fabrics. She is now in her 70s and she is ageing gracefully.
She is a matriarch in every sense of the word. She is a Lagosian whose grandfather was the late Candido Da Rocha, one of the business moguls who dominated the business space during the earliest part of the last century.
We also wrote a lot about 2 society matriarchs, Mrs. Mercy Adeyinka and Nta Lijadu, who as best friends for decades have been wearing similar outfits to parties.
The duo of Mercy Adeyinka and Nta Lijadu, are 2 of the most formidable matriarchs of the Nigerian social circuit.
They are both respected members of the Lagos social establishment.
There is a strong bond of friendship between the 2. Theirs is a match that was made in heaven. So many refer to them as the most prominent best friends in Lagos. Both of them have been friends for about 3 decades.
They are always attired in similar outfits. Both have now grown old and have become ageless beauties. They are ageing gracefully.
Another woman City People wrote about a lot in the early days is Ibadan female high-chief, Olanrewaju Adedeji-Otiti. Popularly called Lanre Otiti, she has always been glamorous, exquisite and has the ability to stand out exclusively in her style.
Her poise, carriage, elegance, sartorial taste are all enhanced by her well-shaped physique.
In those good old days, in the Ibadan social establishment, wherever she finds herself, she stole the show.
In those good old days, when City People just started there were a few celebrity ladies who we constantly wrote about. One of them is Nike Osinowo, the beauty queen. She graced the cover of City People many times over. We wrote about her in almost all the editions in late 1996 and the year 2000. This is because everything about Nike Osinowo made the news.
We also wrote about the Queen of Style, Nkiru Anumudu, who turned heads at parties. This is because she is bold and daring in whatever she wears. She is one of those women who dress to suit their mood. She does not go with the flow. She adorns Hats with a wide brim and she used to even rock boots. Nkiru likes to put on outfits that make her stand out from the pack. Give it to Nkiru, any day, any time. She loves to make great statements. From head to toe, all that she wears are usually designer stuff. She use to frequent all the fashion capitals to shop for what to wear.
But age has mellowed Nkiru a bit. She is ageing gracefully.
We also wrote a lot about former Ekiti 1st Lady, Mrs. Feyisitan Olayemi Fayose, wife of former Ekiti 1st Lady. So also, Senator Abiodun Olujimi who started her career as a Broadcaster way back at NTA Ibadan. She is today a Senator. She was once a Deputy Governor and a federal lawmaker at various points in her career.
In Port Harcourt, we did a lot of spotlight on many Port Harcourt celebrity women like the beautiful Bonny lady called Toru Ofili. She remains one of the top celebrity women in the garden city. She has always been a woman of great style. She is also a frontline female politician who rose to become a Rivers Commissioner in 2003.
We also wrote about Mediline Tador, the former Editor of Poise Magazine from the stable of Daily Times. At various times she was GM, Rivers Broadcasting Corporation and served as Information Commissioner.
There is also Port Harcourt celebrity lady, Dr. Nneka Onya who emerged as the best-dressed lady in Port Harcourt years back.
There is also Grace Ihonvbere, the pretty wife of Prof. Julius Ihonvbere. She lives in Abuja. She is into business. She is stylish. We also wrote a lot about Bunmi Ayuba, the CEO of Tailormade, a leading fashion house. She has been around for quite a while. She is a top society woman who is now a grandma.
How about Hajia Fatima Bamanga Tukur? She is the beautiful wife of Alhaji Dr. Bamanga Tukur. She lives in Abuja. She is a beautiful celebrity woman who is also very stylish.
Jumoke Oyeneyin, the Queen of H.O.H fabrics is another beautiful lady City People Magazine used to write about years back and she has remained consistent.
Over the years, she has been waxing stronger and stronger.
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