Fasten up your seat belts as we embark on the celebration of our top six celebrity couple!
Olu and Joke Jacobs:
Olu Jacobs and Joke Silva grew in acting together, and look at each other like partners not rivals. They are unarguably the oldest couple in Nollywood today. They have been married for almost 30years now yet their love is still strong! During Joke Silva’s 5oth birthday celebration in 2011, the couple renewed their marital vows and Joke was in tears!Recalling how they met, Joke says “When I first met Olu, he was this dashing guy. He was just such incredible fun! We got along very well. I didn’t even know his age; I thought maybe he was in his late twenties, early thirties. I screamed when I found out his age. He was 39 and I was 20! Well, eventually it was my mum who gave me the go ahead because she saw how serious I was with him and hadn’t seen me that serious with anyone. My dad was worried about the age difference but my mum was able to make him see reasons.
“I remember he proposed when we went for dinner and a Greek meal was served. I think he got the people in the restaurant involved in the whole arrangement; oh…it was just so romantic!” Joke says.
There were rumours about us considering divorce. It’s not like we actually separated but I must confess we were so close to it; it was really a tough time for both of us being a media couple. When you are not in the face of the media, it’s easier to resolve your differences, but when you are, it’s almost like you are not staying together for YOU because you are wondering, “What would people say?” And this mounts pressure. But I have to confess, I thank God for good friends because they talked to each party and brought solutions that I never thought were solutions…There’s a lot of societal pressure that makes men not be themselves. A man should be allowed to be vulnerable, strong, supportive, sometimes challenged and needing somebody to help him through and he should also be there for the person as well. On a parting note, for those couples about to jump the broom, go ahead and do it! Go in and enjoy each other; enjoy every moment of your marriage.
This is what Olu has to say
“ It is always good when God gives you your friend as spouse, when you meet your friend as your wife, life would be much easier because when others fail, you would succeed with friendship. Joke is more than a friend to me, she is a mother, a friend and a very caring, generous and deep person”
Charles Oputa a.k.a Charly Boy, has been married to Diana a.k.a Lady D, for over 35 years. The couple reveals that Love and understanding has kept their marriage going
Charles: We lived in sin for about two years but we have been married for over 35 years
Lady D: We met in Boston. That was in 1976 at a hair salon where I worked. Charles came in to fix his hair, but after he left, he called my boss and asked to speak with me. He invited me to a party the next day with a promise to pick me up from my work place. I noticed that he was so soft spoken and didn’t even have an accent at all. He didn’t even sound like someone from Africa. Now, that fuelled my curiosity. Before Charles, I never dated anyone from Africa. Well, he showed up the next day but guess what? There was no party to attend! We ended up driving all the way to the next state and back. That was the party.
Fela and Tara Durotoye:
Of course you all know Fela and Tara, who doesn’t!
Fela is a motivational speaker and business coach and Tara is an entrepreneur – she runs the popular House of Tara.
Need we say more about how they help and complement each other? Many Nigerian men were challenged by the action of Mr Fantasic himself (Fela Durotoye) when he published a public love letter to his wife in celebration of their forth wedding anniversary, six years ago.
Tara Durotoye (or Tara Fela-Durotoye, as she prefers to be called) is the pioneer of the Nigerian beauty industry. As for the love of her life, he’s passionately crazy about the amazing potential of Nigeria and believes that Nigeria can be the greatest country on earth. He is a man with vision and utmost respect for God. They are celebrities and have won different awards both locally and internationally in their endeavours.
After ten years of marriage, their love is waxing stronger without letting their fame, achievements and success get into their heads. They understand the concept of marriage and “manage”.
“We’ve defied the law of “love fades away’. With you, it’s LOVE GROWS. I don’t know how you make me but I find myself waking up each day loving you more. You know it’s true every time I tell you that I love you greatly but I also like you amazingly. Remember the text I sent to you on how much just speaking to you on the phone is like oxygen? Perhaps, that’s why we call each other every hour we are not together.
I am committed to working with God to bring out the best you that God has put in you. I am determined on seeing all of God’s dreams for you come to pass. Today, it’s House of Tara, in a short while, the WORLD OF TARA would soon become a reality, the multi-national empire that reveals the real beauty in every woman from the four corners of the world.”
Awwww, such love ….
Tunde and Wunmi Obe (T.W.O):
Tunde and Wunmi have been singing together right from university days. They’ve always been working together in whatever venture they get into. They are all-round entertainers, and have carved a niche for themselves with their peculliar type of music. They are also believed to be the entertainment industry’s most popular celebrity. Wunmi says “I love him. I love him so very much, he is my greatest companion. We still disagree sometimes, but I think when two people come together and pray over something it will always end up a happy story.”
Noting that Tunde “didn’t toast her before they got married” she said “it was gradual, when we both met, we had a working relationship and it wasn’t something that we planned, but eventually we saw it happening.
Tunde: “I love my wife with every fiber of my body. Even if you want me to tell everybody in the world that I love her, I will even do more than that.
Tunde tells what has kept them together “First and foremost, it is God. Without Him, we couldn’t have lasted this long and secondly, there is this mutual respect. And from the beginning she saw me as someone who had something to offer. And it’s vice versa. She matches up with me intellectually and socially. You should marry someone that can measure up to your intelligence. We also communicate a lot, and the respect between us makes it easier. I see her as my equal, I don’t talk to her in a condescending manner, neither do I use derogatory words for her. There is also the love factor, but we also made up our minds that we were going to ensure it works.”
They have three kids, the eldest Modesayo is, Ricardo, while the last born Andrew is.
2face Idibia and Annie Macauley:
Their ‘elaborate’ white wedding took place on March 23 2013.
2face says “Having kids has made me responsible…Being a father has also made me respect women a lot…Family for me is the ultimate coverage. It’s the people that have unconditional love for you and who will be there no matter what happens…I don’t know why I always want to be around Annie. Love is understanding, so, for me, I don’t think there is anything fairytale about love. I just believe that if there is this person you can cope with or blend with, for some reasons you cannot explain, you just want to hang with this person all the time and anytime you are not with that person, there is something missing, then you can describe that as love.”
Soni and Betty Irabor:
They complement each other and make up for each other weaknesses. Hear what Betty has to say
“The truth about marriage is that there isn’t one that is perfect. We are talking about strangers meeting, courting each other and deciding to spend the rest of their lives together.
There could be things that could create a strain in the early years of the marriage, but marriage in itself is a relationship where you continue to learn…So we must continue to feed our marriages with love, appreciate the other person and know that neither the wife nor the husband is a magician. So don’t expect that your husband would know that right now you are not feeling happy. The only way he would know is by telling him, so stop over-expectation. People are full of expectations in marriage and that can create a lot of strain…Let your marriage be your marriage. As much as possible, lock out people who don’t need to be part of the marriage. Marriage is all about what you put into it.”
Omotola Jalade and Captain Ekeinde:
And there’s the Omotola Jalade who didn’t love her husband at first but whenever she speaks about him, her face lights up in a smile. “If I had not married him, I would not have married anyone else.” She says in excitement.
And this is quite understandable, as their union of 16 years has weathered the storm and is one of the few in the industry that is scandal free. As a veteran in the marriage business, Omosexy, as the actress is fondly called reveals that the love was not instantaneous. “I always tell people that when I met him. I was not in love with him but he says for him it was love at first sight so I had to grow to love him. I was attracted to him because of his maturity. I saw the ability for him to see me. I mean, he knows me more than I know myself. It is just weird I can’t explain. You just can’t get it. But he feels my pain, it is easy for him.”
When their paths first crossed, a young Omotola had just lost her father; hence the emotional trauma she was experiencing at that time was overwhelming.
Then her husband showed up with a ray of hope and then she fell for his charming nature.
Describing her husband as her love ‘therapist’, Ekeinde attributes her spiritual growth to her husband. “I have even gone closer to Christ because of his exemplary behavior and the way he handles things. With the maturity I find in him, I can admire that and then emulate him. That is the connection and the way I have been able to live with him.”
During a recent crisis – claiming that her husband was sacked by Air Nigeria and seriously searching for a new job,- she stood by her man, and defended him. She boldly declared that “there’s nothing to worry about. I and my family are fine” and that was she effectively managed the crisis.