Helen Paul, Nigerian comedienne and actress, says she was once advised to indulge herself in scandals to command a huge fanbase on social media.
The entertainer brought the revelation to light during a recent Instagram live session with Doyin Hassan, movie director and actor.
Helen recalled that during the early days of her career, she had met a talent manager and thereafter indicated her desire to work with him.
The 38-year-old actress said the talent manager, however, declined her request, noting that she would have to indulge herself in one or two scandals to garner more popularity before the pair could work together.
“I once told someone that I really loved his work and that I would like to work with him. I had seen him manage two female artistes successfully. However, his response was, ‘Helen, if I am going to work with you, you may not like my pattern,” she said.
“He told me that ‘we may have to create one or two scandals for you so that the crowd can ‘follow’ you’ I then asked him what type of scandals he meant. He told me to ‘check up on people, especially females, that had about 10 million followers (on social media). Maybe they’ve got divorce issues or something related.
“He said that when I did that, I would get (more) followers. He also stated that after some time, I should begin doing charitable acts that would cover up any unpleasant thing I had done. He felt that the most important thing was to have many followers.”
Helen decried the various forms of “manipulations” people in the showbiz landscape engage themselves in just to maintain relevance in the industry.
“There is a lot of manipulation out there and some times, one cold be tempted to consider doing those things. Sometimes, I am tempted to post (on social media) some of the materials possessions I have acquired,” she added.
“But I am blessed to have people that call me to order. So, I am not able to show off, and that could be painful too.”
Comedienne, @itshelenpaul, revealed in an IG Live that she was once advised to indulge in scandals to become popular😱
Read the full gist here =>https://t.co/9sc50vRHdX#TheCableLifestyle pic.twitter.com/MKIij0ufon
— CableLifestyle (@CableLifestyle) June 5, 2021
Helen also recounted how she lost her two-month pregnancy on a motorcycle some years ago while rushing to attend a show.
She explained that at the time, she had about five commercial motorcycle riders (Okada) on standby to avoid gridlock when going for events and shows.
“I am comfortable working with guys, I have a problem working with ladies. I had more than five commercial motorcycle riders on standby. In case there was traffic, they would pick me up from any location,” she added.
“One day, I was going for a show and I was two months pregnant. I was with a friend named Frank and it was on that bike I lost my pregnancy. I told Frank that something was wrong with my stomach and that I was stained with blood.
“He checked my clothes and said I was stained with the blood of my menstrual cycle. I told him then that I had lost my pregnancy. At my instruction, I was taken to a hospital in Ikeja, Lagos State. The hospital cleaned me up but sadly, I could not attend the show I was rushing to.”
