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Celebrity marriages are always the focus of attention in several societies because they come with a lot of drama and often witness a shipwreck at some point. When such happens, ending with a messy breakup or celebrated divorce, the fun continues for social media community as both parties (especial the ex wife) continue to throw quick jabs at each other from time to time. The ex-wives do this more often either to keep trending under the man’s shadows or to address issues that led to the break up, especially in search of fresh credibility.
Well, there are men who have passed through such celebrity marriages and ended up receiving a barrage of assaults on social media, orchestrated by their ex-wives. Some others just received jabs at the early stages of the breakup and went quiet. A number of these men who married media personalities, actresses and instagram celebrities have remained influential after the divorce. Some others suffered minor credibility losses while others continued to enjoy huge followership on social media. One thing is common among these men who married female celebrities – the breakup was celebrated publicly on social and mainstream media, making some of the men even far more popular than they were before and during the wedding. Some of the ex wives have been accused of still living in the shadow’s of these ex-husbands because they need the men’s name to continue trending. Probably that’s why the celebrity marriages get more interesting even after breakup.
Here’s a list of 10 celebrity ex-husbands who married media personalities in Nigeria. The ranking was based on how the breakup was celebrated, the level of abuses and jabs that the ex-wife directed at the husband after the breakup and the recovery rate of the men shortly after the media frenzy brought about by the messy breakup.
11. Prince Walter Ogochukwu Igweanyiba
Prince Walter Ogochukwu Igweanyiba a Nigerian millionaire businessman popularly known as Prince Nku. He is the ex husband of Nollywood actress Uche Elendu. He and Uche had an elaborate wedding in 2012 and had two kids together before the marriage crashed. The Anambra born international businessman had reportedly called the marriage quits after accusing Uche of adultery, allegations she denied. The two were said to have finally separated because of what was tagged ‘irreconcilable differences’. Uche has since moved on with her life just as Prince Nku has faced his business.
10. Olanrewaju Gentry
Olanrewaju Gentry is the CEO of La Veronique Hotel, which is located in Oregun, Lagos. He is also a car retailer. He was born on October 7, 1965. Lanre is the ex-husband of popular Nollywood actress, Mercy Aigbe. The pair had officially got married in 2013 though they’ve been in relationship a few years before then. Lanre had a wife before Mercy but his first marriage had crashed before he married the Nollywood actress. Gentry said in an interview that his first marriage was a bad one but that it was a good experience for him as a young guy. He met Mercy shortly after his first marriage while she was still working in a bank and not considering becoming an actress. Their relationship grew into a marriage that eventually went South. It was reported that when he started to court Mercy, she was already engaged but he discovered that Mercy Mercy’s fiancé was already married to another woman. That broke Mercy’s heart and when she needed company and a shoulder to cry, Gentry was there available. That was how their relationship eventually blossomed into marriage. The marriage was said to have crashed in 2017 due to allegations of domestic violence against Lanre by Mercy, which he denied. The social and mainstream media feasted on this scandal as Mercy took to a number of these platforms to tell her story, making the affair one of the most celebrated high-profile break-ups in Nigeria, especially including the fact that Mercy was a very popular Nollywood actress.
Despite their messy separation which made the headlines in 2017, it appears the actress and her ex-husband have maintained a civil relationship, so much that he even celebrated her on her birthday. He took to his Instagram page to celebrate the actress with whom he has a son. Sharing her photo, he simply wrote:”Happy birthday mummy Juwon. Enjoy your day iya Juwon”
In spite of the rumours and allegations of domestic violence and infidelity, the reason Lanre and Mercy split up are still not very clear as there is not much information from his side of the story. However, the two seemed to have moved on especially after Lanre expressed monumental maturity by celebrated Mercy on her birthday.
9. Kehinde Al-Maroof Oloyede
Kehinde Al-Maroof Oloyede is a very successful Lagos-based business man. He is actually more popular on social media and most other circles as the ex-husband of high-profile Nigerian actress, Funke Akindele (better known for her television series – Jenifa’s Diary). Their marriage is regarded as one of the shortest celebrity marriages in Nigeria as it lasted for barely one year.
Funke was said to have left the marriage in anger at the time her romance with Oloyede was at the peak. While Funke Akindele was trying to achieve a quiet separation and eventual divorce with little or no public coverage, hubby Oloyede took to social media to broadcast the break-up.
He wrote, ‘It’s with heavy heart that am announcing the separation of me and ma wife Mrs olufunke akindele, we’ve both agreed to go our separate ways coz of irreconcilable differences. we still best of friends nd we 4ever remain gud friends. Am doing just fine, gettn along without u, don’t need u anymore in ma life. u d greatest mistake av made in recent time.’
Funke’s decision to marry the real estate businessman in 2012, was severely criticised by her fans and the media who wondered why she should get involved in polygamy. She rebuffed critics and went on to have one of the most glamourous weddings of last year on May 26, 2012, leaving days later for a honeymoon in the UK. Well, the wedding eventually went South very early.
The breakup was a bit messy shortly after it occurred in 2013, especially on social media. There was even a time Oloyede threw an indirect jab at Funke, using the junior wife as bait. It was reported that there is this house in Lagos Mr. Oloyede was said to have erected in the name of Funke but which was swiftly handed over to the junior wife on her birthday just days after Funke left in 2013. While the junior wife celebrated her birthday that year, Mr. Oloyede posted the birthday pictures with a tag suspected to be meant to hit indirectly at Funke. The message read: “Happy birthday to a wonderful wife. I wish you long life and prosperity. Thanks for being there always, even when I go off track… O ni suuru l’on j’ogun ohun gbogbo (the patient dog eats the fattest bones).
Well, Funke has since remained and moved on, making it big in the entertainment industry. Oloyede has since moved on, and no longer appearing occasionally in her ex-wife’s shadows as she is now moving on with her husband who is also an artiste in Nigeria’s entertainment industry.
8. Apo Arthur
Apo Arthur is the ex husband of Actress Uche Ogbodo. The pair got married on October 2, 2013, and they have a daughter together. The marriage crashed after barely 10 months. The reasons they parted ways weren’t disclosed. The breakup also had its own share of social media display as Uche Ogbodo shared on some of the platforms that her former husband did not make any effort to speak to her or see their daughter years after the breakup. When asked in an interview whwther she was into a relationship, she said “Yes and he treats me like a queen.) This was an indirect jab at her ex husband. Apo Arthur has actually been under the radar since the breakup and has moved on with his life.
7. Philip Ehiagwina
Philip Ehiagwina is American-based Nigerian businessman. He is the ex-husband of Nollywood actress, Ini Edo. The couple divorced in 2014 six years after their wedding. Reports have it that Ini Edo walked out of the marriage in September 2014 following accusations of domestic violence and cheating. The divorce may not have been as celebrated as some other high-profiles divorces in Nigeria but it sure received some publicity and story time in both social and mainstream media.
6. Roderick Nuttal
Roderick Nuttal is the ex husband of high-profile Nollywood Actress, Kate Henshaw. He is the Managing Director of Ledrop Nigeria Ltd. The company is an agency for Jack Daniels and Piper Heidsieck Champagne. He has moved on with his life after their divorce and has remarried. Roderick’s marriage to Kate Henshaw lasted for 12 years, one of the longest celebrity marriages in Nigeria. It was reported that he was having an affair with one of his employees and Kate Henshaw found out. He was said to have confirmed the relationship to her and given her the option to either accept the relationship or walk away. She opted for the later. The married ended in 2011 but did not cause the kind of perpetual bubbles other celebrity marriages caused after they crashed. Kate didn’t repeatedly bash her ex husband in public like most other celebrities that broke up with their husbands. The two have since moved on with their lives.
5. Omogoriola Hassan
Omogoriola Hassan is the ex husband of popular Nollywood actress, Ayo Adesanya. He is a movie producer and an actor. Omogoriola’s breakup with Ayo was also celebrated on social media with some messy jabs from both parties afterwards, to the delight of social media users. He once said in an interview that marrying Ayo was like boarding a ‘one-chance’ vehicle, adding that he was the greatest fool to have married her but he became the wisest and happiest man after the breakup. He said other very harsh things about Ayo in that interview which some fans felt was too extreme but that is what comes with celebrity marriages and breakups.
Ayo also expressed the horrific nature of that marriage when she was asked in an interview whether she would consider going back to her ex-husband. She screamed before saying “No. Never!” When asked whether she could at least consider returning because her son looked like the father, she retorted: Please, my son looks like me. He is my replica. So, stop saying otherwise.” That explains how messy the marriage was. The marriage lasted for 8 years. Both parties have since moved on with his lives.
4. Tony Eberiri
Tony Eberiri is the ex husband of Nollywood actress Chika Ike. Their marriage lasted from 2006 to 2013. The divorce did not go unnoticed as the social media feasted on it, especially the barrage of allegations Chika leveled against Tony. The marriage was annulled by the Abuja High Court after the actress made several allegations against Tony. She claimed he is to blame for their parting, an allegation he denied. Tony warned Chika in advance to not publish garbage about him on social networks, but of course such a thing cannot go unnoticed, and in no time, the entire Nigeria knew who Chika Ike’s husband is and the details of the alleged violent relationship. Tony insisted that Chika was guilty in the marriage issue too and also did everything possible to destroy their union. The actress accused her husband of beating her severally, which caused the loss of her pregnancy. Tony called her story a rude fiction. The allegations from both ends continued until the story quietly fizzled out of the media circles. The two have since moved on with their lives.
3. Tee Billz
Tunji Balogun aka Tee Billz, is the ex-husband to pop star, Tiwa Savage and had a son with her. He is the third on this list. The news of Tee Billz’s attempted suicide made him very popular. Reports had it that he was going through a major family crisis after he had accused his wife of infidelity and neglect. He also accused his mother-in-law of bewitching him. Tee Billz had made series of posts on his Instagram page where he made known his intention to take his own life at the Ikoyi-Lekki bridge in Lagos. Thankfully, a few of his friends came to his rescue.
Tee Billz picked media attention after his relationship and subsequent marriage to Tiwa Savage. He is an ex-manager of this popular singer. He was previously based in the USA before coming back to Nigeria. Together with Tiwa Savage, they owned 323 Entertainment. It was created as an investment project for Tiwa Savage. According to Tee Billz, he heavily invested in Tiwa Savage when she had no money. He was the man who paid for her photo shots, video clips, music albums and even transportation. The relationship between Tee Billz and Tiwa Savage started as a business partnership. As time went on, their business relations transformed into love and they got married but that did not last long.
It was reported that he tried to end things by jumping from the Lekki-Ikoyi Bridge. Fortunately, P-Square and Banky W saved him from this act. It was alleged that he attempted suicide due to an interview with Tiwa Savage. She portrayed him as an irresponsible father and husband, womanizer and chronic debtor. She also provided information that he was a drug addict. In Tunji Tee Billz Balogun Biography you will not find a response to these accusations. Newspapers and Magazines tried to make an appointment with him about Tiwa Savage`s story. They received no response or comments from him.
From one allegation to the other, with counter allegations too, the marriage with Tiwa Savage crashed in 2018. Tee Billz is still prominent on social media with comments on entertainment and other issues that draw reactions from the audience.
2. Maje Ayida
At number two is Maje Ayida, a fitness trainer who hails from Itsekiri, Delta State. He is the ex-husband of Toke Makinwa. Like I needed to even say that; the entire world already knows that. Maje’s break up with Toke in 2016 received monumental attention that dragged for quite a while. The break up came barely 18 months after their wedding.
Let’s get to know a little about Maje. He was just 8 years old he left for England where he grew up and worked for a while. He had a job at the bank of London for some years. But in 2000 he returned to country Nigeria. He began a new life for himself on his return to Nigeria as a fitness instructor.
Maje met Toke Makinwa at a boat club in Lagos. Their relationship grew into a wedlock that lasted barely 18 months. That was when Maje’s popularity grew on the altar of ‘image slaughter’ by his ex wife with numerous allegations, some of which were really creepy. The fitness trainer was accused of cheating on his wife for a long time to the extent that she almost committed suicide. He was said to have had a child with his girlfriend, Anita Solomon. At one point, this became the most high-profile scandals that rocked the Nigerian entertainment industry. His divorce to Toke Makinwa was also well celebrated especially on social media. Toke Makinwa;s book “On Becoming” which she published in 2016 contained several allegations against Maje, further making their divorce well celebrated. Maje even hired lawyers to stop the sale of Toke’s her books’ and threatened to sue her at some point due to allegations she leveled against him in that book. This book, to an extent, ruined the reputation of the fitness trainer.
The divorce and allegations influenced the Maje’s business. But he came out strong and continued to work hard. Maje Ayida once disclosed in interview has disclosed that he is unsure if he would ever get married again. He has since recovered from the initial shock he received from the barrage of jabs from his ex wife and he is now getting his life back together and stronger again.
1. Olakunle Churchill
At number one is Olakunle Churchill, the most prominent ex-husband of a female celebrity in Nigeria. He is the ex-husband of Nollywood actress, Tonto Dikeh, who has never failed to utilize the slightest opportunity to throw a quick at him. Churchill was born on the 26th of December 1982 in Lagos State. He is an entrepreneur and philanthropist. Among the companies he runs as chairman/Chief Executive Officer are the Big Church Haven Limited and Big Church Entertainment. Churchill’s marriage to Tonto Dikeh is among the most controversial in Nigeria. Their divorce was also among the most celebrated on social media, as virtually everyone followed the step-by-step process of break up between the two.
Churchill said in an interview published on The Guardian, that he met Tonto Dikeh at a night club during his brother’s birthday party in 2014. Three months after that meeting she got pregnant. The relationship eventually blossomed into a marriage that began in 2015 and crashed in 2017, after which Churchill became the most attacked ex-husband in Nigeria. Tonto Dike has accused him of all manner of things, including being a 40-second man.
Despite these jabs from his ex wife, Churchill remains a prominent philanthropist and entrepreneur in Nigeria, making donations to the less privileged on various occasions. He has also done well by not allowing himself to be dragged into a dirty fight in public by the provocative jabs from his ex wife. Churchill could be described as one ex husband who has received the most provocative jabs from his celebrity ex wife with very little response in return.
