At the time when famous social media influencer, Aunty Adunni, moved from Nigeria to the United States, she probably didn’t expect she would ever add ‘relationship expert’ to her resume. But now, thanks to Facebook. Lady Adunni, with her ‘Real Talk With Aunty Adunni Live’, has stepped into the role of a celebrity speaker on social media, having no prior experience other than the opportunity she had had as an independent career woman, counseling families and fixing shaky relationships. It was a strange terrain when she started, she confessed during this interview, but one that she had no choice than taking seriously and in which she soon became a star.
A widow and mother of three beautiful children, Aunty Adunni who remarried barely three months ago, shared her journey through life; the thorns and roses, and more. Excerpts…
Tell us your experience airing the first show on social media.
I had anxiety doing my first live show on social media and I remember I had to write my points down before going on air.
At what point did you move abroad and what were the circumstances that encouraged you to relocate?
I moved abroad at a point in my life when I wasn’t fully prepared and ready for it. But today I have no regrets. The circumstances are private.
There are show hosts who run gossips or random social topics. What is the focus of your own show?
The focus of my show is largely and mainly about the entity of the family; the mother, father and, most importantly, the children, who are our future.
You are focused mostly on relationships; do you do that based on personal experience or it is just a thing you had decided to do from the inception?
I never set out to be in the public, but my personal experience and experience of many other people that I have had to counsel at a point in life, motivated me to do it. It’s a kind of therapy for me. I love encouraging people and love to see people happy.
Tell us about yourself; nationality, state, family, educational background and how your show name, Aunty Adunni, came about.
I am a wife and a mother. I was born, raised and schooled in Nigeria. I came from a polygamous family. I am from Oyo State but I was born and raised in Lagos State. Adunni happens to be my oriki, I added Aunty to it so the younger ones will see me as a big aunty they can confide in if need be. I have counseled quite a number of them who see me as big sister.
Watching you and your husband coming on the show is fantastic and real; tell us about your relationship.
I met my husband who I will simply address as Sir K, on Facebook, I didn’t take him serious when he approached me, but he made it clear that he wanted marriage from the onset. I tried to run but his charms were too strong to resist (laughs). To the glory of God, we got married in October 2023. I was a widow and he was a divorcee then.
You are a professional in other field, tell us about it; and what inspired you to start blogging?
I am actually a business owner, and like I said earlier, I love encouraging people and that motivated me to be a speaker on social media. if you watch most of my videos, they are all about people striving to being a better version of themselves.
You seem to have made great success of what you do, share with us some of your achievements so far.
My greatest achievements is being able to take care of my three children as widow, giving them quality education and also bringing them into USA as legal residents. My focus has been to see them have better life than me and this I see as the greatest and most fulfilling task of my life.
What is the greatest lesson life has taught you?
Hmmmm! life has taught me that life will not be what we want it to be most times.
What is your fashion routine like?
I don’t really have a fashion routine, weather in USA dictates what I wear. But I stick to African wears a lot during summer.
How do you give back to society in terms of philanthropy?
I do give cash regularly on my page. The last one I did, some people got as much as N40,000 each. I also help widows. I along with two others, have had to contribute over a million Naira to print note books to give to students in Nigeria as well.
If you could go anywhere else for vacation outside your current base with your family, where would that be?
That would be Bahamas.
What is your honest advice for young women about life and relationship?
I will advice them to be mindful of how they live and enjoy life because life has a way of coming back to either hunt you or face you. My question is, if your life is played back for you, will you be proud of yourself? Also, I will tell them to make sure they add value to their lives by doing legitimate things to earn money. About relationship; I would say, don’t be in relationship because you need money.
