“I did a little too much that earned me a bad reputation” – Actor Jim Iyke opens up on his early days of his career

Nollywood actor Jim Iyke has admitted to earning a bad reputation as a result of not being schooled on how to handle fame in the early days of his career.

In an interview with Sunday Scoop, Iyke said, “One cannot make a difference in anything in life if one is not open to criticism. At first, don’t forget we were not schooled about what to expect as regards being famous and handling fame. We did not understand what it meant. We did a little bit too much that earned us a bad reputation. I could not conduct myself with the best decorum in those days. As one gets older, one understands oneself, one’s pattern, the people around one, and the responsibility that has been entrusted unto one. It is no small gift to influence people. One owes the world a certain responsibility whether one likes it or not. We refused our responsibility along the way but once one embraces it, things would become easy. That is what I do these days. It is about my businesses, family, and mental health.”

Asked about the woman in his life, the actor said, “My partner is a very quiet, conservative and highly intelligent person. She does not have any say in the limelight. At some point, I understood it. It is simple arithmetic— one is out there and the focus is on one. (The best thing is to) find somebody there is no focus on but meets one’s intellectual, physical and spiritual values.”

Sharing his thoughts on the ban of Twitter in Nigeria, he said, “I don’t agree with the regulation of social media in Nigeria. The strongest tool of interaction for millennials is social media. You cannot take that away. It is not just a platform for commerce for them; it is also a platform for venting about social ills. If you take that away, you take away their fundamental human rights. It is to be denounced in every form or shape.”