The last girl standing on the season 6 edition of the music reality show, Nigerian Idol, Akunna Okechukwu, is always a delight to catch up with. Akunna put her law career on hold and participate in the competition because of the support she got from her friends and colleague, writes Olivia Ogbonna.
One year after the world met Akunna Okechukwu on season 6 of the Nigerian Idol show, she’s speaking out on what life has been like since the show wrapped up on July 11, 2021.
Akunna was the last girl standing and the second runner-up on season 6 of the popular reality TV singing competition. Before the show, she worked as a lawyer, “working a 9 to 5 that was more like an 8 to 10”. She only agreed to go on the show after a friend convinced her, The Trumpet gathered.
She explains her decision to get on the show saying, “So when I decided to try out for Nigerian Idol, I was on leave from work, so I had time to spare. And before that time, my friends had constantly nudged me to try being on a TV singing reality show or something like that.
I just didn’t think I was the type because I used to feel like I was extremely serious. Dancing, singing, and performing was never what Akunna would do on TV.
But my friends put me up to it, disturbed me, and I thought there was nothing to lose because I was on leave. So, I just sent an old video and boom, I got into the physical auditions, and the rest they say is history.
Good history. “ Before that, she would never have believed someone if they told her she could make it to the top three on a panAfrican music show. However, since making it to the top three amongst 11 talented contestants that got to the live shows, Akunna confesses her life has changed for the better.
“Life has been amazing! To be honest, I would not even lie; life has changed. I’m not the same person from a year ago, and that’s in a very positive light. So I would say that I’m living a new life, and I’m enjoying it, and I’m grateful every single day for it.”
However, this new life also means the 25-year-old lawyer could not go back to working at her former law firm. Instead, she says, “I didn’t go back because I had a brand new life.
With the new life that Nigerian Idol gave me, I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to combine both. What I did was I opened my entertainment law firm since I liked music and understood the business and the law aspect. I decided why not create a legacy for myself?
I also got a partner that works under and with me. So, it has been a pretty easy process because she makes it easier for me to be a superstar.”
Even though Akunna confesses that she never thought she was a good enough singer to win the whole competition, the singer always had one goal – to be the last girl standing, and she did just that. She says she chased that coveted title because she knew it would open her to a unique set of opportunities. “That was the title I wanted to leave with so bad.
That’s why one of the tensest moments I ever had on the show was when they were about to pick the top three. It was two guys and two girls at the time. I just wanted to be the last girl standing, and I’m grateful that God came through. That title has gotten me a lot, just because I’m able to say, ‘Oh yeah, I was on a TV show top three, and I was even the only girl remaining’.
They are like, ‘Oh my gosh, she must be good, let’s give her the job’.” One can say that Akunna has truly enjoyed the title, getting to work on new entertainment projects that wouldn’t have been on her radar before she went on the show. She says, “Most importantly, what we all want is what will bring in the money. And if music is going to do that like it has done the past year, then I’m blessed.
I have sang at several events, thanks to the Nigerian Idol platform. I have hosted events. I’ve done many things that probably brought me more money than I had when I was doing a 9 to 5. I’ve tried hosting thanks to Idol’s platform. I didn’t even know I could. But people said, ‘we watched you on the show. We watched your excerpts before the show, and you speak well’.
So, I hosted a couple of things, and they turned out amazing.” Although Akunna has been singing since she was in the children’s choir with her siblings, she never really gave music a second thought as a career until she made it to the Nigerian Idol’s stage.
Since then, she’s been trying to discover who she is musically and creating new music. In a candid mood, she shares, “So the first thing I did when I came out of Idols was to make sure that I understood my sound. When I was on the show and performed, people attributed some amazing female musicians to me.
So there was a conflict because I had not understood the sound that I wanted. I’m currently working on that, and it’s all-encompassing.
I have boot camps where some good producers can call one or two A-list artists that work with me and teach me.” The 25-year-old has also been making music and is gearing up to release her first single and EP. She says fans should be patient.
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“I have worked on a couple of amazing sounds. I have records on the way by God’s grace. And what I mean by God’s grace is soon.
But I have recorded. I’m even currently still recording, and everybody should expect something amazing from Akunna”.
Even though her life has changed financially and socially since her time on Nigerian Idol, Akunna says the change is more profound.
She said: “My experience on Nigerian Idol was life-changing. It opened my mind to areas of my life that I probably didn’t know existed.
Before now, I used to feel like I was the most confident in the room. But then I got in there and noticed people are better than you in some areas.
And I’m grateful for that lesson because it has been helping me. I’m grateful I experienced Idols because it helped my communication skills. Most importantly, it helped me to be more accommodating”.
It’s been a year filled with growth and new experiences for Akunna, something very few people get to experience. Still, Akunna is grateful she got a chance to be on the show because she got to showcase her talent, which was something the lawyer-turned-singer never thought she’d be able to do on such a large scale.
She says, “there’s this thing I always say when people ask why I tilted towards Idols or why I make music. I always say, when I’m 70 or 80, and I’m with my grandchildren, I want to be able to tell them that grandma did all that.
I maximized my full potential. I think it would be wrong not to. I have a good brain, and I’ve tested that. I’ve done law and done it well. Well, how about music? I sing well. So how about I allow the world hear that?
That’s one of the reasons that I moved towards music, and I’ve been moving towards music. I want to be sure that every gift that God has given me, I exhaust.
