Who wan blow? Me too, I go blow!

Long before Netflix released its "young, famous, and African, " I knew there was something in fame that needed to be explored. While growing up, my mother taught me to distinguish between voice, echoes, and noise. A noise that is a meaningless rattle is inconsequential. Echoes have their value, and voice is not to be neglected. Every day what I have tried to pay attention to is the voice.

The voice is distinguished from echoes and noise for multiple reasons. It is often backed by a recognizable face with power, position, and privilege. The combination of power, position, privilege, visibility, and acknowledgment rather than acceptance, among others, contribute to what makes people famous.

I began academic research into fame, alternatively called celebrity studies, as part of my doctoral dissertation a few years ago. I wanted to understand how people galvanize public visibility and social capital to promote and protect women's rights in Nigeria. Toward the end of my Ph.D. in 2018, I tested my ideas by submitting a portion of my dissertation for the Fourth International Celebrity Conference in Rome, 2018. My paper was awarded an excellent proposal for the Ph.D. prize competition out of almost 40 Ph.D. students' proposals. This includes a free delegate pass for the conference and a 250 EURO travel bursary. ( small money, but it was encouraging) .

Since then, celebrity studies have become a core aspect of my research. I have published two articles on this and given several talks on the subjects nationally and internationally. This afternoon and tomorrow, we explore fame and its intersections with gender, religion, music, business, prostitution, child rights, and more from prominent scholars from home and abroad. If your schedule permits, join me and eminent scholars on this panel. The time zone is West African time.

 Posted on Facebook on June 22, 2022.

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