Gabriel Afolayan, a multi-award-winning actor and singer is the son of one of the pioneers of the Nigerian movie industry, Mr. Adeyemi Afolayan, popularly known as Ade Love. The Kwara State born University of Ibadan Theatre Arts graduate who launched into the limelight through ‘Madam Dearest’, a Tade Ogidan film, in this interview, spoke to the Editor, FOLORUNSHO HAMSAT about his undying passion for the entertainment, movie and music, and future targets. Excerpts…
At what point in your acting career did you notice that you had started to grab the audience’s attention?
I started acting in 2004. I started with ‘Madam Dearest’ and ‘Behind The Siege, all produced by Tade Ogidan.
When was your first break as an actor and in which movie?
‘Madam Dearest’ was my first break and, like I said earlier, it was in 2004.
You have not been featuring in comedy films, is that deliberate or the fee is not worth your grade?
I have over the years done comedy and still doing it. I have featured in comedy flicks such as ‘Ajasa’ produced by Tope Adebayo; ‘Aduke Hotel’ by Ultima Studios; ‘Okafor’s Law’ by Omoni Oboli, and many more. The new one you are going to experience soon is ‘Mamba’s Diamond’ produced by William Uchemba, coming out on Netflix. The harder we work, the luckier we get.
Afolayan has its root in film making given your late father’s contribution towards growing the Nigerian film industry, a name that also sustains your career, what are your plans to also build a legacy for others to live on?
Well, the only thing is to keep working hard. I believe that the legacy will naturally build itself. It is still my saying; the harder we work, the luckier we get.
Do you feel the urge to explore another genre to reinvent yourself outside acting and singing or acting alone pays all your bills?
Yes, I am into film business. It pays my bills. But I also engage in what I would call ‘outside the field’ businesses.
You write film scripts, direct and also write songs, tell us about the success or failure of any of these that you ever encountered.
It is normal. Talent gets built through failures and gets sharpened through consistency. That’s the energy. There are many experiences to share but I’ll wait for my Tedtalk to happen. Then you would hear more.
You and your siblings are doing well, keeping alive your father’s legacy, though via different platforms, if you guys had considered running your shows on a single theatre band in Afolayan’s name, what do you think the story would have been today?
Whatever is happening to the Afolayan brand right would still be happening if I and my siblings were running the show together. All is still in honour of the name, Afolayan, whether we are doing it differently or together.
You have been making efforts to make your stories in new and innovative ways and with the latest technology available, what have been the results of that innovation.
Honestly, it has helped to reach a wider spectrum of audience globally and almost on time, unlike the life before now. This is a much more inspirational and influencing time, with more creative juice abound.
Tell us about your latest movie and the state of public acceptance and what new thing you are working on currently.
It’s titled ‘U-Turn’. It is a two-man based cast, even though it involves other characters. It’s a story about two naive criminals. A December/Christmas time story of a driver and his lone passenger. It’s their first time trying out something bad driven by the state of the nation’s economy. The driver, a 45 year-old, wanting to do money ritual with the passenger while the passenger, a 35-year old graduate, for the first time, wanting to steal a car to sell. Unknown to each other, they are pretending to keep each other’s company. So who’s going to carry out this mission? It’s a story that shows two good people being pressed by inadequate situation to succeed in life. It reveals the inner dialogue of good over evil. It’s a socio-comical story that brings up questions and also answers. It shows a journey of journeys. It opens the conflicted mindset of kind people that are entrapped in this chaotic world. It feeds morals. It is a road trip movie with a lot of happenings. The exact hour of traveling in real time is the same as the movie. It’s a must watch for all. All age inclusive. Lots of lessons to learn. I wrote the story around 2010 and I’m glad I finally realized it in pictures. That is my debut as a writer, producer and director, just like my dad.
In what ways do you think Nollywood needs to improve to gain more recognition?
The growth is evident. We are moving up. As we keep telling good African stories, we will keep the quality a quality.
Fans call you ‘lover boy’, what character do you love playing in movies?
No specifics. I play roles that appeal to me.
