In an interview with Nigerian Tribune‘s
Newton-Ray Ukwuoma, rapper and video
director Abdul Rasheed Bello popularly
known as JJC Skillz and husband of award-
winning actress Funke Akindele Bello
disclosed how he met his wife, his career,
and family life.
He also disclosed that his music is on hold as
he is focusing on his movie directing career
with two major productions Jenifa’s Diary
and Industreet.
When asked if he had taken a break from
music, he said: “Yes. My music is on hold,
because I needed to focus on this great
opportunity that came to my doorsteps.
Jenifa’s Diary is a big project, you can see we
have been winning awards here and there.
We as a family, have our hands full already in
different productions.”
He disclosed that he had certificates in TV
and video production, and had worked in
that industry for 2 years.
“I actually studied TV and Video Production
in school. After my studies, I went on to take
on MVQ course; which is like a work training
course. I had 9 straight A’s during the
course from script writing, directing, all. I
did it so passionately, I came out with
distinctions. Because of my grade, I was able
to get a job with an amazing advertisement
company. I was their assistant editor and
worked there for 2 years. So, I had a
background in entertainment, directing,
editing, it’s what I studied and it’s now my
profession. But I left all that for music,” JJC
Skillz said.
See excerpts:
What are the challenges of film production,
directing?
It hasn’t been easy, but God has been there
for us.All I can say is he who findeth a wife,
findeth a good thing and obtained favour
from the Lord. Most times, as a single man
you carry almost all your burdens alone.
You’d have to worry about what you eat,
and my cooking skillz it’s not really that
fantastic. But when I found my wife, I knew
I had found my better-half. Now, when I
think about things, I share it all with my
wife. We wake up from same bed in
morning and head to our field, because we
are both in entertainment. She’s the actress,
script writer. I’m the director, editor. She’s
very hard working. I don’t know anyone like
us in this industry. She works day and night.
We wake up every single day, with the mind
set of making ourselves happy. So,
challenges are nothing to me anymore.
As busy as you have described your wife
and as budding as your skills are in
cooking, how does your wife still have time
to cook for you? Or doesn’t she?
Why not? Yes, she does. It is said that the
best way to a man’s heart is through his
stomach. Definitely, she cooks amazingly, but
I told her to stop, so she can get enough
rest. Most times, she would insist, because
she wants to take care of her man. But I
always insist, as we now have chefs.
Was it her cooking skillz that attracted you
to her?
My wife is a fantastic cook, she’s an amazing
woman. Everything about her attracted me
to her. It’s not only one thing that attracts a
man to a woman, but definitely, the cooking
is a plus and my wife has it all. I would want
to eat her meals for the rest of my life.
So, how does it feel being married to a
popular actress?
To be honest, I lived the better part of my
life in the UK, so I didn’t really know who
Funke Akindele was. When I met her, I just
met someone that wanted a director for her
TV show; Jenifa’s Diary. That was in 2013.
We have been going on for a long time,
people just found out in 2016. We were very
low keyed, because we are two popular
people in the entertainment industry. We
had to protect our privacy.
He also debunked rumours that he had a
quarrel with his cousin Moe Musa, which
led to Moe leaving his house.
“Those who instigated such reports are very
stupid! People just say and publish whatever
they want without proper investigations
and still get away with it. Mr. Moe Musa as at
then moved to the next block after mine. I
lived in block H, while he is in block G. I
spoke with the agents that got him the
apartment and he moved in. He used to be
in a room in my 3 bedroom apartment, so
when my relationship got serious, he moved
on. That’s not even the main reason. Moe
has been in Nigeria then for almost 6
months, so he felt it was time to get his own
place.
To be honest, when you first relocate to
Nigeria, you’ll find it very hard to stay alone
because you don’t understand the system
yet. The way things work in Nigeria is
different from the way they work in other
countries.
