Rolling with Faith History’s childhood

Faith History admits she was a naughty child growing up and says her fondest memories of her childhood were where she would get caught. She spoke to us about her childhood memories and how the child in her still pops up in her everyday life.

Can you tell us a bit about your childhood and where you grew up?
I grew up shuttling with three siblings between two worlds, (Ilorin, Kwara State – Nigeria and Lanham, Maryland – US). In Nigeria, we lived on a boarding school campus and had so much space to run around. There were many kids to play with and so life was never boring. The weather was always perfect, and it was an idyllic life as part of the school community.

In the States, we lived in an apartment in the city and that was very different, accents and behaviors changed quickly to assimilate and fit in both worlds. That was confusing at first but we got used to it. I still shuttle between my Nigerian and American accents today and now I’m working on my South African one!

Born Faith Temitope Adepoju, Faith History Nsa is not only a TV presenter and producer but she also does consultancy work.

Can you tell us of at least two fond memories that always make you laugh when you think about your childhood.
Growing up in Nigeria, I have fond memories of going to the local NTA TV Channel on weekends for the taping of a children’s variety show and my little sister. I would practice our dance moves hoping to get picked to be on stage. We never got picked, although it was always so much fun just to dream!

Another memory that always cracks me up – one day I was trying to play hooky from school and pretended to be ill, but my Dad came home around noon and caught me red-handed! As my punishment, he ordered me to ride to school on the back of our driver’s motorcycle. I was ecstatic to say the least! Not only did I get to ride on a motorbike for the first time ever, but all the kids saw me arrive and thought I was the coolest kid ever… she laughs.

So would you say you were a naughty child?
I was definitely a naughty child, always getting into various scrapes and schemes with my brothers and sisters.

What was your favorite food when you were growing up?
My favorite food growing up was fried plantain (dodo) it even became my nickname in high school.

Does the child in you pop up every now and then in the work that you do today?
As a TV presenter and producer, the child in me is always present in my creative process. Her presence allows me to laugh at myself and find the joy in the process. It helps me create a chilled out environment for my team and myself to be creative and have fun with our work.

How would you say your childhood has informed your career choice and how so?
My childhood was a fun and a very creative time in my life. I grew up in a close knit family surrounded by my brothers and sisters and we always read tons of books because we weren’t allowed to watch TV until the weekends.

So I learnt very early to create characters and perform them to amuse my siblings. I think it is still a major part of how I see the world and why I decided to work in TV, to entertain people. I love that!

Catch Rolling with Faith History every Saturday at 6:30pm (WAT) on AfricaMagic Entertainment, DStv Channel 151.