Global music powerhouse Burna Boy has drawn heavy criticism for allegedly undermining Jesus Christ and the Christian faithful. During a toast at the wedding reception of his longtime musical director and drummer, Emmanuel Abiola-Jacobs, the artist remarked that had his bandmate fully returned to church or gospel music as once intended, he never would have crossed paths with his bride.

Opening with a jab over not receiving enough credit for matchmaking the couple, Burna Boy quipped, “It’s little things that pisses me off… You’re doing Jesus abi…,” before adding that the wedding would never have taken place had his drummer stuck to traditional religious paths instead of working with him. He dismissed conventional worship as sitting in a church and “clapping their hands and praising the sky.” Before diving deeper, it is worth noting that if the singer felt slighted when guests overlooked his matchmaking role, perhaps critics shouldn’t judge too harshly when a Nigerian pastor recently launched a N700,000 Christian matchmaking platform.

While Burna Boy’s remarks sparked widespread outrage, his supporters maintain he was just trying to liven up the reception and shouldn’t be scrutinized so heavily. They point out that his comments were made in a private setting and leaked only because an opportunistic guest recorded the moment. Even so, given his massive platform and the influence he carries, greater discretion—or a request to keep cameras off—would have gone a long way. Although he mocked previous speakers for “talking cho, cho, cho…,” one might wonder who truly came off as the babbler in the end. Regardless of his intent, OluwaBurna’s sarcastic remarks pale in comparison to the steadfast faith of those who truly know God.

During an Arise TV interview, the 35-year-old actress shared that stepping into these complex roles leaves her mentally drained as she constantly shifts between intense emotional extremes. She noted that the experience has deepened her compassion for individuals genuinely navigating mental health conditions.

Ooja pointed out the difficulty of rapidly alternating between disparate emotions like joy, sorrow, and rage while keeping up with the demands of a performance. She recounted instances on set where the director had to intervene because she naturally slipped back into her normal demeanor instead of holding the character’s emotional state.

Reflecting on the experience, she remarked: “I think that because it was more mentally draining for me; when you’re a normal person playing a bipolar role, it’s a lot of work. This gave me so much empathy for people actually dealing with mental health issues because it was draining. My director would sometimes have to call me because he’s like, you’re not staying on tempo, you’re going back to normal, you can’t be normal. So, it was so draining having to be crying, laughing, angry so many emotions in one.”