Linda Osifo (born 27 July 1991) is a Nigerian actress and television host. She was first runner-up Miss Nigeria Entertainment Canada 2011 and 2nd runner up Miss AfriCanada 2011 beauty pageant. In 2015, Linda was nominated for the ELOY awards for her role in the hit TV series:

Desperate Housewives Africa ''Desperate Housewives Africa'', also known as ''Desperate HWA'', is a Nigerian comedy-drama- mystery television series Pan-African version of the American television series, ''Desperate Housewives'' created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC S ...

by Ebonylife TV– An adaptation of the ABC Studio franchise ‘Desperate Housewives’.

Early life

Linda was born in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. She grew up with her grand mother and moved to Canada at the age of 16 but she spent most of her adult years in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada before relocating to

Lagos, Nigeria Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

to pursue her acting career. She is the first daughter and middle child of her family. After graduating from St Thomas Aquinas High School, she obtained her Bachelors of Arts degree in Psychology from

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

in Toronto Canada in 2013.

Career

She had her debut acting role in 2012 when she starred in Family Secrets, in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, USA directed by Ikechukwu Onyeka. Upon her return to Nigeria in late 2013, she starred in her first

Nollywood Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in ''The New York Times''. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there ...

film, ‘King Akubueze’, directed by Nonso Emekewe. She was featured in the popular Nigerian soap opera

Tinsel Tinsel is a type of decorative material that mimics the effect of ice, consisting of thin strips of sparkling material attached to a thread. When in long narrow strips not attached to thread, it is called "lametta", and emulates icicles. It was o ...

as ‘Nina Fire’. In 2017, Linda played the role of Adesuwa Dakolo in EbonyLife’s spin-off drama series, ‘Fifty’ and

Africa Magic Africa Magic is a collection of Pay TV entertainment channels that focus on African programming, most popularly Nigerian series and movies. ''Africa Magic'', which started off as single channel of the same name, is a brand owned by M-Net and n ...

’s television series ‘Jemeji’, playing the role of Noweyhon. Osifo is currently co-hosting the "Give 'n' Take National Jackpot" gameshow alongside

Segun Arinze Segun Arinze (born Segun Padonou Aina in 1965) is a Nigerian actor and singer. Early life and education He is the eldest of seven children born to Lydia Padonu. He is descent of Badagry, Lagos State. He attended Victory College of Commerce in ...

. During the 12th Headies Award she presented alongside Sina Peller the 'Best Vocal Performance (Male)' award which was won by artist

Praiz Praise Ugbede Adejo (born 8 March 1985), better known by his stage name Praiz, is a Nigerian multi award-winning R&B singer, songwriter, and producer. Praiz's music career hit the limelight after he finished second runner-up at the maiden seas ...

and 'Best Vocal Performance (Female)' award which was won by

Omawumi Omawumi Megbele (born 13 April 1982), known by her stage name Omawumi, is a Nigerian singer-songwriter and actress of Itsekiri ethnicity She is a brand ambassador for Globacom, Konga.com, and Malta Guinness. She's also part of the campaign cal ...

. In June 2018, she was involved in the

Campari Campari () is an Italian alcoholic liqueur, considered an apéritif (20.5%, 21%, 24%, 25%, or 28.5% ABV, depending on the country where it is sold), obtained from the infusion of herbs and fruit (including chinotto and cascarilla) in alcohol a ...

'Make it Red' campaign being part of the cast in the advert alongside former Big Brother Nigeria housemate

Tobi Bakre Tobi Bakre (born 1 June 1994) is a Nigerian actor, model, host, compere, and photographer. Tobi rose to fame after finishing up as a finalist in the Big Brother Naija (season 3) reality TV show in 2018. Early life and education Tobi was bor ...

and artist

2baba Innocent Ujah Idibia MON (born 18 September 1975), known by his stage name 2Baba, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Noted for his vocal range, lyrical depth, and longevity, he is widely regard ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Awards and recognition

Other ventures

Philanthropy

Passionate about selflessness, Linda’s philanthropic aspirations paved the way for her LAO Foundation, an acronym for Love and Oneness; an NGO posed with the task of eradicating poverty and illiteracy in Nigeria and Africa at large. Love And Oneness (LAO Foundation), has made donations of seven sets of computers to the Little Saints Orphanage, Shasha, Akowonjo, Lagos.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Osifo, Linda Living people Nigerian television actresses Nigerian film actresses 21st-century Nigerian actresses Actresses from Edo State 1991 births Nigerian beauty pageant contestants Nigerian philanthropists Nigerian television personalities Nigerian humanitarians Nigerian television presenters