Mosunmola Abudu, also known as ''Mo Abudu'', (born 11 September 1964), is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

media mogul A media proprietor, media mogul or media tycoon refers to a entrepreneur who controls, through personal ownership or via a dominant position in any media-related company or enterprise, media consumed by many individuals. Those with significant co ...

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

, and former

human resources management Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

consultant. She has been described by

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

as "Africa's Most Successful Woman", and rated as one of the "25 Most Powerful Women in Global Television" by

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

Biography

Early life

Mo Abudu was born in

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

West London West London is the western part of London, England, north of the River Thames, west of the City of London, and extending to the Greater London boundary. The term is used to differentiate the area from the other parts of London: North London ...

. Her father was an engineer and her mother was a

caterer Catering is the business of providing food service at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, hospital, pub, aircraft, cruise ship, park, festival, filming location or film studio. History of catering The earliest account of major services be ...

. Her family roots are in

Ondo Town Ondo Town is the second largest town in Ondo State, Nigeria. Ondo Town is the trade center for the surrounding region. Yams, cassava, grain and tobacco are grown. Cotton is also grown, and is used to weave cloth called Aso Oke fabric which is w ...

, southwest Nigeria. She is the eldest of the three sisters in the family. Mosunmola Abudu moved to Nigeria when she was 7 years old to live with her grandparents, and returned to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

at the age of 11.

Education

She attended the Ridgeway School,

MidKent College MidKent College (formerly Mid-Kent College of Higher and Further Education) is a further education college in Kent, England. It runs courses from two separate campuses in Maidstone and Medway, including a number of higher education courses. Th ...

and

West Kent College K College, was also known as South & West Kent College, was an English college of Further education, Further Education and Higher Education with facilities across Kent, formed in April 2010, by the merger of South Kent College with West Kent C ...

. She has a

Master's Degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Human Resource Management Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

from the

University of Westminster , mottoeng = The Lord is our Strength , type = Public , established = 1838: Royal Polytechnic Institution 1891: Polytechnic-Regent Street 1970: Polytechnic of Central London 1992: University of Westminster , endowment = £5.1 million ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Abudu is currently a member of the

British Psychological Society The British Psychological Society (BPS) is a representative body for psychologists and psychology in the United Kingdom. History It was founded on 24 October 1901 at University College London (UCL) as ''The Psychological Society'', the organ ...

with the qualification in occupational and personality testing. In 2014, she received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters ( Honouris Causa) from

Babcock University Babcock University is a private Christian co-educational Nigerian university owned and operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Nigeria. The university is located at Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria, equidistant between Ibadan and Lago ...

. Abudu was awarded by the University of Westminster with an honorary doctorate degree of Doctor of Arts in 2018 in recognition of her contributions to the

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...

industry in Nigeria.

Career

At the age 19, Mo Abudu was selected to be the

brand ambassador A brand ambassador (sometimes also called a corporate ambassador) is a person engaged by an organization or company to represent its brand in a positive light, helping to increase brand awareness and sales. The brand ambassador is meant to embod ...

for AVON Cosmetics for the African market. Abudu started her professional career as a

recruitment consultant Sourcing is a talent acquisition discipline which is focused on the identification, assessment and engagement of skilled worker candidates through proactive recruiting techniques. Professionals specializing in sourcing are known primarily as Sour ...

in 1987 with the Atlas Recruitment Consultancy firm in the UK, from where she moved to Starform Group in 1990. She returned to Nigeria in 1993 and was head-hunted by

Arthur Andersen Arthur Andersen was an American accounting firm based in Chicago that provided auditing, tax advising, consulting and other professional services to large corporations. By 2001, it had become one of the world's largest multinational corporat ...

to head the Human Resources and Training for oil giant,

ExxonMobil ExxonMobil Corporation (commonly shortened to Exxon) is an American multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is the largest direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil, and was formed on November 30, ...

. She is the founder of Vic Lawrence & Associates Limited. She went on to create, produce and present ''Moments with Mo'', later founded a television station (Ebony Life Television) and has been producing entertainment contents to date.

Ebony Life TV & Film

Abudu started

Ebonylife TV Ebonylife TV is an entertainment TV channel owned by Mosunmola Abudu popularly called Mo Abudu, It was launched on DSTV on July, 2013 after which the station was later added to DSTV in September 2014. After partnering and satisfying the executi ...

(ELTV) in 2006, a network airing in many countries across Africa, as well as in the UK and the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

to a pan-African audience. EbonyLife TV transmitted its first broadcast on 1 July 2013 on Multichoice's

DSTV Digital Satellite Television, commonly abbreviated to DStv, is a Sub-Saharan African direct broadcast satellite service owned by MultiChoice and based in Randburg, South Africa. Launched on 6 October 1995, the service provides multiple audio, ...

Channel 165. Less than a year into operations and ranking among the top 25% of most watched channels on the

DStv Digital Satellite Television, commonly abbreviated to DStv, is a Sub-Saharan African direct broadcast satellite service owned by MultiChoice and based in Randburg, South Africa. Launched on 6 October 1995, the service provides multiple audio, ...

platform, EbonyLife TV launched a multi-screen video-on-demand (VOD) platform targeting Africans in the diaspora. It expanded its Sub Sahara African reach, following a carriage deal with another pay-TV operator

StarTimes StarTimes is a Chinese electronics and media company with strong presence in Sub-Saharan Africa. StarTimes offers digital terrestrial television and satellite television services to consumers, and provides technologies to countries and broadcas ...

. Notable among TV drama series executive-produced and/or produced by Abudu, and aired on ELTV, include:

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 St ...

in partnership with

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

, Sons Of The Caliphate, ''

Castle & Castle ''Castle and Castle'' is a Nigerian series which premiered in the year 2018 and is streaming exclusively on Netflix. It is a Nigerian and Africa's first legal series which features the story of a legal family characterized by love, drama and be ...

'', ''On the Real'' and ''The Governor''. Abudu established EbonyLife Films in 2014. Her first film as an executive producer was

Fifty (film) ''Fifty'' is a 2015 Nigerian romantic drama film, directed by Biyi Bandele and released on 18 December 2015. Plot Fifty captures few pivotal days of four women at the pinnacle of their careers. Tola, Elizabeth, Maria and Kate are four friends ...

. Teaming up with The ELFIKE Collective in 2016, she produced '' The Wedding Party,''. The film became the highest-grossing title of all time in the Nigerian film industry (

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 ...

). Other films she has also executive-produced or co-produced are:

The Wedding Party 2 ''The Wedding Party 2: Destination Dubai'' is a 2017 Nigerian romantic comedy drama film directed by Niyi Akinmolayan. It is a sequel to '' The Wedding Party'', which was released in December 2016. Principal photography for the film, which was ...

The Royal Hibiscus Hotel ''The Royal Hibiscus Hotel'' is a 2017 Nigerian comedy film directed by Ishaya Bako. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. Cast * Zainab Balogun as Ope * Kenneth Okolie as Dej ...

Chief Daddy ''Chief Daddy'' is a 2018 Nigerian comedy drama film directed by Niyi Akinmolayan, written by Bode Asiyanbi and produced by Mosunmola Abudu and Temidayo Abudu, which was released in December 2018. It starred popular Nollywood actors and actress ...

Your Excellency (film) ''Your Excellency'' is a 2019 Nigerian political satire drama comedy film written and directed by Funke Akindele on her directorial debut. The film stars Akin Lewis and Funke Akindele in the lead roles. The film had its theatrical release across ...

and ''Òlòtūré'', "the story of a young, naïve Nigerian journalist who goes undercover to expose the shady underworld of human trafficking." Òlòtūré's private screening was co-hosted with the

Creative Artists Agency Creative Artists Agency LLC (CAA) is an American talent and sports agency based in Los Angeles, California. It is regarded as an influential company in the talent agency business and manages numerous clients. In March 2016, CAA had 1,800 emplo ...

(CAA) at CAA's

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

headquarters in June 2019. In March 2018, Sony Pictures Television (SPT) announced that they had concluded a three-year deal with EbonyLife TV that would include co-production of ''The Dahomey Warriors,'' a series about the Amazons who took on French colonialists in a 19th-century west African kingdom. She was announced as the chair of the 47th international Emmy Awards gala that took place in New York on 25 November 2019. In January 2020, AMC Networks (USA) announced its partnership with EbonyLife to produce ''Nigeria 2099'', an afrofuturistic crime-drama created by EbonyLife. In February 2020, a new partnership between EbonyLife TV and

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

was announced. The streaming giant acquired EbonyLife's drama series: ''Castle & Castle'', ''Fifty'', ''Sons of the Caliphate'', ''On the Real'', and ''The Governor'', along with a reality show, ''The Dating Game'' and feature film, ''The Royal Hibiscus Hotel''.

signed a new deal with EbonyLife in June 2020. According to the deal, she is to work with the teams at Netflix to create two original series as well as multiple Netflix-branded films. Among the highlights will be a film adaptation of ''Death and the King’s Horseman'', a play by Nobel Prize winner

Wole Soyinka Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde Soyinka (Yoruba: ''Akínwándé Olúwọlé Babátúndé Ṣóyíinká''; born 13 July 1934), known as Wole Soyinka (), is a Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet, and essayist in the English language. He was awarded t ...

, and a series based on

Lola Shoneyin Lola Shoneyin (born Titilola Atinuke Alexandrah Shoneyin; 26 February 1974 in Ibadan, Nigeria) is a Nigerian poet and author who launched her debut novel, ''The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives'', in the UK in May 2010. Shoneyin has forged a r ...

’s best-selling debut novel, ''The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives.'' In December 2019, Mo Abudu opened ''Ebonylife Place'', a lifestyle and entertainment resort located on

Victoria Island, Lagos Victoria Island (VI) is an affluent area that encompasses a former island of the same name neighbouring Lagos Island, Ikoyi and the Lekki Peninsula by the Lagos Lagoon. It is the main business and financial centre of Lagos State, Nigeria. Vi ...

. On 12 June 2020, Mo Abudu partnered with U.S.-based streaming company

to create two new TV series and several films. On 4 February 2021, she signed Nigeria's first look deal, The deal expands on a partnership struck with Sony in 2018 and adds to a multi-title deal the company has with Netflix. On 17 February 2021, it was announced that Ebony Life partners with Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith's Westbrook Studios to produce a slate of film and television projects each connected to the

African continent Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. In September 2020, Netflix launched a movie titled ' Oloture', a story by Mo Abudu which was a powerful art-nouneau-style movie. The movie was shot in

Lagos 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 ...

and mainly centred around

human trafficking Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. This may encompass providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extrac ...

in Nigeria. Talking about the movie, she said "Òlòtūré explores a world very few people know anything about, and that had to be dealt with in a particular way," she added "It’s not a documentary, but it addresses real issues most of our society doesn’t see, harnessing the talents of some of the country’s top actors and filmmakers to produce a film that is both intelligent and profound – and breaks bold new genre and stylistic ground for

." EbonyLife Place was launched by Mo Abudu in the month of December 2019. It is Nigeria's first lifestyle and entertainment resort. It boosts unique features like EbonyLife Place, EbonyLife Cinemas, The White Orchid Hotel, Jinja, Túraká rooftop restaurant & bar, Jinja Garden & Poolside, The Victoria Hall, and The VVIP Lounges. It is situated on

. In 2021, the Lagos State Ministry of Arts, Culture & Tourism hosted EkoDesign, a furniture design and lighting exhibition in conjunction with EbonyLife Place. Mo abudu ebony life media established a partnership with Sony pictures television to set up 'Alo' translated into once upon a time, a writer's initiative for Africans On 29 November 2021, it was announced that

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

Studios inked a deal with EbonyLife Media for a development deal. Mo Abudu enters No. 98 of Forbes 100 most powerful women for 2021. In October 2021, ''The Hollywood Reporter'', named her among the 20 most powerful women in global entertainment.

Filmography

* The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives (TV Series) * Untitled Billionaire Gucci Master Project * Blood Sisters (TV Mini Series 2022) * Chief Daddy 2: Going for Broke (2022) * Òlòtūré (2019) * Chief Daddy (2018) * Castle & Castle(TV Series 2018) * The Wedding Party 2: Destination Dubai (2017) * The Royal Hibiscus Hotel (2017) * Fifty (TV Series 2017) * Sons of the Caliphate (TV Series) * The Wedding Party(2016/II) * On the Real (TV Series 2016) * The Governor (TV Series) * Fifty (2015) * Desperate Housewives Africa (TV Series 2015) * Dowry (TV Series 2014) * Married To The Game - MTTG (TV Series 2014) * Deadline (TV Series 2014) * Love and War (TV Movie 2013)

''Moments with Mo''

Abudu is the Executive Producer and host of a TV talk show, ''Moments with Mo,'' which is the first syndicated daily

talk show A talk show (or chat show in British English) is a television programming or radio programming genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Show ...

on African regional television. Mo Abudu & Hillary Clinton

By October 2009, over 200 episodes had been recorded and aired with topics ranging from lifestyle, through health, culture, politics, entertainment, tradition, to music and inter-racial marriages. Guests have included celebrities, Presidents, Nobel Laureates, and the 67th US Secretary-of-State

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

, Abudu says the show "highlights the life and accomplishments of a usually well known, but sometimes an undiscovered African individual who by his or her own tenacity and determination has accomplished something, overcome something or been a catalyst for something that makes her or him a role model to others." Aired on

M-Net M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

with TV coverage in 48 African countries, the show now also airs on terrestrial and cable TV in other parts of the world. The show's success and intention to change the world's perception of the African continent has led to comparisons to

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...

, with ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' and ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

Afrique'' calling her "Africa's Oprah" or "Nigerian Winfrey", respectively.

''The Debaters''

Mo Abudu is the creator and executive producer of ''The Debaters,'' a

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

show. Funded by

Guaranty Trust Bank Guaranty Trust Holding Company PLC also known as GTCO PLC is a multinational financial services group, that offers retail and investment banking, pension management, asset management and payments services, headquartered in Victoria Island, Lagos ...

, it launched on 3 October 2009. The show focuses on "giving Africa a voice" by promoting oratory.

Honours

''Forbes Africa'' recognised Abudu as the first African woman to own a Pan-Africa TV channel (2013). She was listed as one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Global TV by

in 2013 and received the Entrepreneur of the Year award by Women Werk in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

(2014). Abudu was nominated to serve as a member of the Advisory Group on Technology and Creatively for Nigeria. Abudu was appointed a Director of the

International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (IATAS) is an American nonprofit membership organization, based in New York City, composed of leading media and entertainment executives across all sectors of the television industry, from ov ...

, the organization responsible for staging the

International Emmy Award The International Emmy Awards, or International Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based International Academy of Television Arts and S ...

. The Academy later appointed her as Chair of the 47th International Emmy Awards Gala, held in New York on Monday 25 November 2019. She was the first African to land the role. She was named on the Power list 2018, an annual list of the UK's top 100 most influential people of African and Caribbean heritage. Abudu was nominated to serve as a member of the Advisory Group on Technology and Creatively for Nigeria in 2018 as well. In 2019, she was awarded the MIPTV's 2019 Médailles d'Honneur, in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, making her the first African to be a recipient of the reputable award. Later that year, Abudu was announced as being listed in the 2020 ''

Powerlist The ''Powerlist'' is a list of the 100 most influential people of African or African Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom. The list is updated annually and has been published in book format by Powerful Media since 2007. The ''Powerlist'' is ...

'', listing the Top 100 of the most influential people in the UK of African/African-Caribbean descent. She is featured in the 493-page book, ''Greatest Blacks Ever: Top 100 Blacks Who Changed the World for Peace. Progress. Prosperity. Pleasure.'', authored by ''Ambassador Elliston Rahming'' and published by ''Dog Ear Publishing'' Mo Abudu is set to be awarded the 2019 Médailles d'Honneur in Cannes at the Marche International des Programmes de Television (MIPTV). She is one of the 4 recipients of the award, which she will receive in April 2019. Mo Abudu is represented by the Creative Artists Agency (CAA).

Personal life

Mo Abudu lives in Lagos. She has a son and a daughter. and was formerly married to Tokunbo Abudu.

References

External links

The Debaters Official Page

Inspire Africa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abudu, Mosunmola 1964 births Living people People from Hammersmith Nigerian television personalities Alumni of the University of Westminster English people of Nigerian descent British emigrants to Nigeria Businesspeople from London Nigerian television talk show hosts Black British television personalities Nigerian motivational speakers Nigerian philanthropists Nigerian television company founders Nigerian women company founders Television personalities from Lagos Nigerian management consultants Women television personalities 21st-century Nigerian businesswomen Nigerian women film producers Nigerian film producers People from Ondo State Nigerian film directors People associated with the University of Westminster Nigerian media personalities Fellows of the British Psychological Society Nigerian chief executives Nigerian humanitarians Nigerian television producers