<<Print>>

Juliet Ibrahim is a name to reckon with both in Gollywood and Nollywood as she has starred in well over hundred movies and still counting. Recently, she added music to her ever flourishing career with two singles already in the pipe line. In this interview, she opens up on her relationship with Majid Michel, and why she delved into music. How�s your foundation doing these days? We give God all the glory as we are moving forward and making progress. I just need a lot of support and help in terms of monetary assistance to keep my dream alive. With this, we shall be able to give prompt treatment to the people on our bill. A lot of people rely on us for help and we don�t want to let them down but there�s only a little we can do on our own. There�s a gist making the rounds that you have gone into music. What informed your decision to do so? Yes, I have gone into music and like I have said, times without number that music is my first love. It�s something I have being passionate about since I was a child. I had always wanted to be a musician; acting was like a stepping stone for it to become a reality. So, it�s just a case of me living out my dream. How far do you wish to go in music? I plan to go as far as God takes me. It�s not going to be a pastime; I intend making music my profession and thank God, it�s still in line with acting. Would you leave acting eventually or you intend to combine the two? No, I can�t see myself dumping acting for music. But I hope to stay there for long, become a veteran actress and act motherly roles without having to apply makeup that will make me look the age. So, I will definitely combine the two. How do you intend to combine your duty as a mother with your multiple careers? Remember, I combined it with running my boutique and beauty outfits too. So, it�s not going to be a totally new experience for me. I will cope with the new challenge. My family is very supportive. With all these versatilities, one would think you set out to become an actress? I grew up featuring in stage plays and performing at talent shows .I have always wanted to be on the big screen and in the spotlight. I started off as a model at the age of twelve. I was a runway and Editorial/print model till 2005, when I did my first major film audition and got the lead role to star alongside Majid Michel in �Crime to Christ.� How many movies have you featured in? I have featured in well over 100 movies and I�m still counting. I�ve starred in both Nigerian and Ghanaian movies. Recently, I started featuring in Hollywood movies. Do you choose the kind of roles you play in movies? If a director or a producer invites me to come and be part of the cast of his new movie. First and foremost, I read the script, understand my character and decide if I would want to be part of the movie or not. If I am paid what I have requested for by the production company, I will go ahead to star in the film. In this process, I put in my very best to interprete my role. I only improvise when it comes to the lines in the screenplay with the consent of the director. For the right money, can you act nude? Not for anything in the world would I ever act nude. How has it been like plying your trade in Nollywood? Nigeria is my second home. I have enjoyed working in Nigeria and with Nigerians as well as I enjoy working in Ghana. Nigerians are very friendly people and they make me feel at home. From your complexion, one can decipher that you are a Mulatto. Can you tell us about your back ground? My father is from Lebanon while my mother is a Ghanaian. I am the eldest of three children, two girls and a brother. I grew up in Ivory Coast; Liberia and Lebanon. I can speak French and Spanish. Your last name is Ibrahim, are you a Muslim? My last name is Ibrahim and it is also my father�s. I am not a Muslim. I am a Christian If you were not already married, who would you have loved to date in the industry? I cannot date anyone because l am a happily married woman. Besides, I don�t think I would want to date anyone. That�s where I work and earn my living, I wouldn�t want to mix business with pleasure. Can you stand a cheating husband? No! There is no second chance for someone who cheats. I believe that for every mistake we make, we are given a minute to think twice before making it. The rumour about you dating Majid Michel few years ago. Is it true? There was nothing in the past and the present between Majid and I except a working relationship. What are the things you do aside acting? Aside acting, I am also a business woman. I run a beauty salon better known as Envoque Beauty Parlour and a boutique called House of Glamour. I have a production company called Jewel�s Production and I launched my foundation last two years, the Juliet Ibrahim Foundation, JIF, to create awareness for the kidney related cancer disease. I have also added music to my bag of careers and I plan to produce my own movies and even more. You are a beautiful woman. Have you thought about branching into modeling if the money is right? I am a model to start with. And I don�t mind modeling now and then. I would love to do TV commercials, print adverts and represent major brands if the opportunity presents itself. What else should we be expecting from you in this new year? I will ask my fans to keep their fingers crossed. We have a bunch of pleasant surprises this year. We�ll be premi�ring my first self-produced movie �The Number One Fan� in Nigeria this year. Also, I �ll be working with a lot of people on some new projects I don�t want to talk about now. For a beautiful woman with a great body, who has gone through the throes of motherhood; what keeps you in shape? I drink a lot of water and l also eat healthy foods. I don�t do any form of exercise to be honest. I am careful not to eat anything heavy after 6 pm. I also try to avoid starchy food.