Susan Olabimpe Harvey, aka Goldie, was our surviving representative at the season seven of Big Brother Africa stargame competition, following the exit of our two other representatives, Chris and Ola, due to ill-health. Unfortunately, she too was evicted on Sunday, July 15, 2012, after for 70 days in the reality show.
An eviction get together and press parley was held for her on Thursday, July 19, 2012, at Protea Hotel, Ikeja, by Mnet, organizers of the show. She bared her mind on her romance with Kenya’s Prezzo, her greatest regret, lessons learnt and what she had planned to do with the N30 million she never won and more…
You spent 70 days in the BBA house before your eviction. How would you describe the experience?
It was really nice. I learnt a lot about Africa and other African countries; their culture and ways of life and I also learnt a lot about myself because this is something that has never happened to me before. The experience will surely assist me for the rest of my life.
The other two Nigerians in the house withdrew after two weeks but you spent more than two months. Would you say that you represented Nigeria well?
I know the expectation of an average Nigerian is to see a Nigeria winning the coveted prize again, but I must say that Nigerians are loving people, diligent people, hard working, sincere, religious and we all have the ability to face challenges and high moral standard. These are some of the qualities that I displayed that mean that I represented Nigeria well because I displayed a good African woman that we are known for.
Would you say all that happened between you are Prezzo was natural or a strategy for you to win?
You know I had to be myself and not just someone else or the Goldie on stage. There is also a human side of me and definitely it would come to stay because I’m someone that is very emotional. Then, about Prezzo, there was no strategy. I came to know that he cared for me very much. What I saw till my last day in the house was that he was a calm person, caring person. You have the option of seeing so many cameras at a time in the house, but I have a privilege of only two eyes and two ears and I believe you will understand me that it is not a strategy at all.
What were some of the things you missed most while in the house?
I missed a lot of things. I missed my performances which always makes me happy. I was not allowed to do songs, go on tours, record or communicate with friends and family. Then, I decided to channel that energy to do other things in the house such as cooking and other indoor activities so as not to be idle.
The Goldie we all know is the musician and you went to the house as Goldie, but changed to Susan when you got there and a lot of people had a misconception about you. So, how are you going to manage your brand now? Are you retaining the name Goldie or you are re-branding to Susan after your spell in the house?
I’m a human being, let us forget about games or no games. Every human being always has two facets to who they are or what they do to their human nature. I am also human that also has two facets of life. What you see on television is Goldie, the entertainer, but what you saw at the Big Brother House was Goldie the person. All the artistes that I have the privilege to meet or see on screen are people who know that what they do on stage is different from what they do at home. I’m sorry if people really expected to see the Goldie that they see on television everyday to be the one that would be in that house. I tender an unreserved apology for that because I can’t really be doing that everyday without breaking down because of everyday concert and energy exertion, which is not who I am at home.
You said you could not see in Prezzo what the viewers are seeing, but when you were evicted and later discovered that your lover boy betrayed you, what came to your mind?
Prior to going into this edition of Big Brother House, I had been a fan of Big Brother. I feel if you have a platform, use the platform for positive things in life. But unfortunately, I have never, due to the nature of my work, because I’m always on the road or doing one thing or the other, I have never had the time to sit down and watch the show, so I went there as a novice in the game and I’m yet to adjust. Really, as regards Prezzo, I had been evicted before I got to know about everything that went wrong. Every emotion that I had, every word spoken really came from my heart. I am a genuine person. If I call you my friend, I trust you, so I expect the same from other people. I used to believe my friends, but when I realized all that had really happened, I felt a bit sad. But when I got to know that he went to the house to play a game which I never did, I got relieved a bit and I have learnt a lot from that as well.
What actually made you cry when you were evicted? Was it the prize money you didn’t win or your lover boy’s betrayal?
Just like I said, I am a very emotional person. People don’t really know much about me because that is the real Goldie, that is who I am, that is the way I was brought up. I am not a plotter or a player. It is what people give me that I take it to be. Seriously, what made me lose my emotions was a sense of slight betrayal from someone I least expected it could be. I just said whao! So human beings are like this? Wish people could give to me what I give to them. But I was shocked. I had believed that some of them are my friends and that the spirit of West African countries in the house will prevail especially. Prezzo gave me the confidence that all is well. The way they hail me in the house as the best gave me hope of survival. So, I could not help myself from being emotional because of these betrayals.
So, what would happen to your relationship with Prezzo now?
No one knows tomorrow because when I was entering Big Brother House, I didn’t know that I was going to be evicted after 70 days. I thought I was going to stay till the end. So, no one knows tomorrow. But one thing I would say is that I’m someone that does not hold grudges. I am disappointed obviously, but I don’t hold grudges, so let us wait and see.
Of all the guys in the house, why did you have a crush on Prezzo?
Why anybody? Do you know why you like someone? No one knows why. You keep on staying with someone you think you can connect with. It is not as if anybody has money or car in the house that you think can make you fall for him or her. We were just all human and I was next to him, so who knows why?
You should have accumulated some amount of money for yourself with 70 days in the house. Like how much are we talking about here?
Haa? Will start counting every little penny I have made? It’s not really something we can count now, but thank God because I am not suffering.
Were you surprised that you were evicted?
When they showed me the nomination, everybody had like six to eight nominations for eviction and I had only two nominations, then I said, how can me with the least nomination be the one that will be evicted? I was surprised, very, very surprised. I did not see it coming because I was also told that I got the highest vote in the house, but it was not across the country. I had just two countries instead of it spreading across like six countries.
Are you saying Nigerians didn’t vote for you?
No. Nigerians voted for me and we had the highest votes across the continent with 15,000 and the second person with 13,000, but it was spread across the countries while mine was only in Nigeria and Liberia.
Assuming you won, what would you have used your N30 million to do?
I will invest in property and I would love to build a school. I love education greatly, so definitely I would like to give back in that way.
You severally avoided mouth to mouth kiss with Prezzo, why?
Morally, my moral upbringing, moral standard and my background does not allow me to express certain things between a certain period. You know, things like that don’t appeal to me, I guess.
Is he someone you can marry?
I think two and half months that I spent in the house is too early for me to think about anything like that. That is not who I am.
But are you aware he was married before?
I asked him and I’m sure that everybody saw that from the camera when I asked him and he said he had been separated from his wife for over three years. That was what he told me in the house and we have cameras that can prove that. I asked him twice and he said no, that he was separated. I asked him if he was not going to reconcile with his wife because of his child and he said no, that if he wanted to he would have done that two years ago and that he was not going back.
Didn’t you know it was all lies?
I don’t know. You will do because I was in the house and you are in the better position to decide that.
Do you think Prezzo would miss you?
If he was playing a game, then how would he miss me? I was not playing, but he was. So, why would he miss me?
What would you say were some of those things you saw in him that made you fall in love?
Fall in love? Are we talking about love here? I have, I would have been all over him, kissing him or doing all the things that people love to do or want to see me doing, but I was not. I only cared for him very much.
Are you saying you were not in any relationship before you got into the house?
Really, you ask that? If I was, then that would not happen.