Contrary to the popular belief that 2face Idibia is an unrepentant skirt-chaser, an insider, dance choreographer, Patience Odin, has declared that the reverse is the case.

The mother of one, who took time off the ever-busy 2face train two years ago to start a family, opened up on how girls go out of their way to seduce the singer.

Peshe, as she is fondly called, who hooked up with 2face through a close friend, Adebola Awolaja in 2004 after he broke away from the now defunct Plantashun Boiz, stated that female fans would stop at nothing to bed the singer.

“These girls will do crazy things and go the extra mile just to bed him! But he’s such an innocent guy. And I believe that girls just want to take advantage of him. He’s so quiet and vulnerable. If you’ve not worked with him before, you wouldn’t know the kind of person he is.”

To drive home her point, she opened up on their tour experience and how far these girls would go to lay their hands on him.

“Whenever we travelled for shows, we had different sets of girls trailing us. Sometimes we would meet them at the airport without having the slightest inkling that they were headed our way, only to find out that they have booked a suite right next to 2face’s suite at the hotel where we are staying. They hang around in the hotel lobby, waiting to pounce on him. A girl once trailed us all the way from Nigeria to Ghana, from Ghana to Liberia and finally Cote d’Ivoire. That’s how far they can go. Sometimes it’s not just one girl, but many big gals and they come in packs! And guess what? We (dancers) were their best friends becasue they saw us as a way of easy access to 2face.

They would come to us and introduce themselves with a strong plea that we introduced them to 2face. But we never did because Ino as
we called him is not that kind of a guy you could just introduce your friends to. He wouldn’t take it from us.”

Consequently, to guard against a situation where he may be exposed to temptation, there’s a standing rule that after every show, his crew members would all retire to his hotel suite. The rationale is that if his crew were around him, these girls would be frustrated.

“We tried to protect him. At times, we drove these girls away with our attitude. There were times he would just tell us while we’re still on stage that after the show, we should all move to his room. ‘I need you to be around me because if you’re there, these girls would not be able to do anything. I don’t want to be alone with them,’ he would plead. So when we were on tour, we were always in his suite to protect him from these dangerous girls.”

For Patience, the years she spent working with 2face were the most eventful of her life. Hear her: “He’s like a father; somebody you’d just love to work with. He appreciates his dancers so much, he takes us everywhere he goes. I was among the first set of dancers to perform outside of this country in South Africa and I owe that to 2face. It was for a Kora Awards ceremony. For a long time we traveled across Nigeria in buses when we had shows. So the first time we traveled by flight to Abuja I was like, ‘eh, me Peshe?’ I couldnt believe it and it was just the beginning of greater things to come.”

One moment she would always remember was the effort 2face made to make sure she and other dancers were on his crew for a trip to the UK when the Mayor of London, Ken Livingston, invited him over a couple of years ago.

Recounting the experience, she said: “They only gave him and his manager, Wale Owoyemi (Nazi) visas for the trip. They refused the rest of us visas and 2face was angry! He insisted that unless we got our visas, he would dump the show. He went to the embassy to make a case for us. He said that ‘if my dancers are not coming, I am not going.’ Eventually, a day to the show, they granted us visas. That’s the kind of person he is; always standing by his own.”

Recalling her agony and pain whenever 2face was attacked she said: “The first question that comes to mind when such happens is, ‘Who has he offended?’ He’s nice, even to a fault; so why would anybody want him dead? I guess those people that attacked him had no idea he was 2face or they wouldn’t have. It was coincidence. I don’t believe anyone will wilfully and deliberately attack such a peaceful soul.

“I was by his bedside that very first day. I cried my eyes out. I was like, ‘Who could have done this to him?’ as he lay unconscious. When he regained consciousness, I was so glad I said to him, ‘Nothing do you!’”

Motherhood

Two years ago, she took a break to start a family. Today, she is the happy mother of a baby girl, Imaculata. She spoke about motherhood.
“It’s the greatest experience that a woman could have. I have become calmer and a lot more patient. It’s wonderful looking at my baby and knowing that she came out of me and now, I am responsible for another life. That’s the greatest gift God has given me. My husband has been very supportive, I can only thank God for giving me such a loving and understanding husband,” said Patience, who tied the knot with her heartthrob, Osi, after a 15-year romance.

The dance choreographer also disclosed that as soon as the time is right, she would make a return to the industry.

“That’s exactly what I am going to do because I have no other place to go. I am going back to work with 2face. We still talk on phone and he’s been asking to know when I’m going to return. He can’t wait for my baby to grow so I’ll be back in his crew. “However, I am not returning as a dancer. I intend to set up my own management outfit. I am currently running a Boutique with my husband somewhere in Surulere, Lagos. It’s called Odim Fashion. We clothed Durella for one of his music video shoots.”

Advice

Having seen it and done it all, today, she is happily married. What’s her advice for girls who want to make a career in dancing?

“The advice I have for them is that they should keep their heads up. When you get into entertainment, a lot of temptations will come. Even the artiste you want to work with, most times, will want to get fresh with you. If you reject their advances, they would blackmail you by denying you a place on their music videos. Keep to yourself, be objective. And most importantly, don’t date an entertainer. If you start with one and you eventually break it, the cinch is high you will continue with another one and, before you know it, you will go round and won’t last. That was the reason why despite being among so many entertainers, I never dated one. The secret of my success is focus and hard work. I keep to myself and I don’t do videos for other artistes. I believe in working with one person, just as I believe in dating only one person.