Joy Onuorah

‘My Father’s Daughter’, the memoir of a veteran Nigerian singer, Onyeka Onwenu, will be adapted into a television series by the award-winning Nollywood filmmaker, Izu Ojukwu.

Ms Onwenu revealed this on Friday when she hosted the media at the Four Points by Sheraton in Lagos.

Mr Ojukwu, who is famous for projects such as ‘Amina’, ‘Women’s Cot’ and ’76’, will be working alongside Chichi Nworah and Ngozi Osu who will serve as producer and editor respectively.

Ms Onwenu, who was described as a ‘Singing Journalist’, also announced that Richard Mofe-Damijo, Yinka Davies, Mandy Uzonitsha, Nse Ikpe-Etim and many others would star in the series.

Some of the guests at the media parley included Nse Ikpe-Etim, Susan Hedef, Edwin Igbokwe, Betty Ijeoma (nee Mbadiwe), Teco Benson and Soni Irabor, which others streamed via zoom.

A former director of the National Centre for Women Development (NCWD)and mother-of-two, Ms Onwenu has a rewarding music career spanning 41 years.

She has also featured in recent movies like ‘Lion Heart’ (2018) and Muna (2019).

In the book, she revealed how her late father’s life influenced her career choices, political engagements and virtues.

The 11- chapter memoir encapsulates her experiences from childhood through the bloody Nigerian civil war, her blossoming journalism career, her legendary musical career, her journey into politics and government parastatals, and her doggedness, with which she soared through the male-dominated political domains.

In ‘Her Father’s Daughter’ through Ms Onwenu’s lens, the communal lifestyle of the Igbos, as well as how family core values are intricately woven into personal ethics, are fully displayed.

The over 450-page book also explores the different phases of her life, including her exploits in the nation’s broadcast industry. The book was released in October 2020.