Tayo Sobola: Why I love tattoos

Tayo Sobola aka Sotayogaga became popular acting in Nollywood films with Yoruba language. The actress cum entrepreneur was crowned the Sarauniya (Queen Mother) of Uke Kingdom, Nasarawa, in 2021 after getting married secretly. With so many engagements in a lot of academic, humanitarian, and entrepreneurial projects, she opens up on her tattoos, life and new role as Sarauniya.

Let’s start by knowing who Sotayo is off-camera? 

Boring. I am a very lively person but I can also be the direct opposite at the same time. Off-camera I love to be by myself a lot. I prefer to hide in my room and do things on my phone. If the phone is not available, I sit at my thinking table and start to do what I have to do. 

If you were to put a figure to it, how many films have you produced so far? 

More than 10 movies. Most are of the Yoruba genre, but I have produced one English film. 

Tell me more about your tattoos

There’s nothing to be said about my tattoos.

So, when did you get the first one, why and are there plans to get more?

It’s a long time. I don’t know if I would get more or not. For these reasons, I don’t even have reasons for getting tattoos. I just do whatever comes to my head. I am that kind of person. I just love tattoos because I feel it’s just like you having those Heena and this one is just a permanent one. If you see my tattoos, you would see that some have been upgraded. Before now, I used to have one crucifix then I have upgraded it to writing stuff that matters to me. After I lost my mum, I wrote some inspirational quotes then I drew some things on my back and upgraded it to writing mother’s love and I changed some other things. And after a while, I just felt, this crucifix and writings, I just thought why not have a full sleeve arm tattoo because I have always said when I have my first child, I would have a proper full sleeve tattoo irrespective of the office I might be holding then. And one day, I just looked at myself in the mirror and wondered why I have to wait, so I just said to myself, start it jor and I went and started changing it and now have a full sleeve but I know that the tattoos I have are reasonable ones and ones that I can always cover up because not everyone is open to receiving people with tattoos, we are Africans no matter how we try to hide it. 

For someone who has been charged with a queen mother role in the Northern part of Nigeria, do you speak Hausa? 

I speak a few words gleaned from books. 

How then do you communicate with people in Uke kingdom in Nasarawa? 

They speak English as well. It is a civilised kingdom. For those who don’t, we have several people who can translate. I also have a book from my NYSC days, because I served in Sokoto, Gidan Madi. They gave us a book to help us communicate better with the locals and indigenes and that still comes in handy. Whenever I go there and I know what I want to say, I read up beforehand.  

Speaking about your title, what is the most surprising part of having to embody that title? 

The fact that I didn’t see it coming was the most surprising part. It just happened and I took a deep breath and embraced it. I got the title the first time I stepped into that kingdom. I had gone there for something else. 

What are some of the rules you have to follow as Sarauniya? 

There are limitations to how I can dress. I have three staff of offices. I have a long ceremonial one, the one that looks like a walking stick, and a short one. Even my hair should be covered, there is full regalia, and when I am in a place, my presence needs to be felt. 

It is believed in some quarters that you are married to an emir. How true is this?

I don’t think emirs crown their wives as queen mothers. If you are married to an emir, you cannot be everywhere. There is always a limitation as the wife of an emir. 

So, what is the biggest gift marriage has given you? 

I have always been reserved, but I don’t look it. Marriage has given me the ability to maintain who I have been. 

As an actress, what determines the kind of roles you accept in movies? 

There’s a limit I can go. Some men don’t like their wives in ‘touchy-kissy’ roles. Before now, I was even very careful about the kind of roles I accept, I didn’t do a lot of romance on set. Some actors find it easy to marry themselves because they are used to doing those things a lot with themselves on set, so feelings set in. I never used to do those things, and now I can’t. 

Would you give up your career for marriage? 

It depends. The question is that how many times do I even still act now? One thing takes the other away, that is the truth. People think they can juggle but eventually discover that one of those things would take precedence. Now, I do a whole lot of services that are taking me away from my career as an actress. It is not like my husband or anyone is saying don’t do movies again. He lets me do what I want. But I have to respect that there is a limit I can go when I am acting, and I don’t need to be told.

With your role in the Northern community – Nassarawa to be specific, what is your relationship with Kannywood seeing as you’re an actress in Nollywood and a royal mother in Northern Nigeria? 

I don’t have any relationship with them for now. Maybe as time goes on and I want to do a documentary of the title that I carry, I would work with them because they know more about the region than I do. 

Do you think you would have come this far if you didn’t come into the film industry? 

Yes, I think so. I did not grow up with a lazy mother. People in my family look at me now and see that I am more like my mother. I grew up living in my mum’s house. She was accomplished even before she married my father who had his own things. Imagine growing up like that. But even with everything I have done, I know that I have not started, I still have a long way to go. And I am not the kind of woman that rests simply because her husband has it all and provides. I chase money daily and I pay bills every day. I have buildings that I have to maintain and manage. If I am not hardworking, my husband would not stay. 

You have a foundation that has been in existence for a while, what’s been happening to it and what are the things you do? 

Before now, I have been doing a lot of humanitarian things. We go to schools of the blind on February 14th to give gifts to the visually impaired. It is a big deal not seeing the people around you talking and moving, I feel for them. So I have always done unpublicised things for them. But at the end of the day, the situation of the country is getting worse and people need help. Some won’t even know how to come to you to ask for something because they don’t want to be laughed at. Some want things and can only approach people whom they believe will be willing to give at the point that they want it. If someone knows that you are running a foundation, they can easily come to you. But when that isn’t available, they find it hard to even approach you with their needs. Meanwhile, there are also people who don’t do things except you hold them to it. I am not rich o, but I know that from the little I have I can share. Sometimes I transfer all the money I have in my account to people because I know that I have no immediate need of it, yet there is someone else that needs it. I also know that I have people I can call when I am really in need to help. But those other people don’t have people they can run to or call when they need. So by establishing a foundation, I am able to reach out to more people and render humanitarian services. I can be the mouthpiece to get people to give to others in need. Some people are in the clinics with bills of N10,000 that they cannot pay. Some people give birth and their husbands run away. So, for me, it is more than just sharing food, people have real problems. People die because of N500 or N1000 registration fees at the hospital, yet some others can comfortably sit in traffic with their legs crossed munching on Gala and Lacasera, and before you get to your destination, you have spent N5000. The foundation is going to be officially launched soon, and it is to give people access. If I open my DMs on a daily basis, you will cry for people. For things as small as paracetamol, gloves, people go to General Hospitals and still have to buy. There is a lot I want to talk about and I am not playing this season. People also assign blame when not due. People litter the roads and streets, block drainages and then complain about the government being the problem. Is it the government that threw rubbish on the road?