Post by Clare Baby (@clare_aririahu)

We always appreciate Arise News anchor Rufai Oseni for his fire.

But we talk less about Ojy Okpe, whom I think equally deserves an appreciation post.

The kind of career switch she made is one many people are too scared to make..

From becoming a finalist at M-Net Face of Africa, she walked for top designers like Versace, Dolce & Gabbana and appeared in magazines like Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan. She did well for herself as a model.

That international modelling career is what most people dream of, but she was smart enough to know it wouldn't last forever.

What I respect most is the pivot.

While still modelling in New York, she went to get her degree in Communications and Film Production from St. John's University.

She worked behind the scenes on big films like The Devil Wears Prada and Spider-Man 3.

She even won a New York Emmy in 2015 as a producer for the documentary Game Changers: How the Harlem Globetrotters Battled Racism.

So this was never just a fine face, there was always a brain behind it.

She started as a producer for Arise Entertainment 360 in New York in 2013, reporting on entertainment and fashion.

Then pivoted fully into hard news, moved back to Nigeria, and mastered the whole landscape.

Mind you, this was someone whose world was cameras, runways, fashion magazines - worlds apart from hard news and politics.

And now? She's a fixture on the ARISE News Morning Show.
Giving sharp analysis, fearless interviews, doing her job with so much grace.

Some people may not understand what it takes to completely retrain yourself for news.

It's not about reading scripts. It's about research, it's about understanding politics and breaking it down for millions watching.
You must be able to think on your feet too.

So when I see people like Ojy who made such a bold career transition, I respect them.

Kudos to her.

Copied from BTV Reporting (on Facebook)

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