Yemi Solade stirs controversy after claiming he started acting before Pete Edochie

Solade said, “I started acting in 1977 when I was 17 as the Nigeria Youngest Actor”

By Kehinde Okeowo

Nollywood actor, Yemi Solade, has instigated a public debate online after claiming that he began acting before his colleague, Pete Edochie.

Solade made the assertion in a now trending video he posted on social media while recounting his acting experience.

In an attempt to refute viral claims that another section of the Nigeria movie industry started Nollywood, he argued that the fact that the Yoruba movie industry didn’t start documentation earlier doesn’t mean others should take the credit.

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He, however, acknowledged that while he began appearing in movies before Edochie, the veteran actor is older than him..

Narrating how it all started, Solade noted that “I’m a senior to Pete Edochie, though he is older than me but I started acting before him.

“I started acting in 1977 when I was 17 as the Nigeria Youngest Actor. I have done 48 years in acting and still standing. Ade Ajiboye ‘Big Abass’ is the first Nigerian to make a home video. They claimed to have started Nollywood because they romance media, and the Yoruba section was just acting without documentation.”

However, after the video made the rounds on social media it elicited mixed reactions, while some netizens agreed with the thespian, others insisted Edochie started acting before him.