Why I participated in BBNaija — ex-housemate Saga

Nigerian artiste and former Big Brother Naija housemate Adeoluwa Okusaga, popularly known as Saga has opened up about the motivation behind his decision to participate in the reality show, revealing it was a calculated step to kick-start his entertainment career.

In an interview clip shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Channels Television on Saturday, Saga said he had never been a viewer of the programme before applying and was encouraged by colleagues to audition.

“My colleagues at work literally begged me to go for Big Brother; I never watched the show,” he said.

According to him, his participation was intentional rather than accidental fame.

I went to Big Brother Naija to launch my career as an entertainer. When I was an engineering student in school, I didn’t even touch any of the creatives; I completely abandoned them. I started drawing officially the year after I left school,” he added.

Saga, who studied engineering, noted that both engineering and art share similar foundations in imagination and technical skill, citing Leonardo da Vinci as an example of someone who excelled in both disciplines.

“I love engineering. I love engineering as well. You know, that’s why a lot of artists end up as engineers because for you to be an engineer you need to have a powerful imagination.

So you have to have imagination, understanding and skill as well. These are things that are also… And you need to be smart too.

“And you need to be smart. So a lot of artists like Da Vinci, I love them like that, end up as engineers as well because it’s a parallel, you know, engineering and science,” he said.

Reflecting on his academic years, he said his classmates knew him mainly for technical drawing rather than artistic expression. After graduation, however, he began exploring music, fitness, and visual art more seriously, even sketching during work breaks offshore.

When I was in school, I didn’t touch any creative work. So when my classmates see me now, they’re surprised. Back then, they just knew me for technical drawing. I loved drawing diagrams and even did assignments for people.”

“I concentrated on engineering in school. After I left, I explored everything. I’d take my drawing board to work, place it on my table, and draw offshore. I’d draw, work out, and sing.”

He described his reality-show experience as demanding but ultimately transformative.

“The Big Brother experience was good. It was rough at the time, but in hindsight, it was absolutely worth it. I couldn’t have pictured my life playing out differently.”

Culled from punch