Ike Onyeama, a former Big Brother Naija (BBNaija) housemate, revealed that he earned about N3 million during his time on the 2019 Pepper Dem season.
In a recent interview, Onyeama also shared his reasons for moving from the United States to Nigeria, highlighting the greater freedom to pursue business opportunities.
Raised in the US, Onyeama reflected on his experience in the BBNaija house, his regrets, and his entrepreneurial journey since the show. “The total shouldn’t be more than N4 million. It was about N3 million plus. All those challenges, N500,000 here, N300,000 there,” he said, recalling his winnings.
Onyeama spoke candidly about his decision to relocate: “The US is great—I miss it every day. But people won’t really understand until they’ve lived there. The freedom we have here in Nigeria is unlike that in any other country. Anything you want to do is possible.”
Now running a drinks business in Nigeria, Onyeama contrasted the ease of setting up a business locally with the bureaucratic challenges he faced in America. “Here, to get my liquor licence, I just had to talk to a few people, make some contacts at the government office, do a few things, and I got my licence and my store quickly,” he explained. “In the US, it took months, even years, and I was rejected multiple times. The freedom here is really something.”
However, Onyeama acknowledged the challenges of entrepreneurship in Nigeria: “To make money the way you want, you have to think and work much harder. It was when I came to Nigeria that I learned how to hustle.”
Onyeama also made headlines during the show for his relationship with Mercy Eke, who went on to win the 2019 season. The couple parted ways in 2020, ending their relationship after the show.
