Did you know that there are approximately 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide? Can you imagine all the different ways in which we all use the internet? Obasanjo’s Internet is our interview series where we speak to some of our internet favourites on how they relate to the internet and what it means to them and their work. This week, filmmaker and photographer, Isabel Okoro talks to us about how she uses Obasanjo’s Internet.
What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?
I pick up my phone and go through my messages. Mostly, it would be my mum I’m texting every morning.
How do you use the internet for work or pleasure?
A bit of both.
What moment or episode in your life would you say captured the essence of the internet?
I would say watching Beyonce at the VMAs in 2016. I don’t remember where in the world I was, I just remember being on Twitter and all these people from all over the world; strangers from New York, down to my friends back home in Lagos and to people I was in school with, paying attention to this performance. I think that was my first time really experiencing something viral in that way or at least being aware of it being viral in the sense that everyone was talking about it.
Your favourite social media platform and why?
I don’t really have a favorite, I think they all suck honestly.
What was the last meme you saved?
Do you remember the first time something you posted went viral? What was it? How did it make you feel?
I think it was a shoot I did in 2020. I posted it on Twitter and went to bed with it on 10 retweets but by the time I woke up, it had maybe 500 or 600 retweets and over 3,000 likes. I was like “wait what? When did this happen?” It also made me feel really good because it was my art and people had positive things to say about it. It was a push for my work to reach people who didn’t already know about it.
What’s the most outrage you have ever generated over something you posted? How did you react to it?
Honestly, I like to avoid conflict so I tread very lightly on the internet. Especially on Twitter ’cause I see people have their days and my goal is to never have a day on Twitter be about me. I’m very careful about what I tweet, I don’t think I’ve had any outrageous reactions.
What rules do you live by on the internet?
I guess don’t take it too seriously.
What is your guiltiest online pleasure?
TikTok. I used to insult people who used TikTok but now I’m so obsessed. I spend a lot of time on Tiktok, just watching stuff. And I watch the corny stuff too.
Would you say you have an online persona?
I think so.
What’s your favorite emoji and why?
I haven’t updated my phone in ages so I don’t have a lot of new emojis. But I really like the heart hands cause I make that sign in real life.
Are you particular about your feed?
I’m extremely particular about my feed, but less so on Twitter because it is like a journal where I go to rant, but Instagram? I need my Instagram to look a certain way because my whole thing with my practice is world-building. So when people go on my insta I want it to feel like they’re stepping into my world. I’m very particular about the things I post and the way I post them on my main feed. On my stories, I don’t really care ’cause they disappear.
YouTube or TikTok? Which do you prefer and why?
I prefer YouTube because the long-form content does it for me more. I go on YouTube and I watch interviews and podcasts and other stuff. TikTok is convenient for bite sized information.
Which Nigerian creator do you think the world needs to see and hear more of?
All my friends.
Richie Igunma (Scrdofme). He photographs Rema a lot, he is an amazing photographer, creative director, fantastic friend and person.
Kemka Ajoku, a photographer in London, and Folarin (thankgodhimself) who is also a photographer.
I have a lot of inspirational people around me at all times.
Who is the coolest person you follow and the coolest person who follows you?
This is tough. Maybe Solange is the coolest person I follow.
I honestly don’t know who the coolest person who follows me is. I’m not able to check a lot of that because random people follow me and I lose track of who is who.
What is your favourite Nigerian podcast?
A Shared Gaze by Alayo Akinkugbe. It features a lot of black women artists. It’s new and I was a guest in an episode.
Have you ever hooked up with someone you met online?
Yeah. It wasn’t like I hooked up with them, we dated.
5 people you’d love to see answer these questions
Folarin, Kemka, Richie, Deelo Avery and Lady Donli.
Read previous Obasanjo’s Internet entries here.