The Adeboye twins, Mary and Martha, are currently making waves in the modelling industry. The identical twins, who hail from Akoko- Edo, in Edo State, in this interview with SEYI SOKOYA, speak on their fashion preferences and their rising career. Excerpts:
Modelling as a career.
Well, we discovered modelling was good for us as teenagers but our parents were not too comfortable with the exposure it would give us at that time. But with time, they had to support it because of the passion they saw that we had in modelling. We used to admire models like Kimora Lee, Tyra Banks, Agbani Darego, Naomi Campbell and Tia and Tamara. We admired them so much that we grew up wanting to be like them. Their finesse, their inbred grace and exquisite demeanour left us breathless and with the determination to be like them; the rest today, is history. Being twins gives us extra attention because of our identical faces, character and our ability to confuse people.
Challenges in the modelling industry.
One of the challenges facing the modelling industry is discrimination against models of a certain race, size or age. The size zero controversy is well publicised and modelling agencies have been heavily criticised for encouraging girls to be unnaturally thin, and sometimes causing the development of eating disorders. Even, high profile modelling agencies have been reported to lead young girls into a lifestyle where sex and drugs are prevalent.
Modelling and nudity.
We will not say modelling enhances nudity because they are two different concepts on their own, but they are intertwined and at times, they complement each other; we don’t support nudity in this profession. There are ways you can portray yourself as well as pass a message across without revealing your cleavage.
Growing up.
Growing up was beautiful. It was fun because of the funny pranks we played on people, (and are still playing till date) fighting for each other, quarreling with each other and all the childish things you could ever think of. Everybody loved us everywhere we went, so finding favour with people was easy because they loved us as twins. There were times when Martha would collect pocket money from my dad twice without him noticing. Also, there were times that Mary would commit an offence in school but Martha would get punished for an offence she knew nothing about. There were also times when a guy would ask both of us out thinking he was talking to just one person. We used to fake each other’s voice on the phone and talk to our friends and family without them knowing that they were talking to someone else.
Educational background.
We schooled at Government Girls Secondary School, Dutse, Abuja, Nigeria. Mary is a graduate of University of Abuja, where she read Public Administration ( she is waiting for her National Youth Service Corps) while Martha is currently studying Theatre Arts in the same institution.
What I like most about twins.
Mary: What I love most about Martha is the fact that she’s always there for me. She’s one person that I can trust with my life. I can’t imagine how life would have been without her.
What I dislike about my twin sister.
Martha: Mary is very soft-hearted and doesn’t know how to be hard, she’s calm to a fault. But beside that, she’s perfect.
Description of self.
Mary: I’m enthusiastic, hungry for knowledge and a self-starter. I am always eager to meet challenges and assimilate newest and latest technologies, skills, concepts and ideas. I am also a highly analytical team-player. I am someone who is a proven relationship-builder with exceptional interpersonal communication and presentation skills. I love meeting new people, interacting with friends, singing, dancing, surfing the internet, discussing health related issues, cooking, reading to acquire new knowledge and technology and research.
Martha: I am highly knowledgeable, result-oriented, performance-driven with successful experience in positions of increasing responsibility and duties, able to plan and work with people. My hobbies are singing, dancing, gisting and of course, acting. My likes are honesty, truthfulness and kindness. My dislikes are lies, greed, selfishness and trying to be cunning.
Definition of style.
Mary: My definition of style is anything that blends with your personality, that makes you happy and comfortable. As I love to say “fashion changes, but style endures.”
Martha: My own definition of style is anything that is unique for me, yet identifiable for others.
Beauty routine.
Mary: Cleanse and moisturise daily, drink a glass of water every morning (huge necessity), wear minimal make-up. I love it as simple and natural as possible, not too heavy. I eat healthy foods and I sleep a lot when I can.
Martha: Clean and scrub the face daily, have a clean bath, drink lots of milk, also wear minimal makeup because simplicity is beautiful, also love eating pineapple when I crave for a quick snack at night.
Favourite designers.
We both love Louis Vuitton. That’s our favourite designer.
Favourite colours.
We don’t really have a favourite colour, but we don’t like colours that are too bright and flashy.
Choice of accessories.
Martha: My choice of accessories are rings, necklace and jewellery.
Mary: I love glasses, earrings, wristwatches and bangles.
Fashion items we cannot do without.
Martha: Earrings.
Mary: Lip gloss.
Secret of beauty secret.
Martha: I eat lots of carrots.
Mary: I put body cream on right after I get out of the shower, so the cream has time to absorb into my skin.
What we do to keep in shape.
We do exercises every morning to keep our bodies in shape.
Special treat.
Going out with our friends to swim and have fun.
Most expensive fashion item in our wardrobes.
Martha: A pair of Steve Madden shoe I got for N18,000.
Mary: A Louis Vuitton bag I got for N15,000
Fashion items we can’t be caught dead wearing.
Martha: An orange colour lipstick.
Mary: A silver colour lipstick.
Opinion on toning, also on cosmetic surgery.
It depends on what the person wants to use to tone. For some, it’s just to have an even skin colour, but it must not contain any bleaching agent, as many of them can cause cancer of the skin. For cosmetic surgery, if it is to correct any deformation, it is fine.
Take on provocative dressing.
“Don’t dress in revealing clothing, because you will be asking for it (trouble).” Unfortunately, this is a very common piece of unhelpful and judgmental advice that our society seems obsessed over.
When it comes to conversations of sexual assault, the topic of how the victim was dressed at the time always seems to come up. If she (and yes, these comments only ever applied to women) was dressed in any way that the society can interprete as “sexy,” “revealing,” or “provocative,” then this becomes a factor worth mentioning. The problem is that our society holds some ridiculous beliefs about how revealing clothes supposedly increase the risk of sexual assault.
Part of the body we will love to flaunt.
The only thing we can professionally flaunt is our curves and it should be fully clothed because we have a decent upbringing and we are from a puritan home. Our moral values and our personal conviction won’t allow us flaunt body parts just to captivate an audience.
Most embarrassing moment.
There had been lots of them, but the most embarrassing experience that made me helpless was the day my sister’s boyfriend came to hug and kiss me thinking I was Mary. I was dumbfounded because my sister was just there laughing.
Our greatest physical asset.
Mary: My greatest physical assets are my legs and my lips.
Martha: Mine are my eyes, face and hands.
Coping with male admirers.
Wow! Well, that has been funny in some manners because of our looks, some guys can’t really differentiate us so they either make the mistake of asking both of us out thinking it is the same person or feel stupid talking to us.
Our wishes to our fans.
We love them and they are the reason that we’ve come this far. We won’t let them down and will continue to make them proud.
Source: Tribune
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