Nollywood actress Nkechi Blessing has criticised the pressure to maintain an extravagant lifestyle on social media, saying many people who portray themselves as wealthy online may not necessarily be living the life they display.
The actress made her position known in a post on her Snapchat story on Friday, where she took a swipe at people desperate to associate with self-acclaimed “Lagos big girls.”
Blessing said she was not interested in seeking validation or impressing people online, stressing that she would rather enjoy her resources privately than put up a false image for social media followers.
“Na una want be friends with self-acclaimed Lagos big girls by force; people wey be say na online aesthetic want wound them. The moment you go close, you go too pity them,” she wrote.
Describing herself humorously as a “Yankee broke girl,” the actress said she was more concerned about having enough to eat and being able to travel than competing with others over wealth and social status.
“Me, I be Yankee broke girl, I no kuku identify with anything big girl. Make I sha dey see food chop and ticket money to fly round the world… who get pass me no concern me,” she stated.
However, Blessing maintained that her decision not to flaunt her lifestyle on social media should not be mistaken for financial weakness.
She argued that genuine financial strength does not have to be demonstrated through constant displays of expensive possessions and luxurious experiences online.
“The pressure to belong to the so-called Lagos big girls can never be for someone like me that likes my space, but when matter of N100m to N200m sup, we go chest am without flinching,” she said.
The actress added that people who do not regularly post their lifestyle online are sometimes wrongly labelled as broke.
Her comments come amid renewed conversations about the pressure to project wealth and status on social media, particularly within Nigeria’s entertainment and high-society circles.
The debate recently gained attention following a public fallout involving The Real Housewives of Lagos personalities Adeola “Diiadem” Adeyemi and Dabota Lawson, which generated discussions around money, friendship, business dealings and public perception.
Blessing has also previously spoken against judging people based on what they share or fail to share online.
She recently cautioned social media users against shaming women over their marital status or childlessness, stressing that people often face private struggles that are not visible to the public.