Mo Abudu

Mosunmola "Mo" Abudu (born 11 September 1964) is a Nigerian media mogul, philanthropist, and former human resources management consultant.[1][2]

Biography

Early life

Mo Abudu was born in Hammersmith, West London. Her father was an engineer and her mother was a caterer. She is of Yoruba ethnicity. Her family roots are in Ondo Town, southwest Nigeria. She is the eldest of three sisters in the family. Abudu moved to Nigeria when she was 7 years old to live with her grandparents, and returned to England at the age of 11.

Education

EbonyLife

Abudu started Ebonylife TV (ELTV) in 2013,[13][14] a network airing in many African countries, the UK and the Caribbean.[15] It transmitted its first broadcast on 1 July 2013 on Multichoice's DSTV Channel 165. Ebonylife TV later launched a multi-screen video-on-demand (VOD) platform.[16] It had a carriage deal with another pay-TV operator, StarTimes.[17] Abudu is in charge of EbonyLife Media,[18][19] which includes EbonyLife Films and EbonyLife Studios. She also oversees the EbonyLife Creative Academy, a school focused on teaching filmmaking skills,[20] and EbonyLife Place, a luxury entertainment resort in Nigeria.[21]

Abudu established EbonyLife Films in 2014.[22] Her first film as an executive producer was Fifty. She was a co-producer of The Wedding Party (2016).[23] Other films she has executive-produced or co-produced are The Wedding Party 2, The Royal Hibiscus Hotel, Chief Daddy, Your Excellency and Òlòtūré.[24] She also produced Blood Sisters; it made the top ten list globally on Netflix,[25] accumulating over 11 million viewing hours. Abudu's project Elesin Oba, The King's Horseman premiered in the Special Presentations category at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival.[26] In March 2018, EbonyLife Media and Sony Pictures Television co-produced The Dahomey Warriors.[27]

Partnerships

In February 2020, a new partnership between EbonyLife Media and Netflix was announced. Netflix acquired EbonyLife's drama series: Castle & Castle, Fifty, Sons of the Caliphate, On the Real and The Governor, along with a reality show, The Dating Game, and the feature film The Royal Hibiscus Hotel.[34] Netflix signed a new deal with EbonyLife on 12 June 2020. According to the deal, Abudu will work with the teams at Netflix to create two original series and multiple Netflix-branded films.[35] A film adaptation of Death and the King's Horseman and a series based on Lola Shoneyin's debut, The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives, were announced.[23] In September 2020, Netflix launched a movie titled Òlòtūré.[24]

On 4 February 2021, she signed a partnership with Sony in 2018.[36]

Honours

Forbes Africa recognised Abudu as the first African woman to own a Pan-Africa TV channel (2013).[59][60] She was listed as one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Global TV by The Hollywood Reporter in 2013[61] and received the Entrepreneur of the Year award by Women Werk in New York (2014).[62]

Abudu was nominated to serve as a member of the Advisory Group on Technology and Creatively for Nigeria.[63] Abudu was appointed a director of the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the organization responsible for staging the International Emmy Award.[64][65] The Academy later appointed her as Chair of the 47th International Emmy Awards Gala, held in New York on Monday 25 November 2019. She was the first African to land the role.[66][67]

She was named on the Power List 2018, an annual list of the UK's top 100 most influential people of African and Caribbean heritage. Abudu was nominated to serve as a member of the Advisory Group on Technology and Creatively for Nigeria in 2018 as well.

In 2019, she was awarded the MIPTV's 2019 Médailles d'Honneur, in Cannes, France, making her the first African[68] to be a recipient of the reputable award. Later that year, Abudu was named on the 2020 "Powerlist" of the top 100 most influential people in the UK of African/African-Caribbean descent.[69] She is featured in the 493-page book ''Greatest Blacks Ever: Top 100 Blacks Who Changed the World for Peace. Progress. Prosperity. Pleasure'',[70] authored by Ambassador Elliston Rahming and published by Dog Ear Publishing.

Abudu is the recipient of honorary degrees from Babcock University,[71] Nigeria, and the University of Westminster UK. She received the Médailles d'Honneur from MIPTV in 2019,[72] and Series Mania Woman in Series Award 2022.[73] Abudu received an invitation to become a member of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences (the Oscars) in the Producer category.[74] In October 2022, Abudu was awarded a National Honour, Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) by the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.[75]

In August 2023, she was designated as the Creatives Champion for the forthcoming UK-African Investment Summit by the UK Government.[76] She was announced an executive fellow of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research, Harvard University.[77]

In 2024 she received the ELOY Iconic Recognition Award.[78]

birth name	Mosunmola Abudu
birth date	September 11, 1964
known for	Owner of Ebonylife TV
birth place	London, United Kingdom
education	Ridgeway School MidKent College West Kent College University of Westminster
occupation	Media proprietor
spouse	Tokunbo Abudu (divorced)
children	2
website	ebonylifetv.com

Biography

Early life

Education

Career

EbonyLife

Partnerships

Reception

Filmography

Moments with Mo

The Debaters

Honours

Personal life

External links

References