Hilda Baci inspired many Nigerians after she embarked on a 100-hour cook-a-thon in an attempt to break a Guinness World Record. And a young Chef Dami from Ekiti took things to another level when she entered a makeshift kitchen to cook for 120 hours straight.
Amid all the backlash and trolling, a Twitter space with journalist Kemi Olunloyo seemed like the right place for Chef D to share her point of view. She cleared the air on her strong connection to her church, organising another 150-hour cook-a-thon, among other things. I attended it so you don’t have to.
Source: Instagram (@dammypas)
Chef D, where are you?
The Twitter space was slated for 8 p.m. on Sunday night (June 18, 2023) but 30 minutes in, Chef D was nowhere to be found. It was strongly giving “I’m not ready for this life”. When she finally came on, she blamed her lateness on Ekiti network.
Chef D’s team comprises the entire Spirit World Global Mission (SWGM)
The speculations about members of Damilola’s team are true. According to the chef, the entire 20-something members of SWGM make up her team.
The church is Chef D’s major sponsor
If you’ve been wondering why Chef D’s cook-a-thon is heavily tied to her church, well, there’s your answer. The church funded her first cook-a-thon.
Chef D made a GWR application a day before the cook-a-thon commenced
An application was made, but here’s the thing, it was a day to the cook-a-thon, and GWR stated that it would take another twelve weeks to get feedback. However, Chef Dami and her team couldn’t wait, considering all the preparation and online promotion.
Chef D said GWR was never part of the plan from the get-go. She was inspired by Baci and only wanted to show that she could cook for 120 hours.
She was never in competition with Hilda
“Competing with Hilda Baci is like a poor person competing with a rich person. I’m just a young girl from a local village and no notable background,” Chef D’s answer to a question about what inspired her cook-a-thon.
Trust Kemi to give some pep talk and help Dami understand why she mustn’t view herself from the lens of “less privileged”.
Is Chef Dami doing another cook-a-thon? Yup
It’s still at the proposal stage, and an application hasn’t been submitted, but you better believe that Chef D is coming back. Here’s what Kemi had to say:
“Maybe you shouldn’t announce it if you haven’t submitted an application to GWR. Why would you announce it? What if somebody wants to do more than that? Have you heard of the girl in Kenya that wants to do 400 hours?”
Chef D is open to actually learning the ropes of being a chef
The cook-a-thon might have earned her a title as a chef, but Chef D has no prior culinary knowledge. She’s, however, open to getting schooled and actually earning the title.
Ogi and akara for dinner
If you don’t rate this Nigerian meal, shame on you. Kemi asked Chef D what she’d prepare for dinner if she had five minutes, and her response: “a simple pap and akara”. Apparently, that’s where the magic is at.
Funds secured
There might’ve been a few audio pledges, but Chef D actually got a whopping ₦1m donation from a fellow Ekiti man based in the UK. She also got an additional ₦50k from Kemi.
Revamp your team
Apparently, Chef D and her team have no knowledge of the over 32 fake social media pages impersonating her and saying nasty things about Hilda Baci. She’s also not running a cooking class, even though a Facebook page says otherwise and is already charging unsuspecting people. Wahala.
Kemi came with more advice for Chef D to ditch the church and get an actual team — a manager, publicist and social media handler.
Kemi hosted a free Twitter Space for Chef D
The space eventually ended minutes to 9 p.m., with Chef D thanking Kemi for offering her platform for free. Apparently, she charges $500 for Twitter spaces.
Most people couldn’t ask questions due to the limited time, but if there’s one gist we got from the whole thing, it’s that an application for a 150-hour cook-a-thon hasn’t been submitted and Chef D actually wants to get proper training. Will meals in the next cook-a-thon be prepared or at least presented better? Will she postpone until she gets proper training? Fingers crossed.
Got a story to share? Submit a pitch here.
