Looking back at your time in the house, what’s one thing you wish you had done differently?
I wish I had explored more friendships. Friendships with Keivo, Araga and Gerald. Once they left the house, I had almost nobody apart from Bells. I wish I had tried more relationships.
What inspired the eviction look?
Naturally, I just like to try new things. I was bored of the look I was carrying in the house. I wanted to disrupt the normal day of my life. I wanted to look and feel different.
What is your biggest mental hurdle?
I wasn’t the best at arena games because they were new to me, unlike other housemates who had prior knowledge. I wasn’t the worst either, but I could have done better. Losing the games made me feel moody.
Can you share some of the misconceptions about yourself that you’d be correcting?
That I have a temper. I just had a few confrontations with Tram and Sultex, and that was me standing up for myself, but watching the highlights, I realised how that must have looked like I was an angry person. It was just an outburst. An outburst here or there shouldn’t define my image. The second narrative was always with Bells. Bells was part of the journey, but I was also friends with Araga, Keivo and Gerald. Keivo even brought out the weird side of me. I had my moments with Wager too.
What does fashion mean to you in general?
For me, fashion is a form of expression, how I think about myself and how I carry myself. It’s a compliment to who I am. So, most of my outfits are usually very intentional. My entrance outfit was unconventional because I intentionally wanted the world to see me in that way, like royalty or something of some sort. It also depicts my feelings; most times when I feel low, even in the house, I wear black but I don’t think people got to understand that part of my fashion reasoning. For me, fashion means self-expression in some type of way. I use fashion to express myself.
What is it about the house that you’d really miss?
I love how unpredictable it was. I cherished the unpredictability because it also gave hope to the people who had not won enough that maybe your day will come, so that feeling of hopefulness was one thing that carried a lot of people. It kept us going; it kept them going. I love how spontaneous it is. I love activities so much; that’s why I was very active during the wager. The house will stimulate you with so many activities going on at the same time. I loved how it was a mixture of several characters and personalities that were multi-layered. I observed so many people in the house, and it was beautiful watching people unravel themselves. I think that sums it all.
What sort of roles are you naturally drawn to, and which would you like to explore as you’re out of the house as an actor?
Naturally, I’m drawn to every type of role because I’m a curious person, and I’m also curious about myself. So, I want to experience everything and explore everything that comes with acting. I want to be versatile. I want to do drama, action, comedy, romance, thriller, and series. I want to go mainstream. I want to be actively involved in acting and master my craft. I want to perfect it, be the actor that people look forward to watching because of how good and expressive he is. I want to do so much in my acting career.
Now that you’re out, what’s next for Yusuf, and what should we expect from you after BBNaija?
I want to go back into acting and do more challenging roles. Accept more diverse roles. Do more interesting things in acting. I was an author, so I want to go back to writing books, scripts, etc. I also want to delve into public speaking and hosting, and expansion of my farm.