Bolanle Olukanni is a TV presenter popularly known for hosting ‘Moments with Mo’ on DSTV and Project Fame West Africa. She is also a documentary film maker and founder, God’s Wives Foundation. Bolanle Olukanni fondly called Bolinto was born on August 19th and was raised in four countries namely Nigeria, America, Kenya and Israel.
Even though Bolanle Olukanni had an adventurous childhood, she felt at home wherever she moved to and was never attached to one place for too long. She explored interesting cities and visit amazing historical monuments. She attended school with students from all over the world and was exposed to so many interesting cultures. These experiences were very influential on her outlook on life.
Bolanle Olukanni attended St. Saviours Primary school in Lagos and later attended Queens College for her secondary school education. She moved to Nairobi and attended Rosslyn Academy in Nairobi, Kenya for part of her high school.
Seeking for more knowledge, Bolanle Olukanni later moved to America to for her senior year and attended Wichita Southeast High School in Wichita, Kansas, where she participated in the National Speech and Debate Tournament for Dramatic Interpretation.
In 2007,Bolanle Olukanni received a Bachelor’s degree from Loyola University, Chicago with a double degree – Bachelors of Arts in both Communications and International Studies.
She moved back to Nigeria to do her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), and spent the year working for a non-profit organisation in Ekiti State.
During her NYSC service year, Bolanle and a fellow corps member started ‘Girls For The Future’ – a gender based empowerment workshop for secondary school students, aimed at teaching the girl child of their rights and providing mentorship for the students.
In May 2010, while still in school, she won the Loyola University Chicago Kale Williams Award for Exceptional Work in Promoting Human Rights and Social Justice.
In 2013, she won the ‘Search for Mo’s Co-host’ competition out of all hopefuls across Africa. Bolanle began her presenting career with Moment with Mo, now called ‘Moments.’ She still co-hosts the show alongside Toke Makinwa and Michelle Dede on EbonyLife TV.
In 2015, Bolanle Olukanni co-founded Sage & Walls, a multimedia production company and began producing and hosting “On the Carpet with Bolinto” a red carpet entertainment show covering A-list events in Africa.
At one time, she shared her thoughts about issues of rape in Nigeria. She said: “Waiting patiently for #Metoo to come to Nigeria. Enough is enough. Our society encourages and allows rape culture. The lyrics of songs, the jokes in comedy skits, and the hush hush culture are the things that continue to allow sexual abusers to feel like they can violate someone and get away with it. Victims of sexual assault should no longer have to deal with the weight of shame. If you have been sexually assaulted, I pray that you are set free and realize that it is not your fault.”
