The Story⚡ Twin sisters Oiza and Meyi Abu, stars of Say Who Die?, open up about the joys and struggles of playing on-screen twins, their Nollywood dreams, and the balance between music, acting, and real life. Tell Me More Twin sisters Oiza and Meyi Abu made their Prime Video debut in Say Who Die?, a dark comedy that explores sibling rivalry, comparison, and identity. In this conversation, they share how their personal experiences as twins shaped their performances, the challenges and highlights of filming, their dreams in Nollywood, and how they juggle music, acting, and life off-screen. Have a fun time reading! Shock Africa: How much of your personal experience seeped into your role as Odion and Omon? Oiza: I am a twin, and the character is a twin, so that's an aspect of my life, in a sense. The setting nuances of a twin being compared to somebody constantly… As a twin, you’re all right individually, but because of your twin, you’re always being compared to what you have or what you lack, and that can cause insecurity. For example, people say I talk too much or I talk more than my sister. It wouldn't be that I talk too much, but it would be that, besides my sister, who doesn't talk, I seem like a talkative person. But on my own, I am talking just fine. That's what the issue could be, and I feel like that's what resonated with me. The fact that the character was a twin and she is being compared to her sister. For example, in the trailer you all saw, where her mum said all she knows is food, that’s why she can't get a scholarship like her sister. So, for the character, I resonated more with being compared to my personal experience. Meyi: They switched our real-life characters. The character that Oiza played is always in trouble, but I’m the one who usually gets in trouble. So I feel like they got the personality right, but for different twins. So I was playing Oiza, and Oiza was playing me. Oiza: I would like to make a little correction to that. I think it’s as we’ve gotten older that things have changed. The character I played as Odion is more akin to who I was when I was much younger, but as we became adults, our characters switched. We are always interchanging our personalities. Shock Africa: Playing a sibling who faces comparison, betrayal and pressure must have been emotionally heavy. What did you each do to protect your mental and emotional space while filming? Oiza: The truth is that while I was filming, I was already emotionally distraught because I was going through heartbreak. I was already in such an emotionally vulnerable state, so I don't think acting in the movie added to the mood. It was an outlet for me to express the way I was feeling. In between takes, I would literally be fighting tears. I welcomed the emotions, the themes of betrayal and comparison, because I was already in such a state where that was what I was feeling. So I had to stick with it, and it got me paid. Shock Africa: What was the most challenging or unforgettable scene you shot, and why was that? Meyi: They are telling a story about twins, and I am an actual twin, so I could relate. That put me in an emotional state, and it was kind of hard to film because, in real life, people compare us and tend to create some kind of animosity, consciously or unconsciously. So, to explore that topic deeply was hard for me to shoot, and certain scenes, certain conversations, and favoritism for one twin over the other were kind of hard to act. Oiza: There was no particular scene that was hard for me to watch or see, and I can't tell you. You have to watch the movie. Shock Africa: This film marks a big step for both of you in acting. So what have you learnt about yourselves as performers through Say Who Die? Meyi: I have learnt that maybe I can act. There were some scenes that I didn't know I could act in, and I did them well. I was just really proud of myself because it was a bit difficult for me. So I learnt that maybe I can act a little bit, and maybe it's something I want to do a little more. Oiza: For me, what I learnt was a sense of responsibility from doing this, because I am aware of what it takes to be an actor, but I really never thought about what happens at the backend—like waking up at 7 a.m., having to stand, having the patience to shoot scenes multiple times, having to do things even when you are tired, just to get a good take. I will never forget the first day I got on set. I stood for at least six hours, and I saw it took a lot of discipline to do this. So, anyone who is looking down on Nollywood is doing so because they don't know how hard it is to do what they are doing. Shock Africa: What was the experience like working with the director, Paul? Meyi: He is not the kind of person who can stay angry for long. So, even when there were things that didn't go well on set, he didn't get overly angry. His anger never felt destructive. Everything was wrapped up in love. He is quite accommodating. Oiza: Paul is very kind, and he makes people comfortable. It's just his nature. He doesn't talk a lot. You can mistake him for a member of the crew if you are not paying attention. He is just a very calm guy. It was so cool working with him. I really liked it. Shock Africa: What do you think is your big Nollywood dream, and what role do you look forward to taking in your next project? Oiza: I want to be a director, funny enough. I'm very fascinated by directing. That's something that I studied while I was in school because I did theatre arts, and I specialized in play directing. I want to work with cameras, being able to tell a story and deduce an emotion from just the way your camera is placed, as camera placements give different emotions. Because I am somebody who can’t see those pictures, it's very interesting to me. My dream role will be to play like Iya Barakat, a woman who is not of the best character. That is far from my character. I think that will be interesting to play as opposed to what I’m used to playing. Meyi: My big Nollywood dream is to hold my sister’s hands while she is there, because I want to support her wherever she is. But I would also like to probably be in a series or write a story. I have been writing underneath. My dream role will be a baddie, like a posh girl, as it’s something away from what I am as a person. In this movie, we played characters that are very close to who we are personally, so I would like to try something else. Shock Africa: How has your music career been, and what is the process of creating, and who does what? Oiza: The music is going awesome. We’ve been hitting new strides. We just got on Falz’s album, and we are in the process of releasing another song in a couple of months. Hopefully, everything works out. So, the music is going great. Everything is going fine. In terms of who does what, Meyi plays the guitar all the time because I will fix nails and I want to be a hottie. So, Meyi has sacrificed being a baddie to play the guitar for us. In terms of who creates and how we create, it depends on one’s idea. We could have a month-long streak of me being the one coming up with ideas, and Meyi adding body to it. So everybody kind of does everything, except that I don’t play the guitar. Shock Africa: What do you do for fun when you are not working? Meyi: What we do for work is what we do for fun. We like music, so we like to sing songs, and that is fun for us. We also like going to the gym so that we can have an activity aside from work. I love to watch a movie on TV too. Oiza: We also like to cook. Our favorite thing to do is to make 10-minute meals. Shock Africa: If you could describe this film in just three words to convince someone to watch it, what would you say? Oiza: Say Who Die? That’s my three words. It could be a question, a response, a swear, or an exclamation. So it’s just a cool three words. Meyi: I think the movie is fun. I think the movie is well-directed, and it is beautifully acted. Shock Africa: Thank you for sharing your time with us. In Summary Say Who Die? debuted on Prime Video on August 29, with Oiza and Meyi Abu delivering standout performances alongside Baaj Adebule, Mike Afolarin, and others in a gripping dark comedy. As the sisters shared in this interview, the project marked both a personal and professional milestone, and it’s now streaming exclusively on Prime Video. Thanks for Reading. Shockng.com covers the big creators and players in the African film/TV industry and how they do business. Let’s be friends on Instagram @Shockafrica
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