There is a growing habit in Nigerian entertainment where getting close to a celebrity has become part of the content itself. A creator sees an artist at the airport, follows them through the terminal, approaches them again at a club and keeps the camera running until something worth posting happens. The recent attention around Mavo is another example of how quickly that behaviour can become entertainment for everyone except the person being filmed.
Part of the problem is the way social media has changed access. Nigerian celebrities are more reachable than they were when entertainment coverage depended almost entirely on television, radio and newspapers. A phone can now put a creator inside the same room as a musician and turn a few seconds of interaction into a post that attracts thousands of views. The closer the creator gets, the more valuable the footage can become.
That creates a strange idea of ownership around celebrity life. Once someone becomes famous, audiences can start behaving as though their movements belong to the public. Going to an airport becomes an opportunity for content. Sitting in a club becomes a chance to film a reaction. Walking past someone with a camera can become permission, even when no permission was actually given.
The business behind this behaviour makes the problem harder. Creators have to keep feeding platforms with new material, and ordinary celebrity sightings do not always perform well. Conflict does. A celebrity looking uncomfortable, refusing to answer a question or reacting angrily can generate far more engagement than a polite interview. The creator gets views, comments and followers from a moment that the celebrity would probably rather have forgotten.
For young creators trying to turn social media into a career, that incentive is difficult to ignore. A viral clip can attract followers who later watch livestreams, attend events, buy products or become part of a creator’s wider audience. The pressure to find another successful post then begins again, especially when the previous video has already stopped circulating.
Celebrities have contributed to this culture too. Nigerian entertainment thrives on visibility, and artists often use social media to make their private lives part of their public brands. Fans feel closer to them because they see their homes, relationships, holidays and everyday routines online. That access can blur the line between being invited into someone’s world and assuming you can enter it whenever you choose.
The Mavo situation brings that boundary into focus because there is a difference between documenting a celebrity in a genuinely public setting and repeatedly pursuing someone who is clearly trying to disengage. Nigerian law already recognises privacy protections under Section 37 of the Constitution, while the Nigeria Data Protection Act regulates the processing of personal data. Whether a particular recording is lawful depends on the circumstances, but fame does not erase every privacy interest.
The culture around celebrity also matters because audiences help decide what becomes profitable. When viewers reward aggressive filming with millions of views, they create a market for more aggressive filming. When comment sections turn a celebrity’s discomfort into a joke, the creator learns that pushing further can pay.
This is where Nigerian creators need to rethink what access means. A celebrity being physically present in front of a camera does not automatically make the interaction content. Consent, context and basic boundaries still matter, particularly when a creator is deliberately following someone from one location to another.
The creator economy has given more Nigerians a chance to build careers without waiting for a television station, record label or publisher to discover them. That opportunity comes with its own responsibilities. Creators can make interesting content around celebrities without turning every uncomfortable encounter into a performance for the algorithm.
The real issue is what the industry chooses to reward. When attention becomes the product and celebrity discomfort becomes one of the easiest ways to get it, entitlement can start looking like content creation.
