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Blessing From Above!
Blessing Awodibu Wants to Make Bodybuilding Great Again
Interview by Ron Harris
I don’t think many people will argue when I say that Blessing Awodibu is the most exciting character in bodybuilding today. His feud with Nick Walker in early 2021 was legendary, and this year he picked it up with Nick again on stage immediately after winning the New York Pro. But Blessing is so much more than trash talk and hilarious skits on his Instagram page and YouTube channel. He proved that by returning to the same two shows he did last year, the Indy Pro and the New York Pro, and redeeming himself with back-to-back wins. We spoke a couple of weeks later about his contract renewal with Redcon1, how he plans to make bodybuilding fun for all of us, his relationship with coach George Farah, and how he is returning to his native Nigeria for the first time in over 20 years.
It was just announced on your social media as well as Redcon1’s that you have signed a new contract and are back with the company. I know that you were not far out from the Indy Pro when you learned they were not going to re-sign you?
There was a lot of stuff going on. The company was changing direction, and the boss man Aaron wasn’t around. You could see from their social media they were pulling away from bodybuilding, which is what the brand was built on. But I understood and respected their decision. At six weeks out from Indy I got the call that my contract wouldn’t be renewed. It wasn’t a shock because I’d seen what they were doing, but the time frame was not ideal.
Did you panic or freak out? I would have.
Honestly, I was very calm. I knew I was about to level up to a whole new level in my career. And if I started to panic at six weeks out, the stress could destroy my look. I didn’t let it get to me. I told them I appreciated everything they had done for me. I did ask for a bit more time, because that only gave me two weeks left on the contract. I needed to talk to my lawyer so my visa to stay in the U.S. would be intact. They were kind enough to give me an extension to sort things out. And you saw what happened six weeks later!
Did they take you back because you won the two shows?
There had been a lot of miscommunication because Aaron is the boss man and he wasn’t around. It was a weird time of transition for everyone. Mistakes and wrong calls were made. Eventually we were able to talk things out and regain trust. They reached out to me after I won New York to talk. Aaron had believed in me from day one and I always appreciated the opportunity he gave this kid from Africa to chase the American dream. I don’t take that lightly. It means a lot to me. Even though I earned it all through my own hard work, I never forget that, or all the help I got on my way up. There’s no such thing as being “self-made.” On your journey there are so many people who come into your life, some for a long time and others briefly. With me it’s all about loyalty. I’ve only been with two companies my entire career. I only left the first one because they fucked me up and stole my trademark. They came out with a Boogieman pre-workout. Aaron told me from day one he wanted me to stay with Redcon1 for the rest of my bodybuilding career. I could never be the type of guy who jumps around from one company to another. How are you going to leave one company and then a week later start hyping up another one? It’s just not right. You’re only lying to the fans. Loyalty is everything with me. We had a couple of meetings and talked back and forth. Apologies were made and we came to an agreement, and we’re back, baby!
Now I have to ask you about the most exciting part of the New York Pro, which was after you got your award and proceeded to take the mic and call out Nick Walker right there on stage with you, saying you would whoop his ass at the Mr. Olympia. Did you plan that? And was Nick in on it?
It was not planned. My goal is to change the sport. A lot of people laugh at me and call me an Instagram or YouTube bodybuilder, say I’m a clown. I never let the comments get to me. I’m just being myself and enjoying what I do. I’m not in bodybuilding to be boring. It’s all about the fans for me. All the people supporting their favorite bodybuilders, going to shows, watching the livestreams. I love every single one of you guys whether you’re rooting for me or not. Without you guys, we’re nothing. I will do everything in my power to make sure you guys are getting your money’s worth and are entertained. In any sport, the fans get engaged because they want to be entertained. So if me and Nick talk about each other and it gets all the fans talking about it, that’s connecting people together. You will see people making friends in the comments section! I want to make bodybuilding as fun and entertaining as it can be.
You broke the Internet when you called out Nick. Within an hour, I bet there were 1,000 videos and far more IG posts about it.
You see how easy it is to take a sport from here to a whole other level? It’s so easy because we have all the tools with social media. People want to see how bad you want it and how much you believe in yourself. They want to see confidence, even though some people won’t like it and will misinterpret it as arrogance. A lot of people get inspired when they see you say you’re going to do something, and then you go on and do it.
As 50 Cent said in the song Magic Stick, “you talk a lot of shit but I back it up.”
Yes I do!
You worked with a couple of renowned coaches who both have their share of Mr. Olympia wins to their credit, Chad Nicholls and Abdullah Al Otaibi. George Farah seems to be the winning match for you. I’m not saying he’s the best coach in the world, but it seems like he’s the best coach for you.
It’s all about finding someone you connect with. What works for one guy might not work for another guy. It needs to be the right fit. When I was coming into this sport, my goal was to put the right team together with good, healthy working relationships. I tried working with Neil Hill and it didn’t work out, but that doesn’t make him a bad coach. It just wasn’t the right fit. Same thing with Chad. Maybe the communication could have been better. Then with Abdullah, again we just didn’t have that connection I need. That’s what makes working with George so special. I love his energy and he’s just a good human being. He has so much knowledge and cares so much about his athletes. Check his résumé. He had long working relationships with Kai Greene and Dexter Jackson. For an athlete to stay with a coach for years and years says a lot. When I started talking to George, it felt like I had found a missing puzzle piece.
Like you said, what works for one guy doesn’t necessarily work for another. Looking at how huge you are, it would be hard to believe how fast your metabolism is. George cut out all your cardio at six weeks out from Indy. What other coach would have the balls to do that?
Exactly. And with all the experiences I’d had with other coaches, I was on my guard. I didn’t start trusting George until that moment six weeks out. Until then I had been questioning everything with him. But I couldn’t argue with the fact that I was staying big and round but still getting harder every day. Last year at that point I was smaller and soft. I thought, George and I must be doing something right. At six weeks out, I shut my mouth and let George do his thing. Now, if he told me to eat shit, I would do it.
Please don’t do that. I have to ask about the improvements we saw with your legs this spring. Were they that size before but you lost size in your 2021 prep? Did they actually grow over the last year? Or was it a combination of the two?
I always get shit for my legs. People don’t understand my physique. If you saw my legs without seeing my upper body, you might think they weren’t big. But bodybuilding is all about the illusion: the shape, the frame, the flow, how everything matches together. It’s not just about one body part. Of course I still have a lot of work to do with my legs, but they do match my upper body, and that’s fine. I’m a hard worker. I took almost four years from the time I turned pro to the time I stepped on a pro stage. People thought I was just making funny skits that whole time, but I was busting my ass day in and day out. My mission was to be one of the best who ever did this thing, and I’m gonna get there no matter what. I don’t care how long it will take me. But yes, I had built some good size in the off-season that I lost during my 2021 prep because of all the cardio and that StepMill. George is so experienced that he knew exactly what to do with me. I’m sure me and Dexter are similar with our metabolisms. In the end I looked my best, and my legs matched my upper body.
Does anyone oversee your training, or do you handle that?
I do my training myself. I enjoy the way I train. My principle is a lot of volume, heavy weight, and just fucking work.
I met your wife Sarah at the recent shows, who you married last November. Congratulations! She’s Irish, so I assume you knew her back in Ireland?
Yeah, we started dating back in 2014. She’s been with me on this whole journey.
I also didn’t realize you haven’t been back to Nigeria since you left 21 years ago, and you haven’t seen your father since then.
Right. My mother came to Ireland three or four years later and lived there for about a year. She didn’t like the cold, so she went back. But I talk to my family every day and I take care of them, paying their rent, their bills, make sure they have money to eat. Even before I found bodybuilding, my goal was to go out there and be great at something and then come home and look after my family. When college didn’t happen I was heartbroken because I thought that dream was over for me. When I found bodybuilding, my goal was to become the best at it. I was willing to do whatever it takes to make it to the top, and I believed I had what it takes. I always said I’d never go home with nothing to show for it. I worked and got myself to the USA. I blew up my social media, got a great sponsor, and chased the American dream. And now I’m going to the Olympia, bro! Even better, I’m going back to Nigeria in two weeks and I’m going to spoil my parents. I also have five brothers and one sister, so even though I’m only there for a week I plan on spending some quality time with all of them.
I can imagine the fans you must have over there waiting to see you.
I’m going to have a camera guy with me documenting everything. I already have two meet-and-greets booked, and they want me to do a guest posing too. Why not? I want to blow up fitness and bodybuilding in Nigeria and tap into that market. We have over 200 million people there. I see messages and posts from so many young dudes over there with great bodybuilding potential. I’m sure most of them train but they have no idea how to eat. They can all relate to me and my story. They believe if I can do it, they can do it too. I can’t wait to go over there and connect with them.
Maybe a few years ago we could have a ton of great pros from Nigeria the way we do now with countries like Egypt and Brazil. Right now, we already have you, Samson Dauda, and Andrew Jacked all hailing from Nigeria.
Like I said, the talent is there for sure. They just need some guidance and direction.
Final question. You still have six months until your first Mr. Olympia. What improvements do you want to make between now and then?
My legs have to come up, especially my hamstrings and glutes. I just had an MRI on my knee because it’s been giving me trouble for years, so I will get that fixed and my leg training will be so much better. My triceps and back also need to come up. I don’t think I need much more overall size, but I feel like the package I have right now could be a lot bigger and fuller. Of course the conditioning has be to even better because it’s the Olympia. But we know what we’re working with and we have time. The Mr. Olympia is going to be crazy this year. I’m going to put so much energy into the hype and promotion because like I said, I want to make this sport exciting!
You have definitely been doing an excellent job of that so far, so I can only imagine how you will step it up for your first Olympia.
You know it!
Instagram @blessing_awodibu
YouTube: Blessing Awodibu
Also featured on Redcon1 YouTube channel
Blessing’s Redcon1 Stack
Isotope®
GI Juice®
Grunt®
Total War®
Big Noise®
Cluster Bomb
Double Tap®
MRE®
Fade Out®
Immune Gummies
Sleep Gummies
For more information, visit redcon1.com
Contest History
2013 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior, did not place
2013 IFBB European Amateur Championships - Seventh, Junior Heavyweight
2014 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior Champion
2015 IFBB European Amateur Championships - 14th, Light Superweight
2017 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB World Amateur Championships - Second, Super Heavyweight
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Portugal - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Czech Republic - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2021 Indy Pro - Third Place
2021 New York Pro - Sixth Place
2022 Indy Pro - Winner
2022 New York Pro - Winner
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMSSUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAYGET OFFICIAL MD STUFFVISIT OUR STORE
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM YOUTUBE
Blessing From Above!
Blessing Awodibu Wants to Make Bodybuilding Great Again
Interview by Ron Harris
I don’t think many people will argue when I say that Blessing Awodibu is the most exciting character in bodybuilding today. His feud with Nick Walker in early 2021 was legendary, and this year he picked it up with Nick again on stage immediately after winning the New York Pro. But Blessing is so much more than trash talk and hilarious skits on his Instagram page and YouTube channel. He proved that by returning to the same two shows he did last year, the Indy Pro and the New York Pro, and redeeming himself with back-to-back wins. We spoke a couple of weeks later about his contract renewal with Redcon1, how he plans to make bodybuilding fun for all of us, his relationship with coach George Farah, and how he is returning to his native Nigeria for the first time in over 20 years.
It was just announced on your social media as well as Redcon1’s that you have signed a new contract and are back with the company. I know that you were not far out from the Indy Pro when you learned they were not going to re-sign you?
There was a lot of stuff going on. The company was changing direction, and the boss man Aaron wasn’t around. You could see from their social media they were pulling away from bodybuilding, which is what the brand was built on. But I understood and respected their decision. At six weeks out from Indy I got the call that my contract wouldn’t be renewed. It wasn’t a shock because I’d seen what they were doing, but the time frame was not ideal.
Did you panic or freak out? I would have.
Honestly, I was very calm. I knew I was about to level up to a whole new level in my career. And if I started to panic at six weeks out, the stress could destroy my look. I didn’t let it get to me. I told them I appreciated everything they had done for me. I did ask for a bit more time, because that only gave me two weeks left on the contract. I needed to talk to my lawyer so my visa to stay in the U.S. would be intact. They were kind enough to give me an extension to sort things out. And you saw what happened six weeks later!
Did they take you back because you won the two shows?
There had been a lot of miscommunication because Aaron is the boss man and he wasn’t around. It was a weird time of transition for everyone. Mistakes and wrong calls were made. Eventually we were able to talk things out and regain trust. They reached out to me after I won New York to talk. Aaron had believed in me from day one and I always appreciated the opportunity he gave this kid from Africa to chase the American dream. I don’t take that lightly. It means a lot to me. Even though I earned it all through my own hard work, I never forget that, or all the help I got on my way up. There’s no such thing as being “self-made.” On your journey there are so many people who come into your life, some for a long time and others briefly. With me it’s all about loyalty. I’ve only been with two companies my entire career. I only left the first one because they fucked me up and stole my trademark. They came out with a Boogieman pre-workout. Aaron told me from day one he wanted me to stay with Redcon1 for the rest of my bodybuilding career. I could never be the type of guy who jumps around from one company to another. How are you going to leave one company and then a week later start hyping up another one? It’s just not right. You’re only lying to the fans. Loyalty is everything with me. We had a couple of meetings and talked back and forth. Apologies were made and we came to an agreement, and we’re back, baby!
Now I have to ask you about the most exciting part of the New York Pro, which was after you got your award and proceeded to take the mic and call out Nick Walker right there on stage with you, saying you would whoop his ass at the Mr. Olympia. Did you plan that? And was Nick in on it?
It was not planned. My goal is to change the sport. A lot of people laugh at me and call me an Instagram or YouTube bodybuilder, say I’m a clown. I never let the comments get to me. I’m just being myself and enjoying what I do. I’m not in bodybuilding to be boring. It’s all about the fans for me. All the people supporting their favorite bodybuilders, going to shows, watching the livestreams. I love every single one of you guys whether you’re rooting for me or not. Without you guys, we’re nothing. I will do everything in my power to make sure you guys are getting your money’s worth and are entertained. In any sport, the fans get engaged because they want to be entertained. So if me and Nick talk about each other and it gets all the fans talking about it, that’s connecting people together. You will see people making friends in the comments section! I want to make bodybuilding as fun and entertaining as it can be.
You broke the Internet when you called out Nick. Within an hour, I bet there were 1,000 videos and far more IG posts about it.
You see how easy it is to take a sport from here to a whole other level? It’s so easy because we have all the tools with social media. People want to see how bad you want it and how much you believe in yourself. They want to see confidence, even though some people won’t like it and will misinterpret it as arrogance. A lot of people get inspired when they see you say you’re going to do something, and then you go on and do it.
As 50 Cent said in the song Magic Stick, “you talk a lot of shit but I back it up.”
Yes I do!
You worked with a couple of renowned coaches who both have their share of Mr. Olympia wins to their credit, Chad Nicholls and Abdullah Al Otaibi. George Farah seems to be the winning match for you. I’m not saying he’s the best coach in the world, but it seems like he’s the best coach for you.
It’s all about finding someone you connect with. What works for one guy might not work for another guy. It needs to be the right fit. When I was coming into this sport, my goal was to put the right team together with good, healthy working relationships. I tried working with Neil Hill and it didn’t work out, but that doesn’t make him a bad coach. It just wasn’t the right fit. Same thing with Chad. Maybe the communication could have been better. Then with Abdullah, again we just didn’t have that connection I need. That’s what makes working with George so special. I love his energy and he’s just a good human being. He has so much knowledge and cares so much about his athletes. Check his résumé. He had long working relationships with Kai Greene and Dexter Jackson. For an athlete to stay with a coach for years and years says a lot. When I started talking to George, it felt like I had found a missing puzzle piece.
Like you said, what works for one guy doesn’t necessarily work for another. Looking at how huge you are, it would be hard to believe how fast your metabolism is. George cut out all your cardio at six weeks out from Indy. What other coach would have the balls to do that?
Exactly. And with all the experiences I’d had with other coaches, I was on my guard. I didn’t start trusting George until that moment six weeks out. Until then I had been questioning everything with him. But I couldn’t argue with the fact that I was staying big and round but still getting harder every day. Last year at that point I was smaller and soft. I thought, George and I must be doing something right. At six weeks out, I shut my mouth and let George do his thing. Now, if he told me to eat shit, I would do it.
Please don’t do that. I have to ask about the improvements we saw with your legs this spring. Were they that size before but you lost size in your 2021 prep? Did they actually grow over the last year? Or was it a combination of the two?
I always get shit for my legs. People don’t understand my physique. If you saw my legs without seeing my upper body, you might think they weren’t big. But bodybuilding is all about the illusion: the shape, the frame, the flow, how everything matches together. It’s not just about one body part. Of course I still have a lot of work to do with my legs, but they do match my upper body, and that’s fine. I’m a hard worker. I took almost four years from the time I turned pro to the time I stepped on a pro stage. People thought I was just making funny skits that whole time, but I was busting my ass day in and day out. My mission was to be one of the best who ever did this thing, and I’m gonna get there no matter what. I don’t care how long it will take me. But yes, I had built some good size in the off-season that I lost during my 2021 prep because of all the cardio and that StepMill. George is so experienced that he knew exactly what to do with me. I’m sure me and Dexter are similar with our metabolisms. In the end I looked my best, and my legs matched my upper body.
Does anyone oversee your training, or do you handle that?
I do my training myself. I enjoy the way I train. My principle is a lot of volume, heavy weight, and just fucking work.
I met your wife Sarah at the recent shows, who you married last November. Congratulations! She’s Irish, so I assume you knew her back in Ireland?
Yeah, we started dating back in 2014. She’s been with me on this whole journey.
I also didn’t realize you haven’t been back to Nigeria since you left 21 years ago, and you haven’t seen your father since then.
Right. My mother came to Ireland three or four years later and lived there for about a year. She didn’t like the cold, so she went back. But I talk to my family every day and I take care of them, paying their rent, their bills, make sure they have money to eat. Even before I found bodybuilding, my goal was to go out there and be great at something and then come home and look after my family. When college didn’t happen I was heartbroken because I thought that dream was over for me. When I found bodybuilding, my goal was to become the best at it. I was willing to do whatever it takes to make it to the top, and I believed I had what it takes. I always said I’d never go home with nothing to show for it. I worked and got myself to the USA. I blew up my social media, got a great sponsor, and chased the American dream. And now I’m going to the Olympia, bro! Even better, I’m going back to Nigeria in two weeks and I’m going to spoil my parents. I also have five brothers and one sister, so even though I’m only there for a week I plan on spending some quality time with all of them.
I can imagine the fans you must have over there waiting to see you.
I’m going to have a camera guy with me documenting everything. I already have two meet-and-greets booked, and they want me to do a guest posing too. Why not? I want to blow up fitness and bodybuilding in Nigeria and tap into that market. We have over 200 million people there. I see messages and posts from so many young dudes over there with great bodybuilding potential. I’m sure most of them train but they have no idea how to eat. They can all relate to me and my story. They believe if I can do it, they can do it too. I can’t wait to go over there and connect with them.
Maybe a few years ago we could have a ton of great pros from Nigeria the way we do now with countries like Egypt and Brazil. Right now, we already have you, Samson Dauda, and Andrew Jacked all hailing from Nigeria.
Like I said, the talent is there for sure. They just need some guidance and direction.
Final question. You still have six months until your first Mr. Olympia. What improvements do you want to make between now and then?
My legs have to come up, especially my hamstrings and glutes. I just had an MRI on my knee because it’s been giving me trouble for years, so I will get that fixed and my leg training will be so much better. My triceps and back also need to come up. I don’t think I need much more overall size, but I feel like the package I have right now could be a lot bigger and fuller. Of course the conditioning has be to even better because it’s the Olympia. But we know what we’re working with and we have time. The Mr. Olympia is going to be crazy this year. I’m going to put so much energy into the hype and promotion because like I said, I want to make this sport exciting!
You have definitely been doing an excellent job of that so far, so I can only imagine how you will step it up for your first Olympia.
You know it!
Instagram @blessing_awodibu
YouTube: Blessing Awodibu
Also featured on Redcon1 YouTube channel
Blessing’s Redcon1 Stack
Isotope®
GI Juice®
Grunt®
Total War®
Big Noise®
Cluster Bomb
Double Tap®
MRE®
Fade Out®
Immune Gummies
Sleep Gummies
For more information, visit redcon1.com
Contest History
2013 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior, did not place
2013 IFBB European Amateur Championships - Seventh, Junior Heavyweight
2014 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior Champion
2015 IFBB European Amateur Championships - 14th, Light Superweight
2017 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB World Amateur Championships - Second, Super Heavyweight
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Portugal - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Czech Republic - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2021 Indy Pro - Third Place
2021 New York Pro - Sixth Place
2022 Indy Pro - Winner
2022 New York Pro - Winner
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS
SUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY
GET OFFICIAL MD STUFF
VISIT OUR STORE
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM
YOUTUBE
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Blessing Awodibu Wants to Make Bodybuilding Great Again
Interview by Ron Harris
I don’t think many people will argue when I say that Blessing Awodibu is the most exciting character in bodybuilding today. His feud with Nick Walker in early 2021 was legendary, and this year he picked it up with Nick again on stage immediately after winning the New York Pro. But Blessing is so much more than trash talk and hilarious skits on his Instagram page and YouTube channel. He proved that by returning to the same two shows he did last year, the Indy Pro and the New York Pro, and redeeming himself with back-to-back wins. We spoke a couple of weeks later about his contract renewal with Redcon1, how he plans to make bodybuilding fun for all of us, his relationship with coach George Farah, and how he is returning to his native Nigeria for the first time in over 20 years.
It was just announced on your social media as well as Redcon1’s that you have signed a new contract and are back with the company. I know that you were not far out from the Indy Pro when you learned they were not going to re-sign you?
There was a lot of stuff going on. The company was changing direction, and the boss man Aaron wasn’t around. You could see from their social media they were pulling away from bodybuilding, which is what the brand was built on. But I understood and respected their decision. At six weeks out from Indy I got the call that my contract wouldn’t be renewed. It wasn’t a shock because I’d seen what they were doing, but the time frame was not ideal.
Did you panic or freak out? I would have.
Honestly, I was very calm. I knew I was about to level up to a whole new level in my career. And if I started to panic at six weeks out, the stress could destroy my look. I didn’t let it get to me. I told them I appreciated everything they had done for me. I did ask for a bit more time, because that only gave me two weeks left on the contract. I needed to talk to my lawyer so my visa to stay in the U.S. would be intact. They were kind enough to give me an extension to sort things out. And you saw what happened six weeks later!
Did they take you back because you won the two shows?
There had been a lot of miscommunication because Aaron is the boss man and he wasn’t around. It was a weird time of transition for everyone. Mistakes and wrong calls were made. Eventually we were able to talk things out and regain trust. They reached out to me after I won New York to talk. Aaron had believed in me from day one and I always appreciated the opportunity he gave this kid from Africa to chase the American dream. I don’t take that lightly. It means a lot to me. Even though I earned it all through my own hard work, I never forget that, or all the help I got on my way up. There’s no such thing as being “self-made.” On your journey there are so many people who come into your life, some for a long time and others briefly. With me it’s all about loyalty. I’ve only been with two companies my entire career. I only left the first one because they fucked me up and stole my trademark. They came out with a Boogieman pre-workout. Aaron told me from day one he wanted me to stay with Redcon1 for the rest of my bodybuilding career. I could never be the type of guy who jumps around from one company to another. How are you going to leave one company and then a week later start hyping up another one? It’s just not right. You’re only lying to the fans. Loyalty is everything with me. We had a couple of meetings and talked back and forth. Apologies were made and we came to an agreement, and we’re back, baby!
Now I have to ask you about the most exciting part of the New York Pro, which was after you got your award and proceeded to take the mic and call out Nick Walker right there on stage with you, saying you would whoop his ass at the Mr. Olympia. Did you plan that? And was Nick in on it?
It was not planned. My goal is to change the sport. A lot of people laugh at me and call me an Instagram or YouTube bodybuilder, say I’m a clown. I never let the comments get to me. I’m just being myself and enjoying what I do. I’m not in bodybuilding to be boring. It’s all about the fans for me. All the people supporting their favorite bodybuilders, going to shows, watching the livestreams. I love every single one of you guys whether you’re rooting for me or not. Without you guys, we’re nothing. I will do everything in my power to make sure you guys are getting your money’s worth and are entertained. In any sport, the fans get engaged because they want to be entertained. So if me and Nick talk about each other and it gets all the fans talking about it, that’s connecting people together. You will see people making friends in the comments section! I want to make bodybuilding as fun and entertaining as it can be.
You broke the Internet when you called out Nick. Within an hour, I bet there were 1,000 videos and far more IG posts about it.
You see how easy it is to take a sport from here to a whole other level? It’s so easy because we have all the tools with social media. People want to see how bad you want it and how much you believe in yourself. They want to see confidence, even though some people won’t like it and will misinterpret it as arrogance. A lot of people get inspired when they see you say you’re going to do something, and then you go on and do it.
As 50 Cent said in the song Magic Stick, “you talk a lot of shit but I back it up.”
Yes I do!
You worked with a couple of renowned coaches who both have their share of Mr. Olympia wins to their credit, Chad Nicholls and Abdullah Al Otaibi. George Farah seems to be the winning match for you. I’m not saying he’s the best coach in the world, but it seems like he’s the best coach for you.
It’s all about finding someone you connect with. What works for one guy might not work for another guy. It needs to be the right fit. When I was coming into this sport, my goal was to put the right team together with good, healthy working relationships. I tried working with Neil Hill and it didn’t work out, but that doesn’t make him a bad coach. It just wasn’t the right fit. Same thing with Chad. Maybe the communication could have been better. Then with Abdullah, again we just didn’t have that connection I need. That’s what makes working with George so special. I love his energy and he’s just a good human being. He has so much knowledge and cares so much about his athletes. Check his résumé. He had long working relationships with Kai Greene and Dexter Jackson. For an athlete to stay with a coach for years and years says a lot. When I started talking to George, it felt like I had found a missing puzzle piece.
Like you said, what works for one guy doesn’t necessarily work for another. Looking at how huge you are, it would be hard to believe how fast your metabolism is. George cut out all your cardio at six weeks out from Indy. What other coach would have the balls to do that?
Exactly. And with all the experiences I’d had with other coaches, I was on my guard. I didn’t start trusting George until that moment six weeks out. Until then I had been questioning everything with him. But I couldn’t argue with the fact that I was staying big and round but still getting harder every day. Last year at that point I was smaller and soft. I thought, George and I must be doing something right. At six weeks out, I shut my mouth and let George do his thing. Now, if he told me to eat shit, I would do it.
Please don’t do that. I have to ask about the improvements we saw with your legs this spring. Were they that size before but you lost size in your 2021 prep? Did they actually grow over the last year? Or was it a combination of the two?
I always get shit for my legs. People don’t understand my physique. If you saw my legs without seeing my upper body, you might think they weren’t big. But bodybuilding is all about the illusion: the shape, the frame, the flow, how everything matches together. It’s not just about one body part. Of course I still have a lot of work to do with my legs, but they do match my upper body, and that’s fine. I’m a hard worker. I took almost four years from the time I turned pro to the time I stepped on a pro stage. People thought I was just making funny skits that whole time, but I was busting my ass day in and day out. My mission was to be one of the best who ever did this thing, and I’m gonna get there no matter what. I don’t care how long it will take me. But yes, I had built some good size in the off-season that I lost during my 2021 prep because of all the cardio and that StepMill. George is so experienced that he knew exactly what to do with me. I’m sure me and Dexter are similar with our metabolisms. In the end I looked my best, and my legs matched my upper body.
Does anyone oversee your training, or do you handle that?
I do my training myself. I enjoy the way I train. My principle is a lot of volume, heavy weight, and just fucking work.
I met your wife Sarah at the recent shows, who you married last November. Congratulations! She’s Irish, so I assume you knew her back in Ireland?
Yeah, we started dating back in 2014. She’s been with me on this whole journey.
I also didn’t realize you haven’t been back to Nigeria since you left 21 years ago, and you haven’t seen your father since then.
Right. My mother came to Ireland three or four years later and lived there for about a year. She didn’t like the cold, so she went back. But I talk to my family every day and I take care of them, paying their rent, their bills, make sure they have money to eat. Even before I found bodybuilding, my goal was to go out there and be great at something and then come home and look after my family. When college didn’t happen I was heartbroken because I thought that dream was over for me. When I found bodybuilding, my goal was to become the best at it. I was willing to do whatever it takes to make it to the top, and I believed I had what it takes. I always said I’d never go home with nothing to show for it. I worked and got myself to the USA. I blew up my social media, got a great sponsor, and chased the American dream. And now I’m going to the Olympia, bro! Even better, I’m going back to Nigeria in two weeks and I’m going to spoil my parents. I also have five brothers and one sister, so even though I’m only there for a week I plan on spending some quality time with all of them.
I can imagine the fans you must have over there waiting to see you.
I’m going to have a camera guy with me documenting everything. I already have two meet-and-greets booked, and they want me to do a guest posing too. Why not? I want to blow up fitness and bodybuilding in Nigeria and tap into that market. We have over 200 million people there. I see messages and posts from so many young dudes over there with great bodybuilding potential. I’m sure most of them train but they have no idea how to eat. They can all relate to me and my story. They believe if I can do it, they can do it too. I can’t wait to go over there and connect with them.
Maybe a few years ago we could have a ton of great pros from Nigeria the way we do now with countries like Egypt and Brazil. Right now, we already have you, Samson Dauda, and Andrew Jacked all hailing from Nigeria.
Like I said, the talent is there for sure. They just need some guidance and direction.
Final question. You still have six months until your first Mr. Olympia. What improvements do you want to make between now and then?
My legs have to come up, especially my hamstrings and glutes. I just had an MRI on my knee because it’s been giving me trouble for years, so I will get that fixed and my leg training will be so much better. My triceps and back also need to come up. I don’t think I need much more overall size, but I feel like the package I have right now could be a lot bigger and fuller. Of course the conditioning has be to even better because it’s the Olympia. But we know what we’re working with and we have time. The Mr. Olympia is going to be crazy this year. I’m going to put so much energy into the hype and promotion because like I said, I want to make this sport exciting!
You have definitely been doing an excellent job of that so far, so I can only imagine how you will step it up for your first Olympia.
You know it!
Instagram @blessing_awodibu
YouTube: Blessing Awodibu
Also featured on Redcon1 YouTube channel
Blessing’s Redcon1 Stack
Isotope®
GI Juice®
Grunt®
Total War®
Big Noise®
Cluster Bomb
Double Tap®
MRE®
Fade Out®
Immune Gummies
Sleep Gummies
For more information, visit redcon1.com
Contest History
2013 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior, did not place
2013 IFBB European Amateur Championships - Seventh, Junior Heavyweight
2014 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior Champion
2015 IFBB European Amateur Championships - 14th, Light Superweight
2017 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB World Amateur Championships - Second, Super Heavyweight
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Portugal - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Czech Republic - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2021 Indy Pro - Third Place
2021 New York Pro - Sixth Place
2022 Indy Pro - Winner
2022 New York Pro - Winner
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMSSUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAYGET OFFICIAL MD STUFFVISIT OUR STORE
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM YOUTUBE
Blessing From Above!
Blessing Awodibu Wants to Make Bodybuilding Great Again
Interview by Ron Harris
I don’t think many people will argue when I say that Blessing Awodibu is the most exciting character in bodybuilding today. His feud with Nick Walker in early 2021 was legendary, and this year he picked it up with Nick again on stage immediately after winning the New York Pro. But Blessing is so much more than trash talk and hilarious skits on his Instagram page and YouTube channel. He proved that by returning to the same two shows he did last year, the Indy Pro and the New York Pro, and redeeming himself with back-to-back wins. We spoke a couple of weeks later about his contract renewal with Redcon1, how he plans to make bodybuilding fun for all of us, his relationship with coach George Farah, and how he is returning to his native Nigeria for the first time in over 20 years.
It was just announced on your social media as well as Redcon1’s that you have signed a new contract and are back with the company. I know that you were not far out from the Indy Pro when you learned they were not going to re-sign you?
There was a lot of stuff going on. The company was changing direction, and the boss man Aaron wasn’t around. You could see from their social media they were pulling away from bodybuilding, which is what the brand was built on. But I understood and respected their decision. At six weeks out from Indy I got the call that my contract wouldn’t be renewed. It wasn’t a shock because I’d seen what they were doing, but the time frame was not ideal.
Did you panic or freak out? I would have.
Honestly, I was very calm. I knew I was about to level up to a whole new level in my career. And if I started to panic at six weeks out, the stress could destroy my look. I didn’t let it get to me. I told them I appreciated everything they had done for me. I did ask for a bit more time, because that only gave me two weeks left on the contract. I needed to talk to my lawyer so my visa to stay in the U.S. would be intact. They were kind enough to give me an extension to sort things out. And you saw what happened six weeks later!
Did they take you back because you won the two shows?
There had been a lot of miscommunication because Aaron is the boss man and he wasn’t around. It was a weird time of transition for everyone. Mistakes and wrong calls were made. Eventually we were able to talk things out and regain trust. They reached out to me after I won New York to talk. Aaron had believed in me from day one and I always appreciated the opportunity he gave this kid from Africa to chase the American dream. I don’t take that lightly. It means a lot to me. Even though I earned it all through my own hard work, I never forget that, or all the help I got on my way up. There’s no such thing as being “self-made.” On your journey there are so many people who come into your life, some for a long time and others briefly. With me it’s all about loyalty. I’ve only been with two companies my entire career. I only left the first one because they fucked me up and stole my trademark. They came out with a Boogieman pre-workout. Aaron told me from day one he wanted me to stay with Redcon1 for the rest of my bodybuilding career. I could never be the type of guy who jumps around from one company to another. How are you going to leave one company and then a week later start hyping up another one? It’s just not right. You’re only lying to the fans. Loyalty is everything with me. We had a couple of meetings and talked back and forth. Apologies were made and we came to an agreement, and we’re back, baby!
Now I have to ask you about the most exciting part of the New York Pro, which was after you got your award and proceeded to take the mic and call out Nick Walker right there on stage with you, saying you would whoop his ass at the Mr. Olympia. Did you plan that? And was Nick in on it?
It was not planned. My goal is to change the sport. A lot of people laugh at me and call me an Instagram or YouTube bodybuilder, say I’m a clown. I never let the comments get to me. I’m just being myself and enjoying what I do. I’m not in bodybuilding to be boring. It’s all about the fans for me. All the people supporting their favorite bodybuilders, going to shows, watching the livestreams. I love every single one of you guys whether you’re rooting for me or not. Without you guys, we’re nothing. I will do everything in my power to make sure you guys are getting your money’s worth and are entertained. In any sport, the fans get engaged because they want to be entertained. So if me and Nick talk about each other and it gets all the fans talking about it, that’s connecting people together. You will see people making friends in the comments section! I want to make bodybuilding as fun and entertaining as it can be.
You broke the Internet when you called out Nick. Within an hour, I bet there were 1,000 videos and far more IG posts about it.
You see how easy it is to take a sport from here to a whole other level? It’s so easy because we have all the tools with social media. People want to see how bad you want it and how much you believe in yourself. They want to see confidence, even though some people won’t like it and will misinterpret it as arrogance. A lot of people get inspired when they see you say you’re going to do something, and then you go on and do it.
As 50 Cent said in the song Magic Stick, “you talk a lot of shit but I back it up.”
Yes I do!
You worked with a couple of renowned coaches who both have their share of Mr. Olympia wins to their credit, Chad Nicholls and Abdullah Al Otaibi. George Farah seems to be the winning match for you. I’m not saying he’s the best coach in the world, but it seems like he’s the best coach for you.
It’s all about finding someone you connect with. What works for one guy might not work for another guy. It needs to be the right fit. When I was coming into this sport, my goal was to put the right team together with good, healthy working relationships. I tried working with Neil Hill and it didn’t work out, but that doesn’t make him a bad coach. It just wasn’t the right fit. Same thing with Chad. Maybe the communication could have been better. Then with Abdullah, again we just didn’t have that connection I need. That’s what makes working with George so special. I love his energy and he’s just a good human being. He has so much knowledge and cares so much about his athletes. Check his résumé. He had long working relationships with Kai Greene and Dexter Jackson. For an athlete to stay with a coach for years and years says a lot. When I started talking to George, it felt like I had found a missing puzzle piece.
Like you said, what works for one guy doesn’t necessarily work for another. Looking at how huge you are, it would be hard to believe how fast your metabolism is. George cut out all your cardio at six weeks out from Indy. What other coach would have the balls to do that?
Exactly. And with all the experiences I’d had with other coaches, I was on my guard. I didn’t start trusting George until that moment six weeks out. Until then I had been questioning everything with him. But I couldn’t argue with the fact that I was staying big and round but still getting harder every day. Last year at that point I was smaller and soft. I thought, George and I must be doing something right. At six weeks out, I shut my mouth and let George do his thing. Now, if he told me to eat shit, I would do it.
Please don’t do that. I have to ask about the improvements we saw with your legs this spring. Were they that size before but you lost size in your 2021 prep? Did they actually grow over the last year? Or was it a combination of the two?
I always get shit for my legs. People don’t understand my physique. If you saw my legs without seeing my upper body, you might think they weren’t big. But bodybuilding is all about the illusion: the shape, the frame, the flow, how everything matches together. It’s not just about one body part. Of course I still have a lot of work to do with my legs, but they do match my upper body, and that’s fine. I’m a hard worker. I took almost four years from the time I turned pro to the time I stepped on a pro stage. People thought I was just making funny skits that whole time, but I was busting my ass day in and day out. My mission was to be one of the best who ever did this thing, and I’m gonna get there no matter what. I don’t care how long it will take me. But yes, I had built some good size in the off-season that I lost during my 2021 prep because of all the cardio and that StepMill. George is so experienced that he knew exactly what to do with me. I’m sure me and Dexter are similar with our metabolisms. In the end I looked my best, and my legs matched my upper body.
Does anyone oversee your training, or do you handle that?
I do my training myself. I enjoy the way I train. My principle is a lot of volume, heavy weight, and just fucking work.
I met your wife Sarah at the recent shows, who you married last November. Congratulations! She’s Irish, so I assume you knew her back in Ireland?
Yeah, we started dating back in 2014. She’s been with me on this whole journey.
I also didn’t realize you haven’t been back to Nigeria since you left 21 years ago, and you haven’t seen your father since then.
Right. My mother came to Ireland three or four years later and lived there for about a year. She didn’t like the cold, so she went back. But I talk to my family every day and I take care of them, paying their rent, their bills, make sure they have money to eat. Even before I found bodybuilding, my goal was to go out there and be great at something and then come home and look after my family. When college didn’t happen I was heartbroken because I thought that dream was over for me. When I found bodybuilding, my goal was to become the best at it. I was willing to do whatever it takes to make it to the top, and I believed I had what it takes. I always said I’d never go home with nothing to show for it. I worked and got myself to the USA. I blew up my social media, got a great sponsor, and chased the American dream. And now I’m going to the Olympia, bro! Even better, I’m going back to Nigeria in two weeks and I’m going to spoil my parents. I also have five brothers and one sister, so even though I’m only there for a week I plan on spending some quality time with all of them.
I can imagine the fans you must have over there waiting to see you.
I’m going to have a camera guy with me documenting everything. I already have two meet-and-greets booked, and they want me to do a guest posing too. Why not? I want to blow up fitness and bodybuilding in Nigeria and tap into that market. We have over 200 million people there. I see messages and posts from so many young dudes over there with great bodybuilding potential. I’m sure most of them train but they have no idea how to eat. They can all relate to me and my story. They believe if I can do it, they can do it too. I can’t wait to go over there and connect with them.
Maybe a few years ago we could have a ton of great pros from Nigeria the way we do now with countries like Egypt and Brazil. Right now, we already have you, Samson Dauda, and Andrew Jacked all hailing from Nigeria.
Like I said, the talent is there for sure. They just need some guidance and direction.
Final question. You still have six months until your first Mr. Olympia. What improvements do you want to make between now and then?
My legs have to come up, especially my hamstrings and glutes. I just had an MRI on my knee because it’s been giving me trouble for years, so I will get that fixed and my leg training will be so much better. My triceps and back also need to come up. I don’t think I need much more overall size, but I feel like the package I have right now could be a lot bigger and fuller. Of course the conditioning has be to even better because it’s the Olympia. But we know what we’re working with and we have time. The Mr. Olympia is going to be crazy this year. I’m going to put so much energy into the hype and promotion because like I said, I want to make this sport exciting!
You have definitely been doing an excellent job of that so far, so I can only imagine how you will step it up for your first Olympia.
You know it!
Instagram @blessing_awodibu
YouTube: Blessing Awodibu
Also featured on Redcon1 YouTube channel
Blessing’s Redcon1 Stack
Isotope®
GI Juice®
Grunt®
Total War®
Big Noise®
Cluster Bomb
Double Tap®
MRE®
Fade Out®
Immune Gummies
Sleep Gummies
For more information, visit redcon1.com
Contest History
2013 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior, did not place
2013 IFBB European Amateur Championships - Seventh, Junior Heavyweight
2014 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Junior Champion
2015 IFBB European Amateur Championships - 14th, Light Superweight
2017 IFBB Arnold Amateur Europe - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB World Amateur Championships - Second, Super Heavyweight
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Portugal - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2017 IFBB Diamond Cup Czech Republic - Super Heavyweight and Overall
2021 Indy Pro - Third Place
2021 New York Pro - Sixth Place
2022 Indy Pro - Winner
2022 New York Pro - Winner
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS
SUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY
GET OFFICIAL MD STUFF
VISIT OUR STORE
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
YOUTUBE
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