Alexx Ekubo: The passing of a beautiful soul

“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” Thomas Campbell

As Alexx Ekubo’s obsequies begin, it is time to pause awhile and speak about the much-beloved actor.

Like most Nigerians, Alexx’s passing hit me like a tonne of bricks. No sign, no information, nothing. Just that he had not been in the usual circles for a while. Alexx Ekubo had a quiet charm all his own with a megawatt smile, and although he was out of circulation, it was not unusual for him to go quiet from time to time. He was in the limelight but did not hug it like some of his peers in the film industry who live and die on Instagram.

Just a fine boy who became a man and a fine one at that before our very eyes. Just a beautiful soul who pursued his dreams, from being a lawyer to becoming an actor, and a bloody good one at that. Just a popular actor who is very private. Just a young man who came 2nd in the Mr Nigeria pageant. Just a thespian who gave us joy and entertainment to the best of his ability with no guile. Just a simple, well-loved Igbo guy who loved his people and their traditions and carried it like a totem all his life. Just a grown man whose love for his family shone through like a million stars. Just a boy whose banter with his gorgeous mum melted our hearts. Just a sturdy individual whose pain we did not see. Just a man who loved God publicly and privately.

Alexx Ekubo came to us as a boy and became the man we all wanted our sons to become: hard-working, kind, humble, talented, well-mannered, well-spoken and intentional. With all these and a model-like look, plus a great sense of style and fashion. In the mix was a man who added a second x to his Alex, making him unique in the way he wanted to be known. Everything comes to a dizzying head with us knowing that his twin and best friend is the uber-talented IK Ogbonna.

We are gutted by his passing, and as we are weighed down by grief, we are touched by his persona and his incredible management of his illness. We are touched by the amazing work he has done in the last couple of years for the cancer foundation, not knowing that all that support and all that charity, he was trying to tell us the story of his own battles, his own challenges.
What a man! What an exemplary leader whose friends, fans and colleagues continue to pour encomiums on him. His legacy, his memory, his filmography suddenly reminding us of this star who passed this way.

I have never met Alexx Ekubo in person, but I have seen his incandescent work, and I have gone through his Instagram page since he passed. I found a man whose character is ahead of his success, his stardom, and his sizzling career.

My favourite conversation of his is with Simi Drey in an interview he gave at AMC Movie Talk. They had struggled to get him on the show for a long time, and when they finally succeeded, he gave a glorious interview. Every single part of the interview was phenomenal. It was like a rehearsal for his Obsequies. Unbelievable! Even when he did not get answers to any of the quiz questions, he was gracious, smiling through it all and telling Simi that he had learnt new things.

Here are a few quotes by Alexx from that interview.