Many celebrities and social media personalities are glad to openly share their grass-to-grace stories; few, however, expose the vulnerabilities and past character flaws they once carried.
Appearing on WithChude on YouTube, Jay on-Air (real name, Joseph Onaolapo) did both.
It all began at the start of the interview when host Chude asked why everyone he’s met has never spoken ill of Jay. According to Jay on-Air, that class of people met him around five years ago—when he was a better person.
“Before that period, I was not a great person, and I personally knew that,” he tells Chude. “I was proud, I was rude, I had anger issues. I consciously had to work on myself… Entering university, I just felt like everyone was beneath me.”
What fueled this? Apparently (according to him), it was the excessive praise he received as a child—when the world constantly told him he was the most handsome and neatest lad around.
He began overcoming this attitude by turning Josh Maya’s and Pastor Sam Adeyemi’s sermons into personal therapy sessions.
When asked what catalyzed the transformation, Jay said it was the number of lost friendships that forced him to reflect.
“I think I remember an evening I sat back and thought about friendships that were no longer in my life. Then I realized there were people who could have still been in my life but were no longer there because of how I treated them.”
Of course, that wasn’t the only subject of discussion with Chude. Jay also shared how he coped financially after losing his job—by selling thrift clothes (okrika) before eventually turning to TikTok.
But the major takeaway from the 15-minute conversation was this: If you are feeling lonely, there’s a good chance it stems from how you treat—or treated—those closest to you.