Nigerian content creator Adebayo Ridwan, popularly known as Bae U Barbie, has invited billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote to appear on his YouTube show, Curiosity Made Me Ask, to engage younger Nigerians interested in his business journey.
Bae U extended the invitation while asking Dangote about his media appearances, the need to connect with younger audiences and their interest in investing in his company, including through a planned initial public offering (IPO).
The content creator noted that many of Dangote’s interviews had appeared on platforms that younger audiences might not typically watch, despite their interest in his business activities.
“Most of the interviews we’ve seen you do have been on platforms that my generation don’t watch,” Bae U said.
He explained that young Nigerians wanted to learn more about Dangote’s business and deserved an opportunity to hear directly from him.
“I’m not saying you should sack your media team. No, but, you know, when you finish,” he said before asking when the billionaire would appear on his show.
Responding to the invitation, Dangote said young people represented the future and that older generations needed to share their experiences with them.
“Honestly, the future that we have is actually you, the youth. We, our own generation, really, we have not really done very well for Nigeria and also for Africa. That’s the truth,” he said.
Dangote stressed the importance of conversations between older and younger generations to exchange experiences and discuss Nigeria’s development.
“So we need to sit down with some of you and discuss our own experience with you,” he added.
The businessman observed that many young Nigerians had limited knowledge of the country’s political history and some of its past leaders.
He cited former President Olusegun Obasanjo as an example, suggesting that younger people might know more about him because he returned to power.
Bae U interjected, saying, “Thanks to me. I gave him the platform, sir,” apparently referring to his interview with Obasanjo.
Dangote agreed that younger audiences were an important group for him to engage.
“So really, you are right. Going forward, this sort of audience is the audience that we, somebody like me, should actually face,” he said.
He also praised young Nigerians for the support and respect they had shown him, including during his trips abroad.
According to Dangote, people accompanying him sometimes tried to prevent members of the public from taking photographs with him, but he preferred to oblige those who approached him.
He recalled an experience from his youth when he and his grandfather met prominent figures in Washington and asked to take photographs with them. He said the experience had influenced his willingness to take pictures with members of the public despite his status as a businessman.
Dangote also dismissed suggestions that a photograph of him shared on social media meant he was asking God for more blessings.
“I wasn’t begging for anything. What I was saying, I was just saying that, God, you have over-blessed me,” he said.
The billionaire indicated that he was willing to sit down with younger Nigerians in an informal setting where they could ask questions about how he built his business and achieved success.
“We will come,” he said in response to the invitation to appear on Curiosity Made Me Ask.
He added that he wanted the conversation to be open, allowing young people to ask questions about his business journey and the experiences that shaped his success.
