The Cruel Price of Being Toke Makinwa: Media Personality Shares Hurtful Comments About Her Waiting Season

Life in the spotlight has never been for the faint-hearted, and Nigerian media personality, actress, and entrepreneur Toke Makinwa knows this all too well. Recently, the celebrated star shared some of the vile and demeaning comments that strangers and online users hurled at her during what she described as her “waiting season,” a deeply personal phase of her life that has now become the subject of endless public debate. The screenshots she revealed painted a chilling picture of just how cruel and unrelenting the internet can be when it decides to target someone who refuses to live life on society’s terms.

The comments came from individuals who appeared to take pride in shaming her for not conforming to conventional expectations of womanhood—being married and having children. One user who identified as SAINT wrote directly under her story: “Oloriburuku lady, no kids, useless girl.” As if one insult wasn’t enough, the same user doubled down again, this time declaring, “Oloribuku no kids no husband, very useless lady.” The words carried a kind of venom that highlighted not just personal dislike but a deeper societal obsession with measuring women’s worth solely through marriage and motherhood.

Another user, VXXI, chimed in through a tweet tagged at Toke: “Toke Makinwa is 40 and childless talking about accomplishments, lmaooo! Make you born and have your own kids you refuse, you choose vanity life over child lol.” The statement, while laced with mockery, exposes a disturbing mindset that dismisses decades of hard work, resilience, and personal success simply because a woman does not fit neatly into a narrow box of societal expectations.

But the attacks didn’t stop there. One commenter using the name momodu8338 wrote: “40 and single and childless, Toke what are you not telling us because you are playing with your future and I feel sad for you.” Even though couched in what might appear as concern, the undertone of this message is still condemnation, the familiar suggestion that without a husband or children, a woman’s life is incomplete, regardless of whatever else she might have achieved.

Another user who went by VMGOAT added his voice to the tirade: “Still flying around, I hope you don get better husband? You are clocking 50 soon, no husband, no child.” The emphasis again was not on her accomplishments, her thriving media career, or the businesses she has built, but on her marital and maternal status, as though that alone should define the totality of her existence.

For many observers, seeing these words in black and white was a stark reminder of the cruel price that comes with visibility and fame in Nigeria’s unforgiving social media space. Toke Makinwa is not the first celebrity to face public scrutiny over her personal life, and sadly, she may not be the last. However, her decision to expose these comments to the public has reignited conversations about the pressures women face, particularly once they cross the age of thirty. In a society that still views marriage and children as the ultimate markers of success for women, her refusal to bow to pressure becomes both an act of resistance and a lightning rod for criticism.

Toke’s journey has been anything but ordinary. From her early days as a radio personality to becoming one of the most recognizable media figures in Africa, she has built a brand that many admire and aspire to emulate. She has successfully transitioned into acting, influencing, and business, with ventures ranging from fashion to luxury goods. Her life is one that reflects ambition, resilience, and reinvention. Yet, despite all of these achievements, what some people choose to focus on is what she has not done according to society’s timeline—get married again or have children.

The public fixation on her private choices raises questions about the way society views women, especially successful women who dare to prioritize their dreams and individuality over societal prescriptions. To many of her critics, Toke’s wealth, fame, and accomplishments mean nothing because they do not come with the “ultimate proof” of womanhood: husband and children. The fact that people can so casually disregard years of hard work with just a few words on social media is not only heartbreaking but also a reflection of how entrenched these beliefs are.

But beyond the cruelty, there is also something revealing in Toke’s decision to bring these comments to light. She did not hide them. She did not pretend they did not exist. Instead, she chose to show the world the kind of vitriol that women in her position are forced to deal with. By doing so, she shifted the conversation from her personal life to the broader issue of misogyny, societal pressure, and the constant policing of women’s bodies and choices.

Her story has since triggered waves of reactions. Some of her fans and supporters praised her for her courage, noting that it takes strength to face such attacks with grace. They pointed out that no one has the right to dictate the timeline of another person’s life, and that accomplishments should never be dismissed because they don’t come wrapped in the traditional package society expects. Others used the moment to reflect on how damaging such words can be, especially to women who may be struggling silently with issues of fertility, heartbreak, or personal choices.

Toke’s situation also shines a spotlight on the culture of cyberbullying that continues to thrive on Nigerian social media platforms. The anonymity provided by the internet often emboldens people to say things they would never dare to say in person. It allows bitterness, envy, and unresolved personal frustrations to manifest as attacks on others. In Toke’s case, she has become a target because she dares to live a life that is unapologetically hers, and that kind of freedom often threatens those who feel confined by societal expectations.

What is perhaps most striking about the entire episode is not just the cruelty of the comments, but the resilience with which Toke continues to live her life. At 40, she remains one of the most influential media personalities in Nigeria. She continues to host shows, land endorsements, travel the world, and share her journey with millions of fans. For every critic who mocks her for not having children, there are thousands who admire her for blazing a trail and showing young women that their worth is not limited to marriage and motherhood.

The painful irony of it all is that the very society that pressures women into marriage and motherhood often fails to support them when those paths lead to unhappiness or abuse. Women are shamed if they marry late, shamed if they marry early and it fails, shamed if they stay in unhappy marriages, and shamed if they leave. The cycle of judgment never ends, and in this endless loop, Toke Makinwa becomes a symbol—not of failure, as her critics would like to believe, but of defiance against a system that constantly seeks to diminish women’s worth.

Her decision to share those comments is a reminder that beyond the glamour and the spotlight, celebrities are still human beings who feel pain, rejection, and loneliness. It also reminds us that words have power, and the things we say online can cut deeper than we imagine. Toke Makinwa may be famous, wealthy, and accomplished, but at the end of the day, she too has a heart that can be wounded by harsh words.

In the end, perhaps the real question is not why Toke Makinwa is still single and childless at 40, but why society remains so obsessed with policing women’s lives. For every person who tells her she is “useless” because she has no husband or child, there are countless others who see her as a beacon of inspiration and independence. Maybe her waiting season is not about what she lacks, but about the lessons she is teaching us all—that fulfillment comes in many forms, and that the value of a woman’s life cannot be reduced to a wedding ring or a birth certificate.