Rico Swavey, Lawyer Who Found His Voice In Music And The Big Screen, Has Been Buried In Lagos
Ex-BBNaija housemate and media personality, Patrick ‘Rico Swavey’ Fakoya, who died in the late hours of Wednesday, October 12, 2022 was a lawyer.
His fellow ex-BBNaija housemates, Tobi Bakre and Alexandra ‘Alex Unusual’ Asogwa confirmed his death in separate posts on social media.
“This was not what we agreed Rico. Rest in peace #ricoswavey,” Alex Unusual wrote on Twitter around 11:00 am on Thursday, October 13, 2022.
Recall that Alex Unusual had called for friends and fans to pray for Rico, revealing that he was in a critical stage and doctors were battling to save his life after being involved in a ghastly auto crash in the early hours of Tuesday, October 11, 2022.
Although his face was not strange before his time in the BBNaija house as he had featured in the TV series Tinsel, Rico Swavey shot into fame by being one of the 20 housemates to feature in the 3rd instalment of the BBNaija reality TV show in 2018, tagged “Double Wahala”. Here, Rico was able to spotlight his true talents in music, acting and modelling even though he “went into the house to create awareness about autism in support of his little cousin.”
Born in 1993, Rico Swavey studied Law at Babcock University. However, his love for art made him venture into TV, acting and music. In 2017, he was part of the cast for the Ebony life-produced “Life 101”, which features the rise of a gang of four childhood friends to adulthood. Rico also made his trade in music: using the BBNaija platform as a launchpad, some of his songs include ‘Emotions’. ‘This Life’, ‘Baki Na Mimi’ featuring Fortune Bello and ‘Ya Body’ featuring Akeens.
Beyond his charm and good looks, Rico was notable for his calm demeanour, empathy and his interest in making everyone around him better. Covering VL Magazine together with fellow housemates Leo Dasilva and Teddy A in 2018, Rico revealed that one of his life goals was to give back to the community.
“To take over the globe with my talent, help autistic kids live a positive life and give back to the society that made me which is my country Nigeria.” he said.
‘Was praying it wouldn’t get to this, RIP Rico. He was literally the sweetest soul, working with him on Tinsel was always such a joy, Always smiling, always joking, always laughing…” said actress Beverly Naya in a Twitter post.
With a picture of them in big smiles from their time together on BBNaija, ex-BBNaija housemate Tobi Bakre on his official Instagram handle said: “This is how I will always remember you. Rest in peace, my brother.”
A service of songs was held for the entertainer in Lagos yesterday evening with a good number of Big Brother Naija alumni in attendance. Many could be seen trying very hard to hold back tears as eulogies were delivered by friends and family.
He has been buried in Lagos today.
