‘My new hobby is being a dad to two babies under two!’
Diversity star Ashley Banjo on his dad skills, TikTok dancing and big plans for 2021
Just as lockdown was announced, Ashley Banjo and his wife Francesca welcomed their second baby, Micah, into the world. But as parents already to little Rose, 18 months, they certainly had their work cut out for them.
While the rest of us were baking banana bread, Ashley, 31, and Francesca were facing the biggest challenge of their lives – looking after two babies under the age of two!
Luckily they survived, with Ashley even finding time between nappy changes to nail some incredible TikTok routines.
Here, the Dancing On Ice judge tells us all about parenthood and why TikTok has been such an incredible influence for him…
Hey Ashley! Congrats on your new baby. How’s it all been going?
Raising a newborn in lockdown was difficult, but I’m lucky to have an amazing wife – we tackled it together.
It was harder not being able to have the rest of the family helping out, but at the same time it was a challenge my wife and I took on together. I am feeling so much better now. There was definitely a period during lockdown when I felt more negative than positive, but luckily it was short. And I feel it was necessary because now I can only treat this situation as a positive thing and a way to evolve.
What did you and the family do in lockdown?
I think it was important to look for the positives and look for fun ways to entertain yourself and keep in high spirits. TikTok was a massive part of that for me. I would be on there making crazy sketches and dances and generally having a good time – so TikTok kind of saved me in lockdown.
So you see TikTok as a big positive?
Yes, it’s definitely had a positive influence on me because it is a space that allows you to be real, to create and to bring your personality to your videos. I love seeing other people’s creativity on there. TikTok has definitely challenged me to be more open. It’s not an app that calls for you to be ‘posey’, it’s an app that calls on you to be creative and to bring your true nerdy self to the forefront – which for me means sketches, humour, different sounds and duetting with friends.
Did you get up to anything else?
I didn’t take up any new hobbies in lockdown. My new hobby was being a dad to two babies under two! Which is a tough one to get right, but I hope I managed it. Challenges for the rest of 2020 are to grow and evolve and make the best of what our ‘new normal’ is and to try to smash every TikTok challenge I come across.
Is there any news on the next series of Dancing On Ice?
Hopefully, I will be returning. There aren’t any exact details yet, but as soon as there are I will share it because I love the show and I’d be really excited for it to come back.
What is next for you?
I have no idea! That is the beauty and the scary part of doing the job I do. I put things out to the universe and keep creating. But what I do know is that we have our biggest tour to date, Connected, planned for 2021. And we have launched our online dance tutorials called 20DV, where me and the rest of Diversity teach dance, which is amazing because I love to teach the next generation of dancers. But mainly I just plan to keep progressing and pushing forward. And whether it’s appearing on I’m A Celeb or a spot on This Morning, if they feel right then I would never have a closed mind to any opportunity.
What’s your advice to anyone looking for a career in dance?
I would say work hard and take every single opportunity, train as much as possible and get as much experience as possible. Try different styles, different classes and push yourself, go to every audition and be prepared to get ‘nos’ and for it not to always be fun. But sooner or later you will find where you are supposed to sit in the
dance industry.
Tell us about your Peperami TikTok challenge…
The TikTok challenge campaign is all about mashing up different skills and going headto-head against different people to see who can come out on top. I’m looking forward to all the challenges that take me outside of my comfort zone because outside of dancing, I don’t do much else. I’m looking forward to trying out some new skills. Others can get involved by using the hashtags and the sounds and just giving the challenges a go. I wanted to get involved because I actually love Peperami, they are a super-tasty snack but also, if you set me a challenge, I’m probably never going to shy away from it!
‘I’m never going to shy away from a challenge’
Peperami has unveiled the world’s most expensive Peperami, worth £1,500. Those keen to win one will need to participate in a #MeatTheBeat challenge running across social media until the end of September