By Tofarati Ige
It's not easy to leave your comfort zone in the quest to fulfill a dream – a dream that isn't guaranteed to come true. TV personality and producer, Toyosi Phillips, did just that.

Acknowledging her passion for the arts, she took a leap of faith and moved from Lagos to New York to attend New York Film Academy in 2013 – leaving behind a lucrative career as an Internal Auditor in one of Nigeria's leading commercial banks.

That bold move was definitely worth it, as she landed a gig with Sahara TV, hosting and producing her very own show, “The Gist with Toyosi Phillips,” which became one of the platform's most popular shows. She also obtained a diploma in Broadcast Journalism from the New York Film Academy.

While at NYFA, Phillips covered several events including the city's reaction to the United Nations Annual General Meeting, the Chabad's Children of Chernobyl Annual Gala and the New York City Bring Back Our Girls' Protest.

After three years spent in the US honing her skills both on camera and behind the camera, she moved back to Nigeria a couple of weeks ago to continue to explore new opportunities.

She is currently Production Manager for popular web series “Gidi Up” and is also working on some exciting new projects that she will reveal soon.

Toyosi is also a philanthropist; setting up the Taiwo Olawale Phillips Memorial Sickle Cell Endowment Fund in memory of her father who passed away 18 years ago from complications related to sickle cell anemia.