Ex-BBNaija’s Queen Mercy Atang Says 500-Loaf Bread Dress Left Her in Tears, With Back Injuries

Former Big Brother Naija housemate Queen Mercy Atang has revealed that her 500-loaf bread gown worn to the 12th Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards was so heavy it caused her physical pain and brought her to tears.

Queen shared the details in a BBC interview, crediting fashion brand Tianah Empire for creating the outfit.“I didn’t expect my dress to blow up like this,” she told the BBC. “I thought people would just be asking, ‘Why did she wear bread?’ Some would like it, some wouldn’t. But then I saw BBC cover it.”She admitted her initial reaction was emotional:

“At first I cried. But I told myself, no, I had to pull it together.”Speaking on how the dress came together, Queen said: “Tianah Empire made the dress, the king of fashion. My own role was just to keep asking, ‘Mama, is my dress ready?’ She’d say, ‘Not yet, but don’t worry, it will be soon.’

She explained that it took weeks to complete, and the final product was extremely heavy.“That dress almost broke my waist, I won’t lie,” she said.

“If you check my back, I have serious wounds because that bread is very, very heavy. I literally cried while putting it on. I had to catch my breath and say, ‘Hey! Me, who wants to wear a bread dress?’ I didn’t know how much weight that thing carried.”“When I first wore it, I cried for a few seconds before saying, ‘Okay, bring it. I’m ready to wear the cloth.’

Queen also said she wasn’t planning to attend AMVCA this year. “Honestly, I didn’t want to go. I had business goals I wanted to achieve first. AMVCA wasn’t even on my radar.”

‘I couldn’t sit’

She arrived late to the event, after the red carpet had officially closed.“I still went because if I posted the picture online, people would say it’s AI,” she said.

“I wanted them to see it was real. When I got to the red carpet, people cleared a path for me. I won’t lie, I didn’t go into the hall. I didn’t even try to sit because, ah, that cloth was heavy. Even after they removed some loaves and some fell off my back, I still couldn’t sit. I just held myself up because I was weak and tired.”Despite the ordeal, Queen said she was stunned by the global attention:

“I didn’t expect my dress to go viral like this. I just thought people would talk and ask, ‘Why did she wear bread?’ Some would like it, some wouldn’t. But then BBC carried it international TV stations carried it. I was shocked.”