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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Alan Johnson

Love Island star Ikenna Ekwonna's salary more than halved since 15-day ITV show stint

Former Love Island contestant Ikenna Ekwonna has revealed he is now on half of the salary he was taking home before he took part in the hit ITV dating show earlier this year.

The 23-year old, who lasted just 15 days before receiving the boot, said post-villa life isn't necessarily a bed of roses.

Speaking to Channel 4 documentary makers on Life After Love Island, the Surrey native also opened up on what goes on behind the scenes on the programme.

The documentary disclosed that Ikenna made between £3,000 and £4,000 in content production and advertising in the first three months post-show, equating to "less than half than what he was earning" in his previous position.

Ikenna Ewonna has been speaking to Channel 4 documentary, Life After Love Island (ITV)

"You come out thinking, 'Oh, it’s Love Island. Everyone after Love Island is set,'" he told presenter Will Njobvu. "And coming out of it, you're like, 'Where is it?'"

After revealing he is yet to be offered any brand deal, he added: "I have questioned is it me?…. Is it my face? Is it my skin?"

Elsewhere in the documentary, fellow contestant Coco Lodge said she hadn't reached anywhere near the number of followers she had anticipated on social media.

The 27-year old graphic designer had high hopes of amassing two million fans on Instagram, however, her current following is a sobering 182,000.

Coco said: "I came out with 30k followers, I just didn’t really understand, because I was like, 'why does everyone hate me?'

"You don’t go in there to find love. It’s a bonus if you do, but you go in there because you know what you can get after."

The 23-year old previously described his experience as a 'holiday' (Jonathan Hordle/REX/Shutterstock)

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Earlier this year, meanwhile, Ikenna was criticised by host Laura Whitmore after referring to his spell in Casa Amor as a 'holiday'.

Laura asked him if he would have done anything differently on the show in a bid to prolong his stay, but he replied: "No, I think I would have done it exactly the way I done it."

When Amber Beckford, who was voted out at the same time as her former housemate, laughed and said he was "chilled out", he agreed, saying: "Chilled out, relax and enjoy the holiday."

But Irish Laura was having none of it and hit back: "Hold on, wait a minute. It's not a holiday. You're in there to find love, not for a holiday. Did you get the memo on what Love Island is about?"

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