I came across an article online that says Big Brother Naija is currently the most watched show in Africa. Although, I’m not a big fan of reality TV shows, but there’s a secret behind BBNaija that makes quite interesting. It has managed to capture the minds of a lot of people over a long short of time.
Despite the fact that a lot of people don’t even know where and when the show started, despite not knowing the history behind it, they just seem to love it.
After some meticulous research, I came across some important info that could explain the reason why Big Brother Naija has become so successful over the years.
To begin, let’s briefly discuss what Big Brother is all about.
Big Brother is a reality TV show where a group of people called housemates or contestants are gathered under one roof. The house is under surveillance by cameras 24/7 and the housemates compete for a price which is usually a couple thousands of dollars and then they have this guy called Big Brother. He’s the one that gives them directions and tasks to do.
All of this is broadcast to us in the comfort of our homes. That’s just the idea behind the reality TV show.
The word “Big Brother” is derived from the book “1984” by George Orwell. It follows the life of a guy named Winston Smith, a low ranking member of the party who is frustrated by the omnipresent eyes of the party and it’s ominous ruler called Big Brother.
In this book Big Brother controls every aspect of the lives of different people. I think they also referred to U.S. sometimes as Big Brother because they’re always monitoring people.
The idea of Big Brother reality show was created by a Dutch guy called John de Mol. He is a media tycoon, billionaire and television producer who is known for being the creator of fair factor, the voice and also Big Brother. Forbes estimated him to be worth 1.5 billion dollars in 2017. It’s pretty amazing how much money you can make when you create products, content and programs for the entertainment industry that eventually becomes successful.
As Big Brother started spreading, a lot of countries decided to buy into the franchise and create their own version. Most of these countries that decided to create their own versions of Big Brother incorporated their cultural and societal norms into the show.
Big Brother Naija for instance has heavy influence on Nigerian culture, in terms of the fashion, music and so on. Current episodes of Big Brother Naija exclusively play Nigerian music.
Related: Positive and negative impacts of reality TV shows on the society.
The first season of Big Brother Naija or BBNaija came in 2006, but they subsequently went on an 11 year break. Probably the market wasn’t ready then, but they came back for the second season in 2017. Within that period there was also a Big Brother Africa, but the difference was that they picked contestants from different countries in Africa. Eventually, BBNaija came and took the place of Big Brother Africa.
It has been very successful ever since and year-on-year it keeps increasing in the number of audience. But how were they able to spread like WiFi within a short period of time? From my analysis, I think it boils down to three things.
1.Higher percentage of younger people in Nigeria.
Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa. Most of the people in Nigeria are young and these kind of shows are targeted at the young population or the millennials. They are usually the people who really sit down at home to watch the show. As the numbers increase, the viewership for this show also increases.
The same thing can be said when of the music industry. The reason why Nigerian music is topping the chats worldwide is not just because their music is dope, but because they have a large population of people promoting it. The more population you have of consumers, the more viewership you have.
2. Rapid internet penetration.
A second reason why BBNaija has become very successful is the rapid internet penetration.
Nigeria currently accounts for thirty percent of the internet penetration in Africa. Obviously, the more the people having internet, the easier it will be to access this kind of shows online. Social media has also helped it gain popularity.
You can’t escape saying something about Big Brother once they start the season and even after they finish a season.
3. Escapism
Lastly, the most important reason why BBNaija went viral in Africa was a due to a form of escapism. By definition, it is the tendency to seek distraction and relief from unpleasant realities, especially by seeking entertainment or engaging in fantasy.
According to a clinical psychologist Dr Jana Scrivani, reality television gives us a false sense that we really know the people we see on the screen. This sense of having a personal relationship is amplified with the reality level even though we are aware that most of what we see on screen is greatly exaggerated.
Over time, we come to see the people portrayed on screen as friends. We identify with their struggles and triumphs, which is why the contestants have a huge fan base.
People also love to watch their favourite housemates compete for different tasks and possibly win some. They also want to see how the housemates are going to navigate through the drama in the house and who is eventually going to come out on top. Most people find these things to be very entertaining.
Viewers are certainly the reason why Big Brother has gone viral across Africa.
