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72 days. That’s how long the 2023 #BBNaija housemates worked to earn the love and support of fans and get them to vote for them to win the 120 million cash prize. For days, the housemates schemed, plotted, showed up during tasks, sent subtle messages to their fans out there, cried, laughed – basically played games to remain relevant and provide content enough to garner votes.
Then came the grand finale and… boom, Ilebaye won.
When Ilebaye came into the Big Brother Naija All Stars house, many viewers assumed she would be among the first set of housemates to leave. In the Level Up season, she was the Gen Z baddie who left the house quite early, so it was easy to write her off in a house now filled with the crème de la crème of different seasons. But it wasn’t long before we saw her knock horns with the big guns in the house, much to our admiration.
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I wasn’t sure what Ilebaye’s strategy was when she came into the house. At first, I thought her idea was to ship with someone she assumed had a strong fan base, hoping that would rub off on her. And the only male housemate who showed an inkling of interest in her and gave her a bit of perhaps-not-so-romantic attention was Neo. But then, there was a problem: although Tolani Baj insisted she didn’t want a relationship with Neo, she didn’t want other women getting too close to him either.
I want to believe that Tolani Baj handed Ilebaye what would later become her strategy. Unknowingly, of course. The moment she pulled the duvet off of Ilebaye when she was with Neo, and ordered her to get out of the room, the social media sphere went agog over this sheer act of bullying. “Tolani Baj is trying to bully Ilebaye.” “Oh, is it because she’s young?” “Would she be able to talk to Cee-C or Mercy like that?” Suddenly, people began to pay attention to the way other housemates talked to, spoke of, and treated Ilebaye. Even amidst the many fights Ilebaye got into – orchestrated by her or not – people assumed she was a victim who was simply trying to push back, resist bullying and find her footing in the house. And then there was Doyin who was championing the ‘my friend is being bullied and since she’s too soft, I’m going to fight her battles’ cause. A strategy for Doyin? I don’t know.
Then came Ike. And this is where I sigh.
He may be on social media trying to claim credit for being a master planner, but come off it, Ike. You and I know that is not true. Your plan to get her a third strike only led to her getting more fans; people who were not convinced that she was being bullied were won over after you poured her clothes on the floor. No mastermind here, my guy, you encroached on her personal space, bullied and tried to provoke her.
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Whether or not Ilebaye used “victimisation” as a strategy is not the reason I write this. For me, the most important is that the viewers perceived her to be a victim; someone who was being bullied because she was the weakest. The underdog. And if there’s something I have noticed in this social experiment called BBNaija, it is that Nigerians root for whoever they perceive to be the underdog, those who are being bullied by the other housemates, and the people they can easily relate to. Check Laycon, Whitemoney, Efe, Phyna, and so on. Whether you are using the “I was selling akara in Badagry before I came here,” “I be street, I come from ghetto,” or “I am being bullied” strategy, it is all the same – you are an underdog who has the chance to change your story with BBNaija. And, boy! Nigerians loveee a good grass-to-grace story; that is what many can relate to. See, many of us don too tey for grass, we dey pray make baba God carry us go grace level. So when there’s an opportunity for a grass person to become a grace person, of course, Nigerians will root for the person. En masse.
Someone said to me while we discussed the show, “Nigerians don’t like the strong and the made. You come into the BBNaija house and you’re already rich and successful, they won’t vote for you. You come all so confident and sure, they won’t vote for you. Instead, they want to humble you so bad. They like the weak, meek and pitiful.”
I do not agree with this, but there’s an atom of truth in it. I’d flip the coin when I say that perhaps for many Nigerians, it’s not about humbling a contestant, it is about earning the bragging right that amidst the hustle and bustle, a person who had little to no hope won the grand prize, and they were a part of this success story. Peep the way we give testimonies, “there were so many qualified people but grace found me who had no certificate.”
Someone commented when Ilebaye won, “Yes, I voted for her, I was part of the people who made her. They thought we won’t win.” ‘Made her’ may sound like a bit of an exaggeration but, still, ‘made her’ it is. I could sense pride in that person’s text; the joy of being one of the people who made Ilebaye successful. Another thing I could sense was defiance – “They thought we wouldn’t win.” Who is they? Nigerians don’t like to see a particular housemate being picked on in the house, so through their votes, they send a subtle message that the underdog has a voice and the streets can make someone.
So yes, Nigerians will always root for the underdog or vote out of pity and that, in itself, isn’t a bad thing. The underdog may not always win, but year in and year out, we see how being one is a solid strategy.
The post Big Brother Naija: Being the Underdog Could Be a Solid Strategy appeared first on BellaNaija – Showcasing Africa to the world. Read today!.
