AFTER weeks of intrigues, the 2022 edition of the Big Brother Naija reality show came to an interesting end on Sunday, October 2. The seventh season, tagged Level Up, premiered on 23 and 24 July 2022 and began with 24 housemates.
One of the most watched shows on television, the housemates came in with their A-game to the opening night as they were introduced by the show host, Ebuka Obi- Uchendu. There was a twist. Unlike previous editions where men were introduced before the ladies, this year, the housemates were introduced in levels. The grand prize was also increased to N100 million.
The level-up season had several twists that left devoted fans of the program with lasting memories. Naija Times highlights some of the remarkable moments that left fans glued to their television set for 72 days.
Level 1 and Level 2 houses
At the launch of this year’s show, Biggie, in a surprise move, divided the housemates into two different houses namely level 1 and level 2. The organisers did not only give viewers two channels on DSTV and Gotv to enjoy the show but also changed the eviction process. The creation of the two levels caused fierce competition as viewers struggled not to miss any action on both sides simultaneously.
Before the merger, the winner of the Head of House (HoH) games from either house saves the rest of his housemates at the same level from eviction and nominations. Fans of the show nicknamed the level 2 house ‘trenches’ while the Level 1 housemates walked with an air of superiority as they occupied a beautiful house and dominated the much-coveted HOH game.
Beauty’s disqualification
On Aug. 7 2022, Beauty Tukura, was disqualified for breaking and disobeying the house rules. Beauty had during the first week of the show received a strike for an altercation with Ilebaye. She had pulled Ilebaye’s wig after a war of words and on Aug.6, threw her wig, and glasses and also attempted to break Groovy’s microphone during a misunderstanding. She was eventually issued a double strike by Big Brother. This made Beauty the first housemate to receive a strike and also get disqualified in the second week of the show.
Unveiling of the riders
Another twist was the introduction of two “rider housemates” The duo, Rachael and Chizzy, were added during the third week eviction night show. Obi-Uchendu had explained that the rider housemates were Biggie’s agents, who would not have the opportunity to win the N100 million grand prize. According to him, they can not also be evicted, getting the opportunity to play till the end of the show. He said the rider housemates would be participating in all house tasks and every other activity. As the competition progressed Chizzy became the fans-favourite and the riders were eventually evicted on Friday night.
Tasks and their winners
Jigsaw puzzle games, talent shows, speech presentations, fashion parades, musical performances, the list of the games played in big brother Naija is endless. All housemates that are featured were given equal and fair chances to win prizes for themselves during the game section. Showmax competition was the first brand task in the house and was won by Modella. She is billed for a cameo appearance in the upcoming Showmax Original as her prize for winning the task.
Kess, Phyna, Modella, Bryann, Cyph, and Ilebaye won the second brand task which was sponsored by Amazon Farms. They would be receiving 3 months’ supply of groceries courtesy of the sponsoring brand. The third brand task sponsored by Arla Foods saw Allysyn, Deji, Diana, Hermes, Chichi, Giddifia, and Chomzy go home with N250, 000 each for their superlative performance in that contest. Also, Phyna, Kess, Daniella, Diana, Bryann, Chizzy, and Pharmsavi had to share N2million among themselves for winning the brand task sponsored by Knorr Nigeria.
Munch It brand task winners, Chichi, Eloswag, Chomzy, and Hermes went home with 300, 000 naira each for winning the challenge. SevenUp Bottling Company’s premium table water, Aquafina rewarded Amaka and Groovy with a mouth-watering sum of N3million for their victory in the Aquafina task. Hermes, Dotun, Kess, Daniella, and Allysyn were rewarded N1million each for the Oraimo brand task. From what is gathered so far, Hermes led the league of winners with the sum of N1, 550,000 while Amaka and Groovy won N1, 500,000 each. Kess and Daniella got N1,330,000 each while Allysyn also won N1,250,000.
Amaka’s eviction
Amaka’s eviction came as a shock to fans of the show after she became a victim of Biggie’s twist. Viewers were taken aback by her exit when she was nominated for immediate eviction. This came after Biggie asked all the housemates to nominate two fellow contestants for immediate eviction and Amaka got the highest number of nominations. Amaka left the house leaving some of her fellow housemates emotional. That was the first time such an eviction process occurred and the fans were not happy that they couldn’t save her. Some viewers believed Amaka, who showed so much content and vibes in the House and was saved by her fans twice, was a strong contender for the prize.
Fake housemates
Another talking point was the introduction of two fake housemates. Ebuka had during the second week of the show introduced Modella and Deji as two fake housemates and handed them a secret mission in their respective levels. Deji was told to cause problems in the house by complaining about his colleagues in level 1 while Modella was instructed to cause a rift among lovers in the house. Ebuka had said the duo cannot win the show or be nominated for eviction. He added that they can be told to leave the house anytime.
Controversial Level 3 house
Viewers were shocked by the creation of another level 3 house as the show entered its closing weeks. The newly furnished level 3 house accommodated housemates Doyin, Eloswag, and Chomzy who were evicted on September 11 2022. The new plot surprised viewers when Ebuka announced that although the housemates had been evicted, Big Brother decided to retain them as guests in the house till Sept. 18, when they will be moved to join the other housemates. Ebuka explained that the evicted housemates will return to the main house to participate in house tasks with other housemates, a twist some viewers claimed was unjust to some housemates like Amaka whose eviction was ‘heartbreaking.
Love and lust
From Groovy and Beauty to Alysyn and Hermes, Allysyn and Adekunle, Sheggz and Bella, Doyin and Cyph, Khalid and Daniella, there were many relationships that sailed through in the house. However, we can’t guarantee their survival outside the house. Sheggz and Bella took to take the lead; they held onto each other until the last day of the show. They have also shown signs of becoming another power couple emanating from Biggie’s house. Need to mention that Hermes who had explained that he was polyamorous; a kind of partnership that leaves enough room for everyone in it to grow individually and collectively, said he would love to have Allysyn as his third girlfriend. But she said she would like to focus on herself and respect his dynamic relationship even though she has a genuine connection with him.
The six lucky finalists
The six lucky housemates who made it to the finals are Adekunle, Chichi, Bryan, Phyna, Daniella and Bella. On Friday night, the show witnessed a surprise eviction as two housemates, Chizzy and Rachel were sent away from the BBNaija 7 House. Although social media opinion had predicted Bella or Bryan as the overall winner, most of the opinion polls turned out the opposite.
Phyna took it all!
The grand prize which comprised N50 million, a new SUV from Innoson Motors, a Dubai trip for two, a year supply of Pepsi, a new techno phone-Camon 19, a supply of Unik soap and a supply of home appliances from Nexus among other mouth-watering items were won by Phyna. Josephine Otabor, popularly known as Phyna who was referred to as the “content queen” took home all listed above and even more. Phyna has been presented with her SUV and N50 million cheque. After the presentation, Phyna attributed her success to God and appreciated her fans, family and organisers of the show.
N4.7b invested
The organisers of the show crowned it all when they revealed that over N4.7 billion was invested in the production of the show. This was disclosed by John Ugbe, Chief Executive Officer, MultiChoice Nigeria. Ugbe also said that over one billion votes were cast in the course of the show.
“N4.7 billion was invested into the show, that is the cost of production of the season 7 show, we also had over one billion votes throughout the show. Big Brother Naija show is more than just entertainment, it also reflects social and value creation, the show has empowered over 1,200 people, cutting across fashion designers, carpenters, interior decorators, photographers and more,” he stated.
Sponsors
The major sponsors of Big Brother Naija Season 7 were Pocket by Piggyvest, Flutterwave and Quidax. Other sponsors include; Pepsi, Aquafina, Johny Walker, Origin, Lush hair, Supa Komando, Munch it, Minimie noodles, Hypo, Unik soap, Techno, Close up, Sunlight dish wash, Lipton tea, Oraimo, Arla Dano milk, Airtel Nigeria, Nexus appliances, Innosons vehicles and travelbeta.com.
Big Brother Titans next…
Nigerians are already looking forward to the next season aptly called ‘Big Brother Titans’, which would be a mix of Big Brother Naija and Big Brother Mzansi. Auditions are open to Nigerians and South Africans, ages 21 and above. Auditions for Big Brother Titans has commenced, ending October 22, 2022. Big Brother Titans will feature brand new contestants who must be Nigerian or South African citizens with valid means of identification.
