Khosi… Ultimate BBTitan Queen
For the first ever season of the Big Brother Titans (BBTitans), Makhosazane Twala, popularly known as ‘Khosi’ has been crowned the winner. She became the seventh female winner of the Big Brother franchise in Africa, following the win of BBMzansi’s Michelle Mphowabadimo and BBNaija’s Josephina Otabor in 2022.
Zambia’s Cherise Makubale became the first woman in Africa to win a Big Brother show – BBA in 2003. Karen Igho won the same show in 2011 and Dillish Mathews took home the title in 2013. Mercy Eke joined the ultra-exclusive list of winners in 2019 when she won BBNaija Pepper Dem.
Khosi was announced winner of the reality TV show on Sunday April 2, 2023 after 11 weeks of fierce competition among the 24 contestants from Nigeria and South Africa who set out to win the grand prize.
She defeated five other finalists — Kanaga Emmanuel Eme, Ebuka Chukwu, Motsatsii Wendy Madiba, Yvonne Godswill and Ipeleng Selepe to emerge winner. The 25-year-old journalist and fitness enthusiast was followed by Kanaga Jnr, who became the first runner-up.
Khosi, who hadn’t been very confident of her win after she was nominated back to back through the 11 weeks of nominations, had broken down in tears on stage when she was announced the winner.
Speaking after her win, Khosi thanked fans and fellow housemates for their support. “I am so grateful for this opportunity and I thank everyone who voted for me. It has been an incredible journey and I have made some amazing friends along the way,” she said.
BBTitans Ziyakhala Wahala was a game between 24 housemates – 12 housemates each from Nigeria and South Africa featured in the first season of the show as they navigated the twists, turns, and pairings.
The season started with the housemates playing individual games but soon turned into intense gameplay as housemates were paired by nationalities to keep the game exciting in a sink-or-swim scenario, some luckier than others had pairings and strategies that propelled them into the finals.
Although there were no fake evictions or riders like the other franchises, the Supreme Veto Power was still in place, as it gave Ipeleng three weeks straight in the house without nominations as she became the Supreme Veto Power holder. The win earned her a spot in the finals and gave her the power to choose another housemate to take to the finals. She chose Ebubu.
Before this were the ships and the mind games with Khosi, Blue Aiva, Yemi Cregx, Thabang, Miracle OP, Nelisa, and Olivia, who were at the centre of controversy as ships slowly became triangles and slowly became squares. This level of drama intensified the game as the housemates were trying to outsmart each other to appeal to their respective fan bases.
Despite the twists and turns, Khosi emerged winner by a large margin – a true testament to her winning the hearts of fans of her nationality but also from Nigeria and other countries across the continent. To most, this win was not a surprise as she had never been in the bottom four of the eviction chart regardless of the competition. She also constantly remained on Netng’s BBTitans most talked about housemates chart right from the first week to the final week of the show.
Khosi was known for her appeal towards the male contestants as she was always in the middle of a triangle but beyond that, she was fearless, competitive, and had her mind on the prize. Although she seemed somewhat reserved in certain cases, she never shied away from confrontation. Her drama entertained fans and her confidence increased her fanbase.
Unlike half of the housemates that made it to the top six, Khosi fought her way to the finals with the voting power of her fans, ‘Khosireigns’ to clench the grand prize of $100,000.
The BBTitans season one winner was one of the housemates with the least earnings from weekly challenges and tasks, but in the end, she was able to snag the ultimate prize. Khosi now joins the long list of Big Brother winners who have gained a platform as a result of the show’s prominence. Her win is particularly impressive because she is the third woman to win Big Brother in Africa over the last year after Mphowabadimo won BBMzansi in April 2022 and Phyna won BBNaija in October 2022.
Commenting on the success of the show, the Executive Head of Marketing, MultiChoice Nigeria, Tope Oshunkeye said: “Big Brother Titans has been an interesting journey especially when you consider the mash-up of the different cultures, Mzansi and Naija. This has been the ultimate cultural exchange and social cohesion programme that has proven that what unites us is bigger than anything else. We at MultiChoice are very proud of this moment and we thank the fans, our dear customers and all the sponsors for the successful season.”
For years, the Big Brother franchise has drawn a wide range of young and passionate followership that has propelled housemates into fame, which has led to the thousands of applications received for every season.
