Phyna finds fame, fortune in Biggie’s house

•Receives Prize Worth N100,000,000

It is no longer news that Edo State native Josephine Otabor, popularly known as Phyna, has emerged winner of the Big Brother Naija Level Up edition, after polling a total of 40.74 per cent of the votes in the final week. The show’s host, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, announced the winner at this season’s grand finale last Sunday.

Phyna beat 23 other housemates to clinch the prize after an intensely competitive 72 days, making her the second female housemate to be declared the winner of Big Brother Naija.
 
For the second time in the show’s history, the finale featured a top six instead of a top five. Bryann was the first runner-up with 26.74 per cent of the votes. Bella came in third place after polling 15.78 per cent of the votes. Others in the top six include Adekunle, who gathered 12.36 per cent of the votes and came in fourth, Chi Chi who came fifth with 2.49 per cent, and Daniella finished sixth with 1.89 per cent.
 
Phyna joins Whitemoney, Laycon, Mercy, Miracle, Efe and Katung in the highly coveted list of BBNaija winners. Like the previous winners, Phyna will no doubt leverage the opportunity the BBNaija platform is offering for her career.

In her acceptance speech, Phyna attributed her emergence to God, even as she appreciated the organisers, her fans and her family for her success story.
  
“Thanks to my fellow housemates and sponsors of this show, I had an amazing experience. I appreciate everyone who voted for me; it feels good to be the winner. I plan to achieve a lot going forward and I pray God helps me; with God, I can conquer all. I am here after the fifth year; it’s been God all along. I want to say a big thank you to Big Brother for giving me the privilege after four years.”

Speaking during the presentation of the car key and the dummy cheque to Phyna in Lagos, the Executive Head of Content & West Africa Channels, MultiChoice Group, Busola Tejumola, informed that Multichoice spent N4.7 billion on the show and created a lot of jobs.

“The show had created a platform for the display of viable talents, job creation and individual Nigerians to fulfil their dreams and aspirations of attaining fame.”

She noted that, “50 people worked on the Sunday Live alone and people thought that was the entire production; it takes a village to do this. Over 1000 people made the show happen indirectly, and about 14,000 people together. Over one billion votes were received; the level of engagement was a phenomenon. It attested to the fact that the fans of the show were fully engaged with premium content.

“For us, production started before the show went on air. We had a lot behind the scene, year and year we keep growing to make sure that the next show is better than the current. Season seven was a season of many first starting from the house; we had the swimming pool, the diary room was moved outside while the Head of House room was moved downstairs. We had two levels, which ended up being three levels. For the first time, we broadcasted from two channels, imagine the amount of content that could have been missed broadcasting from one channel.”

She continued: “We started this journey with over 40,000 applications during the auditioning process, we are proud to have once again delivered another amazing show. We are extremely proud to have created a platform that contributes to entertaining the world, showcasing the talents of housemates, the different expressions of our culture and contributing to the growth of the creative industry in Nigeria. Our commitment to providing premium entertainment is unequalled.”
    
While congratulations Phyna for emerging the winner, she said, “I want the other housemates to know that they are equally winners since the beginning of the show. We are excited to see that the show continues to set great records each season. We appreciate our sponsors. Every season of the BBNaija show brings well-thought-out creative gameplay, unique personalities, dramas, intrigues, fun and excitement. The engagement generated this season has been phenomenal, from the fan base to social media conversations and media coverage.”
 
Speaking virtually at the event, Chief Executive Officer, MultiChoice Nigeria, John Ugbe, said Big Brother Naija show is more than just entertainment, adding. “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. Today, this show contributes significantly to the Nigerian economy.”
 
Head of Business Development, Pocket by PiggyVest, sponsors of the show, Ayo Akinola, said, “For us, our goal is to redefine and keep refining people’s relations, and transactions. Our goal is to continue to create a platform for all.