Nigeria - Lilian - Age: 22 (pictured left)
Known as ‘SexyLeeLee’ to her
friends, Lillian is a model, actor, presenter, and tax collector! She entered Big Brother Hotshots for ‘the platform
it provides and the publicity that comes with it,and the money’. She’s not willing to sell herself short to
win the grand prize. If she does win, she’ll invest in her talk show, which is
about ‘helping upcoming talents’ and get herself a house.
Lilian’s favourite foods are
rice and plantain and she likes watching Baggage on TV and listing to 2Face
Idibia. She doesn’t have a favourite book, but likes movies like Think Like A
Man, Blended, Friends With Benefits, Bridesmaids and Twelve Years A Slave. Her
favourite actor is Angelina Jolie, because ‘she’s creative and can switch
between roles’.
Her favourite place in
Nigeria is Lagos, and she says the best thing about Africa is its cultural
diversity. Outside her home country, she’d like to visit California for the
opportunities she believes it would provide her to improve her career.
Lilian’s role model is Oprah
Winfrey, because of her strength, and the person who has most influenced her
life is her mother, ‘because she has always believed in me and encouraged me to
follow my dreams’.
She describes herself as ‘spontaneous,
easy-going, focussed and confident’ and says her best assets are that she’s
ambitious, a good listener, flexible, persuasive, competitive, independent and
original.
M’am
Bea
Age: 25
Ghanaian
M’am Bea lists her occupation as ‘Acting Trainee Manager/Fashion Designer’, and has a diploma in Management Finance. Her favourite foods
are yam and nkontomere stew, fufu, palm nut soup and jolof rice. M’am Bea likes
music by Sarkodie, Mafikizolo, John Legend, Wizkid and D’Banj.
Her favourite place in Ghana is Aburi Garden and she says the best thing
about Africa is that ‘it expresses diversity through colours and we are not
ashamed to exhibit that’. Outside of her home country, her favourite place in
the world is South Africa: ‘it offers so many opportunities and it offers young
people the opportunity to study and become great people in the world’.
M’am Bea’s role model is her mom, because ‘she is strong, humble,
God-fearing and puts her family first’.
Inspired to enter Big Brother Hotshots
by her talent and ‘the unity of all African countries coming together as one to
learn and share’, M’am Bea also lists making it onto the show as her proudest
achievement so far. ‘It will give me room to showcase my personality and
influence young, gifted youth out there,’ she says.
Describing herself as a ‘driven, humble and respectful self-starter’,
M’am Bea says that viewers can expect her ‘true self’, her ‘fashion sense,
sense of humour, cooking skills, intelligence and wise words’ to shine through
on screen. She says she’s ‘humbled and overwhelmed’, knowing that the
continent’s eyes will be on her.
Namibia
Luis
Age: 23
Associate Producer Luis has a
B. Tech in Financial Information. He loves anything made with or from potatoes,
his favourite book is The Alchemist and he enjoys the music of Kanye West. His
favourite TV shows are Game of Thrones, The Fixer and The Good Wife, and his
all-time favourite film is Ali.
Luis says his favourite place
in Namibia is the river beds in his home town of Rundu, ‘where the mighty
Okavango Delta flows into the ocean’. He says that the best thing about Africa
is ‘the diverse cultures – however different, every single one is somehow
relatable by being connected to the next one’. He calls Los Angeles ‘the city
of dreams where anybody can make it, given the right amount of perseverance and
correct hustle’.
His role models are his
parents because they had the biggest influence on his life. ‘They took care of
not only my siblings and I, but also my cousins, grandmother and their own
siblings,’ he says. ‘They taught me spiritual values from infancy – those
values have brought me this far in life’. He’s most proud of the achievement of
graduating from university while being Namibia’s top male international model.
Luis entered Big Brother Hotshots because Namibia has
never been represented by anyone from the Okavango region before. ‘I’d be
grateful to tell my story to Africa – hopefully it inspires many others with a
similar past,’ he says. He’s excited to have the whole continent watching him
andIf he wins the grand prize, Luis will build a film and television studio in
Namibia.
Botswana
Goitse
Age: 22
Bachelor of Fine Arts theatre
student Goitse hails from Mahalapye in Botswana. ‘Home, Sweet Home’ is her
favourite place – ‘the comfort, a home-cooked meal and my family just make it
my favourite’, she says.
She says the best thing about
Africa is its history: ‘it’s so rich with history of what our forefathers have
gone through’. South Africa is her favourite place outside of Botswana because
she has ‘met great people there who have become family. They also have a range
of interesting official languages’, which are similar to those in Botswana.
Goitse says she entered Big Brother Hotshots for the adventure.
‘People from different countries in Africa, all under one roof, no contact with
the outside world in any way? Now that’s amazing!’ she says. In her quest for
the prize, she won’t pretend to be someone she’s not and if she wins, she’ll
use the money to open a dance studio. ‘That will be a dream come true,’ she
says. ‘I haven’t decided on what else’.
She says her mom is her role
model – ‘she’s a fighter and a survivor. She’s been through a lot of hardships,
but she stands tall and strong. She always pushed me to be the best I can be,
no matter how challenging it can get’.
Goitse describes herself as
‘carefree, free-spirited, fun, energetic and motivated’.
Uganda
Esther
Age: 23
Pint-sized student Esther
hails from Uganda’sNsambya. She says she entered Big Brother Hotshots to connect with people from different
countries, and to help her expose her talents, something she sees as ‘a very
big inspiration’. She’s looking forward to giving Africa the chance to see her ‘true
self’ and describes herself as ‘meek, bubbly, creative, truthful and loving’.
Esther likes the fact that she’s ‘bubbly, friendly and outgoing’.
Her favourite foods are
mashed potato and chicken tikka masala, her favourite book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad
and her favourite musician, Rihanna. She likes The Wendy Williams Show and her
favourite actress is Zoe Saldanha. Esther says that Jinja is her favourite
place in Uganda, which she describes as ‘the pearl of Africa’. Outside of her
home country, she sees California as ‘the place of dreams and fun’.
The most influential person
in Esther’s life is her brother Fred, because ‘he has been there for me and he
always will be’.
Esther promises viewers
‘unique skills, entertainment and being myself always’. If she wins, she plans
to invest some of the money, donate some to charity and support her family and
career.
Tanzania
Idris
Age: 21
Idris is a photographer from
Arusha in Tanzania. His favourite books are ‘anything by Dan Brown’ and he
enjoys watching The Colbert Report, Drunk History, The Daily Show and The Ellen
Degeneres Show on TV. His musical tastes are quite varied: Chris Brown, Michael
Jackson, Usher, Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith, Lana Del Ray and Nina Simone are his
favourites.
Idris says he doesn’t have
one specific role model, choosing instead to take the best from every
successful person he meets. That said, his Mom has influenced his life most.
He’s most proud of the respect he’s earned by showcasing his skill and
creativity in photography.
He was inspired to enter Big Brother Hotshots because he wants to
inspire people and make a name for myself in the process,’ he says. He feels
‘thrilled, excited and accomplished, totally special’ that the continent will
be watching him on the show and describes himself as ‘smart, charming, funny, flirty
and creative’.
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