YNaija2017Review: #BAAD2017, #EndSARS, Mr Eazi… These 10 stories/hashtags broke the Internet

The internet loves a good buzz. Something to rally round or be outraged about, it doesn’t matter, as long as we can all converge on a similar hashtag. This year had a list of those moments. They include a fairytale wedding, an over the top chef and a campaign to put the police in check.

We bring you 10 of the biggest. In ascending order.

  1. Anthony Joshua, son of the soil

The whole world watched when son of the soil, Anthony Joshua in ten slow building rounds, technically knocked out Carlos Takam to clinch his fourth world title defense at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, England. It wasn’t the first time Joshua would send Nigerians of all walks of life to the Internet swelling with pride about his accomplishments. In April, he floored former World Heavyweight Champion, Wladimir Klitschko, in the 11th round, as 90,000 fans looked on in awe. A government delegation was soon dispatched to commiserate with Joshua who wears the UK colours.

  1. #PassTheSaltBae

In 2017, Nusret Gokce, a Turkish Chef won the internet with his peculiar and amusing style of sprinkling of spices on the steaks he prepares. Gokce’s habit of immaculately adding the spices earned him the sobriquet #PassTheSaltBae and his image became the generator for countless memes and GIFS. It was reported that he eventually had the pleasure of preparing a meal for Oscar winner, Leonardo Dicaprio. The places your work can take you.

  1. Richard Quest in Nigeria

CNN anchor, Richard Quest was in Nigeria for a special edition taping of his Quest Means Business show and from the moment he landed, tongues began wagging. Was he being paid by the government to launder the country’s image? Would he embarrass us? Would Nigeria welcome an openly gay man? Quest seemed to be having the time of his life, as his short but impactful stay consisted of meetings with young professionals, business titans, uncovering Oshodi, sparring with the formidable Nike Ogunlesi, rekindling the Jollof wars and taking loads and loads of selfies.

  1. Mr Eazi is the most hated artiste on Twitter

Everyone loved Tosin Ajibade, the game-changing pop star known by the moniker, Mr Eazi, until he took it upon himself to blow all of the goodwill he had amassed in the span of his career with a series of indelicate statements. Early in the year, on Twitter, Mr Eazi gave credit to the Ghanaian music scene for overwhelmingly influencing present day Nigerian sound. He was promptly dragged back and forth and you would think that he would have learnt his lesson. Months later and Mr Eazi was a trending topic on Twitter once again for proclaiming himself the harbinger of Ghanaian colloquialisms that are all the rage right now. Mr Eazi made these claims as a guest on Reggae Recipe, a show on UK online radio, Capital Xtra.

  1. Evans gets his reckoning

For years, a sinister figure operated with impunity from his corner of the underworld, kidnapping wealthy persons – mostly of southeastern origin – and obtaining obscene sums of money in ransom demands. It was a fast track to a lavish lifestyle and Chukwudumeje ‘Evans’ Onwuamadike, as he would come to be known as, lived in opulence, until this June when a crack team of anti-kidnapping officers led by the formidable Abba Kyari apprehended him at his home in Magodo. The succeeding drama that followed, including a comical sideshow involving Evan’s wife, kept social media busy.

  1. #BBNaija

Whenever Big Brother comes to town, the entire country surrenders to the wave. This year was no different as MNet decided to revive the countrywide franchise that took place last in 2007. As usual, Big Brother Naija birthed multiple hashtags, trending topics and water cooler moments. From the decision to stage the show in South Africa, to the controversial housemates (Tboss, Thin Tall Tony) and every minute detail in between, Big Brother Naija kept Nigerians busy, and the internet buzzing for the entirety of its run.

  1. #EndSARS

After suffering years of dehumanising and degrading treatment from the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), an elite unit of the Nigerian Police Force set up to combat the country’s crime rate, Nigerians decided they had had enough. Buoyed by the #MeToo movement sweeping the world, the #EndSARS materialised, with people speaking out on their gruesome experiences while calling on the government to do away with the unit all together. The IGP has announced reforms but Nigerians are pushing for a total disbandment.

  1. #BAAD2017

The wedding of the year, maybe of the decade started with the social media announcement that Banky W and Adesua Etomi, who both played lovers in Nollywood’s most profitable film, The Wedding Party, were actually a real-life couple. The internet went on a meltdown as they both decided to come public with their romance via sweetly worded messages. All of this was merely a primer for the wedding which took place in November and shut down social media with the sheer wattage of both stars involved, the celebrity guests, their choice of outfits, the conspicuous absences, and the morning after slip. #BAAD kept us hugely entertained.

  1. Biafra at 50

This year marked the 50th anniversary of Nigeria’s brutal civil war. The wounds have yet to heal and it was only natural that all of the talk around social media during the period would be centred around this dark, troubled piece of Nigerian history. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, in his capacity as Acting President at the time, took the unprecedented step of advocating for dialogue and reflection by delivering the keynote speech at a Biafra forum. This was at a time when the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) led by Nnamdi Kanu were pushing vociferously for secession. The media did a commendable job-locally and internationally – of keeping the civil war in public glare.

  1. Hallelujah Challenge

For the thirty days of June, singer and minister, Nathaniel Bassey started the #OneHourMidnightHallelujahChallenge, a month-long religious challenge that asked Christians to congregate via social media streaming platforms like Facebook Live and Instagram Live, worshipping along as Bassey and his band prayed, sang and shared testimonies. An estimated 3 million people across the globe tuned in to worship with Bassey during the ‘Hallelujah’ Challenge. Bassey was able to also take the experience offline, having a worship event in Lagos.


The writer tweets from @drwill20

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

cool good eh love2 cute confused notgood numb disgusting fail