“Big Brother Nailla's ratings are compared to the American Super Bowl, which tells a lot,” says Busola Tejumora, the most watched show on African television. Yes, it says a lot.
Her work as an executive head of MultiChoice Nigeria Limited's content and West African channels not only tells stories of real Nigeria and thus Africa, but also has a lot of good news in exporting them to viewers around the world.
Brought. In an insightful conversation with DOWNTOWN editor Onah Nwachukwu, Dr. Tejumola The role of pay-TV giants to boost the entertainment industry by making West African content, especially Nigerian content, easily accessible on the continent and around the world.
Dr Busola Tejumola’s educational background indicates her professional career’s thorough foundation.
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Having earned her Bachelor’s degree at the University of Ibadan, she got her Master’s from the University of Surrey before earning herself a doctorate, PhD, from Brunel University in London.
This was at the same time that she began her career at MultiChoice. She talks about how she got the job. “I got a call from MultiChoice; that’s how I got in.
They had a gap and a new role: Consumer Insights Manager, and I interviewed for it. I’ve always been curious and always loved data. And based on my education history, and at the time I had started my PhD, I was already research-based.”
Now the Executive Head of Content And Channels West Africa, Tejumola’s influence across the West African channels on various MultiChoice platforms cannot be overstated. Her stamp of approval, which usually comes on the back of extensive research, is needed for what we watch on all seven Africa Magic channels dedicated to the Nigerian film industry and two Akwaba channels for Ghanaians.
She describes her role in-depth, “the role is really driving the content strategy for Nigeria and the original channels in Ghana. By content strategy, I mean, what kind of content are we creating?
We rely heavily on data, and invest heavily in research and development, so based on our data, we have the trends and insights; we know what people watch, when they watch it and why they watch it because we commission research as well.
What kind of content people like, what we have, how it’s performing, what we don’t have and how it can potentially perform. So it’s really that fine art of balancing what data says, what we have and what we should potentially put on the platform–DStv and GOtv.
It all fits into that one bucket of who is our target audience, what is their socioeconomic class, how do we reach them, how do we address them, and what kind of content would they like to watch?
What kind of content do we need to produce or acquire across our seven Africa Magic channels and two Akwaba channels. You do know that we target the urban contemporary.
Still, we are also very intentional about the hyper-local, which is the content from the regions, and that explains having three language channels that cater to some of those regions.
But we know that we cannot commission or produce all the content that exists, so we also make sure that we partner with producers in the creative industry, which again drives what we do in the industry.
Asides from producing and acquiring already produced content, we are also an aggregator on a broader scheme. Meaning we also onboard existing third-party TV channels that come onto the platform to help us fill those gaps and help us address the different segments we have identified through our research
The role is taking a holistic view at the business, the content that drives the business, and how we just make sure that we continue to grow that.”
Dr Tejumola’s role as an African story amplifier has been quite impactful.
Her rise through the ranks at MultiChoice is nothing short of impressive too. What has the journey been like for her so far, one might ask?
“It has been an interesting journey, one of growth, self-discovery, and just really expanding my capacity—as a person and in my skill sets and experience.
Consumer insights is basically research, finding the insights in the market, how they tie into the business, the opportunities, the gaps in the market as a whole, and how we as a business could maximise some of these opportunities.
But as time went on, it became very evident that there were some emerging themes that we weren’t necessarily paying attention to in the market, and somehow, that took me into the strategy room.
And so, from the consumer insights, I became head of strategy, which was basically running with the strategy for Nigeria, making sure that certain projects that did not necessarily fit within any unit didn’t fall through the cracks. An example is what we now know as pop-up channels or holiday channels.
We started with Carnival Calabar, and before we knew it, we found that a lot was going on in Nigeria that people didn’t see except for people who physically attended.
So it’s been a great journey of showcasing what Nigeria has in terms of content, culture and talent because, really, if we don’t put this on TV, it is difficult to find its way to the mainstream.”
When asked about some of the traits and strategies that have helped her through her illustrious career, she revealed, “One is mentorship
I have a few mentors who themselves are really strong in their fields.
Everyone needs some kind of guidance in their career. I read a lot, so also reading has helped. But it also starts with just aligning my personal values with that of MultiChoice. I think that’s one of the reasons I even joined the company in the first place; it was because I saw that the values of MultiChoice and mine aligned.
So it’s one just always dreaming. I always tell the people I mentor that everyone’s dreams are valid. However, a dream without an execution plan or knowledge remains what it is, a dream. So yes, I’m a big dreamer and risk-taker. Everything is impossible until it’s done; that is my mantra. Those three things have really helped and have shaped me in my growth.
My quest for knowledge, mentorship, and just dreaming of what I want to do and how to get there.”
