According to Youtube CEO Susan Wojcicki, the SubSaharan African Youtube Award is Google’s way of celebrating African creators.
The nominees for the SubSaharan African Youtube Awards were selected based on the number of subscribers. They had to have at least 50,000 subscribers while also being based in at least one of the eight countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The eight countries selected were: Tanzania, Ghana, Uganda, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Nigeria and Senegal. Most of the selected channels had over 100,000 subscribers.
Wojcicki said:
“The YouTube Awards recognizes the talent and creativity of the YouTube community while serving as a platform that shares African creativity with the rest of the world.
“With our first-ever YouTube Africa Awards, we hope to celebrate incredible achievements like that of Olympic medalist Julius Yego, while demonstrating our long-term commitment to the continent. “
Mr. Teju Ajani of YouTube Partnerships, SSA, praised the opportunities YouTube is offering, especially to African developers.
He said:
“Creatives across Africa are using YouTube to find their voice, connect with audiences around the world and build channels while generating revenue from it.
“The number of hours of video content uploaded in Africa has doubled in the last two years and the audience has grown with it.
“The time on mobile phones is growing by 120 percent every year.”
He set an example in Hakima Raymond teaching himself how to conduct an orchestra using YouTube videos, which led to international fame on the show An African City.
He also showed appreciation for others such as Nigeria’s Mark Angel comedy starring six-year-old Emmanuella Samuel, Nigeria’s television network, South African vlogger Suzelle DIY and South African music channel Yellow Brick Cinema.
The SubSaharan African Youtube Awards were given to 25 people/brands in 23 categories, see the winners below.
Channels – channels television
Channels Television is one of the best television channels in Nigeria. His YouTube channel has over 350,000 subscribers.
Comedy – Kansiime Anne
Born on April 13, 1987, Kansiime is one of the greatest comedians in Uganda. She is also a TV presenter, actress and author. Her YouTube channel has more than 400,000 subscribers and she has had millions of views on her videos.
Comic – Ramscomics / Supastrikas
With over 125,000 subscribers on Youtube, this is a South African animation production house that is very good when it comes to socio-political content that is funny.
Education – Retutpro – Photography and Photoshop Tutorials
This channel is dedicated to teaching various aspects of photography, including Photoshop effects and techniques, explanations of light talk/setups and retouching techniques, and many others. The channel has over 100,000 subscribers.
Entertainment – NdaniTV
This is a channel with over a hundred thousand subscribers. It covers African entertainment, fashion, sports and much more.
Fitness – Six Pack Factory
This is a very popular fitness channel with over 1.2 million followers. It has many videos that have accumulated millions of views.
Games – Slushy AJ
Slushy AJ is a South African gaming channel that posts about various games. It has over 60 thousand subscribers.
Makeup and Fashion – Kangai Mwiti
Kangai Mwiti is a makeup and fashion channel that offers tutorials, tips and tricks to over 100,000 subscribers. Videos on this channel have gotten millions of views.
Music – Yellow Brick Cinema
This is a music channel with over 2 million subscribers. It shares relaxation, sleep, meditation and other music of the kind. Overall, this channel reaches almost a billion.
News and Politics – Millard Ayo
This channel started in 2012 and since then has received almost half a billion views.
Nonprofit – Jim Nduruchi
Jim Nduruchi is a channel focused on improving health through community service. It educates and helps people. The ultimate goal is to destroy jiggers.
People and Blogs – Suzelle DIY
If you’re interested in making things yourself, Suzelle is all about DIY. With over 80 videos, it has over 100,000 subscribers.
Pets and Animals – Earth Touch
What this channel is about is the planet and everything that goes with it, as well as animals. It has over 200 thousand subscribers.
Other winners of the first SubSahran African Youtube Awards:
Top Subscribed Creator in Uganda – Kansiime Anne
Top Subscribed Creator in Ghana – OfficialSarkodie
Top Subscribed Creator in Kenya – Churchill Show
Top Subscribed Creator in Nigeria – Mark Angel Comedy
Top Subscribed Creator in Senegal – Prince Arts
Top Subscribed Creator in South Africa – Yellow Brick Cinema
Top Subscribed Creator in Tanzania – DiamondPlatnumz
Top Subscribed Creator in Zimbabwe – Mufti Menk
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Ghanaian Producer
The Best Subscribed Nollywood Channel Award was presented to Ibaka TV. Yellow Brick Cinema was also awarded a Youtube Gold Play Button for its landmark 1 million subscribers.