TheCable

The final participants of the Big brother Africa Hotshots have been revealed and so far, only one Nigerian is in the mix.

She says she is friendly but can also be annoying and intends to see how far she can go with relationships while in the house. We think time will tell.

Malawi

Mr 265

TV presenter, Mr 265 is 23, single and currently studying Purchasing and Supply Management. He entered Big Brother Hotshots because when he used to watch it, he always thought he could win it.

“It’s easy to criticise people on different things, especially when you don’t know how it’s like being in their shoes. I have watched Big Brother for a while and I have always told myself I can win the show, I can do better, but I don’t know what really goes on. So I have given myself a challenge to now step into the shoes I wasn’t wearing before, and to see how I will walk with them,”

Mr 265’s favourite food is crispy fried chicken, his favourite book Screw It, Let’s Do It and his favourite singer, P.Square. He enjoys watching, CSI Miami, Big Brother Africa and Suits on the small screen, and 300, The Bourne Identity, The Dark Knight Rises and The Italian Job on the big screen. His favourite actors are Dwayne Johnson, Vin Diesel and Robert Downey Jnr.

He won’t pretend to be someone he’s not, to win the grand prize.

“It’s very disappointing to get booted out and know that you weren’t your real self. I would rather lose the money at the expense of being myself. Then I can say I tried my level best. Everybody has his own morals,” he said.

Asked about his feelings on knowing that the continent’s eyes would be glued to their screens 24/7, he says he feels no pressure.

“Pressure is and will be there for the first few days. I am taking it like a new job,” he says.

He says that the best thing about Africa is that it’s very rich in natural resources, with Mangochi as his favourite place. Further afield, his favourite place is the USA, because “it’s a big country and has a mixture of different people with different cultural backgrounds. Raw talent is an asset”.

Mozambique

Mira

Mozambican student intern, Mira, likes to eat pap and beef stew, the music of Sia and Miley Cyrus and watching Lost and Covert Affairs.

Her favourite book is Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers and her favourite actor is Adam Sandler because “I trust him to get a chuckle out of me”.

She has one older sister, and a younger brother and sister.

Her favourite place in Mozambique is Maragra. She says the best thing about Africa is that “it’s the Motherland – you feel the warmth here”.

Her favourite faraway place is the United States, because she loves the diversity there.

If she wins the grand prize, the 21-year old says she’ll build her parents a retirement home, open a soup kitchen and shelter in the heart of Maputo and start a business to create more employment opportunities.

She describes herself as “fun, honest, reliable, fair and considerate” and says that she’s “laid-back and easy to talk to”.

She enjoys people who are considerate, honest, reliable, fun and opinionated, but doesn’t like rude and judgemental people.

Zambia

Macky2

Hip hop musician Macky2, 29, is from Luanshya in Zambia. His favourite book is 48 Laws of Power and his top TV shows are Suits, Crisis, Game of Thrones and Idols SA. His favourite actor is Denzel Washington, because he’s able to play so many characters and bring each one to life.

Jay-Z is both his favourite musician and his role model – the latter because “he’s one of the most successful entertainers of our generation”. His father has also played a huge role in Macky2’s life.

He entered Big Brother Hotshots because he believes that, “people naturally fall in love with my personality, so I know I stand a chance of winning that grand prize and changing my life”.

Macky2 says he won’t lose himself and what he believes in, along the way.

Describing himself as “a natural entertainer who’s lovable”, he says he always pushed himself and is never discouraged by setbacks.

“I’m confident and I truly believe I can do anything I set my mind to.”

Nigeria

Lily

Known as Sexy Lily to her friends, 22-year-old Lillian entered Big Brother Hotshots for “the platform it provides, 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 she explains is about “helping upcoming talent”.

Lilian’s favourite foods are rice and plantain and she enjoys watching Baggage on TV and listening to 2Face Idibia. Her favourite movies include Think Like A Man, Friends With Benefits and Twelve Years A Slave. Her favourite actor is Angelina Jolie.

Her favourite place in Nigeria is Lagos, and is proud of Africa for the diverse cultures. She’d also like to visit Hollywood for the many career opportunities there. Lillian looks up to Oprah Winfrey and her mother for their strength.

She says her mother inspired her “because she has always believed in me and encouraged me to follow my dreams”.

She describes herself as “spontaneous and confident” and says her best assets are that she’s ambitious, a good listener, competitive and original.

Sexy Lily prefers chilling with the boys. She says housemates will like her because she’s very friendly and knows how to make people happy. She also says she can be very annoying too.

Ghana

M’am Bea

M’am Bea, 25, has a diploma in Management Finance.

Her favourite foods are yam and nkontomere stew, fufu, palm nut soup and jollof rice. She likes music by Sarkodie, Mafikizolo 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 colour and we are not ashamed to exhibit that”.

Outside of her home country, she loves South Africa because she believes, “it offers opportunities for young people to study and become great people in the world”.

Her role model is her mum, because “she is strong, humble, God-fearing and puts her family first”.

She entered Big Brother Hotshots because of her talent and “the unity of all African countries coming together as one to learn and share”.

She 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 and humble self-starter”, M’am Bea says that viewers can expect her “true self, fashion sense, sense of humour, cooking skills, and intelligence” to shine through on screen.

The bubbly and patient Ghanaian lass is into cooking and sketching and really loves dressing up. She says the housemates will definitely love her cooking skills and friendliness.

Namibia

Luis

Luis, 23, has a B. Tech in Financial Information and loves 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 favourite film is Ali.

Luis says he loves the river beds in his home town of Rundu, Namibia, “where the mighty Okavango Delta flows into the ocean”.

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 me, but also my cousins, grandmother and their own siblings,” he says.

He’s most proud 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,” he says.

He’s excited to have the whole continent watching him. If he wins the grand prize, Luis will build a film and television studio in Namibia.

The Namibian has a six pack, is fashionable and in with the trends. He says he knows exactly when to wear his vests and when to suit up. His phobia include needles, snakes and gaining weight.