A loud cheer erupted across Nigeria and beyond on Sunday night as Opeyemi “Imisi” Ayanwale was announced the winner of Big Brother Naija Season 10/10, a victory many have called the most emotional and deserved win in the show’s history.
For Imisi, the 23-year-old fashion designer and budding actor from Ibadan, the triumph marks the closing of a painful chapter and the beginning of a new story one that celebrates healing, courage, and authenticity.
Imisi’s rise to fame wasn’t built on glamour or gimmicks. It was built on truth.
From the early weeks of the show, she won viewers’ hearts with her honesty and willingness to show every side of herself joy, pain, strength, and vulnerability. Her storytelling moments, especially when she opened up about her childhood trauma, left audiences silent, reflective, and emotional.
She spoke of being sexually assaulted at 13, becoming pregnant, and being forced to abort, an ordeal that shaped her early life. She also revealed how she was abandoned by her family and spent part of her teenage years living inside a church storeroom.
“I didn’t come here for pity,” she said during one of her diary sessions. “I came here to heal and to remind someone out there that broken doesn’t mean finished.”
That sentence alone became one of the most replayed quotes of the season.
In a house known for alliances, drama, and calculated strategies, Imisi’s power was her realness.
She wasn’t afraid to cry, to forgive, or to confront. She cooked, encouraged, argued, and prayed and through it all, stayed grounded.
Fans described her as “the heart of the house.” She brought warmth where there was tension and empathy where there was chaos. Her laughter became a soundtrack to the season.
When she shared how she lost a pregnancy in a toxic relationship before joining the show, Nigerians saw not just a contestant, but a mirror of real-life struggles many endure silently.
“She made us feel seen,” one fan wrote on X. “Imisi is every woman who’s ever fought to smile again.”
As the lights dimmed and host Ebuka Obi-Uchendu held up the card announcing the winner, millions held their breath. When he called “Imisi!”, the studio erupted. The crowd screamed, housemates cried, and Imisi overwhelmed and trembling fell to her knees in gratitude.
Clutching her chest, she whispered, “Thank You, Jesus,” before breaking into tears.
Her first words as winner were simple yet profound: “To every girl who’s been told she’s too broken to shine, this light is for you.”
That line immediately went viral across social media, with hashtags #ImisiTheLight and #BBN10Winner trending nationwide.
Across Nigeria, the celebration was loud, heartfelt, and emotional.
“Imisi didn’t just play the game she healed a nation,” wrote a fan
“I cried real tears. She deserved this win more than anyone. She turned her pain into power,” said a fan on X
“Imisi’s story shows that no matter your beginning, your ending can be beautiful,” actress Funke Akindele posted on Instagram.
“This is what it means to be authentic. Nigerians saw themselves in her,” TV host Ebuka tweeted after the finale.
Celebrities, activists, and fans praised her for giving voice to trauma survivors and bringing humanity to a show often known for glitz and rivalry.
Imisi’s victory goes beyond entertainment. It has sparked wider conversations about mental health, resilience, and the everyday battles of young Nigerians.
Her openness about abuse and loss has pushed discussions about therapy, gender violence, and faith healing into mainstream spaces, especially among youth audiences who rarely engage with such issues.
A Lagos-based psychologist wrote, Imisi’s story is “a powerful reminder that vulnerability can inspire hope.”
“By sharing her pain on a national stage, she’s telling millions of Nigerians that it’s okay to ask for help and to heal out loud,”
Along with the ₦120 million grand prize and multiple endorsement deals already in the works, Imisi has promised to use her platform to create impact.
She announced plans to launch a foundation to support abuse survivors and young girls, provide mental health counseling, and offer fashion scholarships for underprivileged youths.“I don’t want fame to change me,” she said in her post-show interview. “I want fame to help me change lives.”
Industry watchers believe she has the potential to become one of the most influential reality TV stars of her generation combining creativity, advocacy, and authenticity.
In a nation grappling with unemployment, inflation, and social hardship, Imisi’s story offers something rare hope.
She represents every Nigerian who has been written off but refuses to give up. She is a reminder that broken pieces can still form a masterpiece.
From being a girl left alone in a church storeroom to standing on Africa’s biggest stage as a multimillionaire, Imisi’s life is proof that destiny can bloom from dirt.
As she held her winner’s plaque, tears streaming down her face, Imisi said softly: “I’m not just leaving with money. I’m leaving with peace.”
And that, perhaps, is her greatest prize of all.
She is not just Imisi, the BBNaija 10/10 winner. She is Imisi, the light proof that even the darkest stories can end in brilliance.
