Trenddup Awards: First Time Winners JayOnAir, Nons Miraj, Folagade Banks, Tomike, Others Shine

Trenddup Awards: First Time Winners JayOnAir, Nons Miraj, Folagade Banks, Tomike, Others Shine

  • The 5th edition of the Trendupp Awards was recently held, and it was truly a night of celebrating the biggest stars in the media space
  • The event was star-studded, with every guest bringing their A-game and looking their absolute best
  • Media personalities like Tomike, Folagade Banks, Veekee James, and many others were among the stars who won big

The 5th Edition of Trendupp Awards, Africa’s pioneer awards for Influencers and Content Creators, was a dazzling ceremony that celebrated the creative brilliance shaping Africa’s digital future, on Sunday, July 13th, at the Balmoral Hall, Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos.

This year’s edition, themed “Still Explosive,” marked a significant milestone - five years of rewarding audacity, consistency, and creativity in the ever-evolving digital space. The awards honoured 17 outstanding winners across categories including content, collaboration, comedy, tech, advocacy, and the highly coveted Force of Influence titles.

Returning as host, media personality and content queen KieKie led the night from unforgettable red carpet moments, electric performances, to heartfelt speeches that captured the spirit of Africa’s vibrant creator economy.

Folagade, Tomike, Peller, other win bug at 2025 Trendupp Awards.
Trenddup Awards trends as stars win big at explosive night. Credit: @trenduppwards
Source: Instagram

Speaking on the impact of this year’s awards, Tiwalola “TJ” Olanubi, Founder/CEO of Trendupp Africa, shared:

“What started five years ago as an audacious idea has now evolved into a Pan-African movement. ‘Still Explosive’ wasn’t just a theme, it’s the mantra. This year’s winners are not only Influencers and Content Creators, they’re culture shapers."
"They’re shifting narratives, building communities, and moving the continent forward with consistency and engagement through every creative content. This isn’t the future of influence, this is the now.”

Over 300,000 public nominations were submitted across the 17 award categories. Following the nomination phase, a jury made up of respected industry leading voices, including Sam Onyemelukwe, Iyabo Ojo, Denrele Edun, Azuka Ogujiuba, Ameyaw Debrah, TheVisualAdvocate (Ayotunde Ishola) and Kelechi Amadi-Obi, carefully evaluated 104 finalists based on three key criteria: Creativity, Engagement, and Consistency.

Meet The Winners for Trendupp Awards 2025:

The Force of Comedy Skits: Influencers and Content Creators who commanded the highest engagement & vitality power in the comedy niche between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Folagade Banks

The Force of Creative Art (Endowed by Trace): Influencers and content creators who commanded the highest engagement & vitality power in the art niches such as painting/drawing, writing, video content production and dancing etc between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @HAUWA

The Force of Food Content: Influencers and Content Creators who have been able to infuse creativity in their content, thus commanding engagement in the food niche between March 2024 – March 2025

Winner: @OpeyemiFamakin

The Force of Lifestyle Content (Endowed by Tramango): Influencers and content creators who commanded the highest engagement & vitality power in lifestyle niches such as beauty, travel and fashion between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Liquorose

The Force of Online Sensation: Individuals that have found a way to break through the noise and commanded attention in the social media space between March 2024 – March 2025. Winner: @JayOnAir

The Force of Instagram: Influencers and Content creators with the most engaging content & virality power on Instagram between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @TomikeAdeoye

The Force of Social Good: Influencers and content creators who clamoured/spoke up for the social good of the community/country between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @KingMitchy

The Force of Tech Content: Influencers and content creators who have found a way to use content in communicating technological leaps and information in easily digestible and laudable ways between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @ValourReviews

The Force of TikTok: Influencers and Content creators that commanded the highest engagement & virality power on TikTok between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Crispdal

Vekee James, Folagade, Tomike, Peller, other win bug at 2025 Trendupp Awards.
Trenddup Awards trends as stars win big at explosive night. Credit: @trenduppwards
Source: Instagram

The Force of X (Twitter): Influencers and Content Creators that dominated the Twitter platform with meaningful/impactful conversations and threads between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Pooja

The Force of Virality: Influencer or Content creator who mastered the art of making lasting impressions, with content that commands a high number of reposts, likes, shares and talkability between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Peller089 X @Jadrolita

The Force of Collaboration (Endowed BY DottsMediaHouse): Brands that strategically identify and leverage impactful partnerships with content creators/Influencers between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Bet9ja

The Force of YouTube: Influencers and Content creators that commanded the highest engagement & virality power on YouTube between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Nons_Miraj

Emerging Force (Endowed by Sycamore): Content creators and Influencers who are rated as the next big deal in social media between March 2024 - March 2025.

Winner: @SamuelBanks21

Force of the Pod: Influencers and Content creators who use podcasts as a medium of education, engagement, sensation and impact between March 2024 – March 2025.

Winner: @Isbae_U (Curiosity Made Me Ask Podcast)

The Force of Influence (Nigeria): Influencer and Content creator who commanded the highest influence in the Nigerian social media space between March 2024 - March 2025.

Winner: @VeekeeJames

The Force of Influence (Regional): Influencers and Content creators who commanded regional influence in other African countries (asides Nigeria) between March 2024 - March 2025.

Winner: @KhosiTwala

2025 Trendupp Awards: Priscilla Ojo, Peller, Regina Daniels make list

Legit.ng previously reported that Trendupp Awards is an initiative of Trendupp Africa, a platform where creatives receive support and build direct relationships with their fans across Africa.

This fifth edition is presented by Trendupp Africa in association with DottsMediaHouse (Africa’s foremost media agency for leading brands across Africa).

The award is proudly supported by Pepsi, Sycamore, Tramango, MTVBase, Africa Magic, POPCentral TV, CoolFM, Brand Communicator, Trace TV, Ameyaw Debrah, TheCable, MediaRoomHub, BlackDrum TV and Legit NG.

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Eniola Lasaki avatar

Eniola Lasaki (Entertainment Editor) Lasaki Fauziat Eniola is an Entertainment Editor at Legit.ng. She is a graduate of Horticulture, FUNAAB (2017). Eniola has over four years of professional experience in Entertainment/pop culture/music writing/reporting. Before Legit, she worked in reputable media houses such as TooXclusive Digital, GistReel, WetalkSound, and Kraks Media. She has also pursued Digital Marketing, Copywriting, and Corporate Communication courses. Email: eniola.lasaki@corp.legit.ng