Leveraging Pop Culture for Positive Behavioural Change Among Youths
After joining the ranks of the MTV Staying Alive Foundation in 2017 as the marketing and partnerships manager, Anita Adesiyan, a skilled PR consultant, swiftly ascended to the position of Country Manager by 2020. In her current capacity, she is laser-focused on securing strategic partnerships to disseminate knowledge about sexual reproductive health and HIV prevention among young people. MTV Shuga, an influential television series that fearlessly tackles the intricate challenges faced by the youth, stands as a prominent platform in this pursuit. From matters of the heart to overall well-being, the show fearlessly navigates the multifaceted realities of young individuals. With the recent launch of its fifth season, featuring a diverse ensemble of established and emerging actors, Vanessa Obioha engages Adesiyan in an insightful conversation, delving into the foundation’s innovative methods of leveraging storytelling, music, and pop culture to achieve its mission.
The MTV Staying Alive Foundation is big on partnerships, particularly with each season of MTV Shuga. What factors are considered when making these partnerships, and what is their overall impact on the programme?
We call our content a gold standard model, where we use storytelling to educate young people about their sexual and reproductive health and provide a pathway where they can get counselling and treatment. To do that, we have to collaborate with partners whose objectives align with the objectives of MTV Shuga, such as educating young people about sexual and reproductive health, mental health, gender-based violence, and gender equity. We achieve this by using MTV Shuga as an opportunity to tell stories and educate young people while using music and pop culture to entertain them and pull them in. This season, the objectives for the campaign with Unitaid, the Global Innovation Fund, and Paramount were centred around HIV self-testing, gender equity and gender-based violence, and COVID-19, respectively. We are working with the Nigerian government and Unitaid to raise awareness about HIV self-testing kits and connect individuals to appropriate counselling and treatment services.
Additionally, we launched the Talent Accelerator Programme (TAP) in partnership with the Global Innovation Fund, empowering young women and fostering inclusivity in the creative industry in Nigeria. Through TAP and our collaboration with 1Pod Pictures, a female-led production company, we prioritise mentorship and workshops to guide aspiring female creatives towards success. At the end of the day, the percentage of female workers in the season was about 80%. Our commitment to empowering women extends both on and off the show.
With your use of music and pop culture to engage young audiences, how do you now measure and evaluate the social impacts of these initiatives?
We have a good relationship with MTV Base, a leading music and pop culture channel that young people love. We use the platform to push our content. That way, we can also connect with different talents and influencers who can use music and pop culture to reach out to young people. For this new season, we worked with Chocolate City to put together this season’s title soundtrack, and young talents like Blaqbones, who relate with our audience, were also featured, as was, of course, an industry giant like MI. We are very intentional with our content, exploring the best ways to reach and educate our audience.
In terms of evaluations, we always commission independent organisations to carry out evaluations for the foundation. We usually break down these evaluation processes into three milestones: the baseline, the midline, and the end line. At the baseline, we ask questions about the sexual health issues we tend to address in the show to get their initial thoughts. It could be just getting their views on family planning or gender-based violence. In the middle of the campaign, we do another evaluation where we ask for lessons learned after the content is out there. And then, at the end line, when they have seen the content and probably reached out to seek help, we do a final round of questions where we ask them about the campaign’s impact from the beginning so far. How has your life changed? Have you learned more things? What has the show taught you to do? Has it allowed you to stand up for yourself and seek support or counselling regarding your sexual reproductive health? What has it done for you?
So far, we have gotten very positive and impressive results working with different organisations. For example, the World Bank team that did the evaluations for seasons one and two had a randomised control trial for about 5000 people, and some of the results that they found were that the number of people who had tested positive for HIV had doubled since the time we reached out and got them to see the content. Also, the rates of chlamydia infections were halved. In the other evaluation done by Tulane University for the last two seasons, we realised that more young women are more open, confident, and comfortable using different types of modern contraception. They are now open to talking to a guardian, a parent, or a loved one about their experiences, even experiences of sexual or physical violence from their partners, and seeking help. These kinds of evaluations help prove to us and the general public that our campaign is a behaviour change model for young people.
From your evaluation so far, have you noticed any significant shifts in your target audience?
Our key audience is centred around 16 to 24-year-olds. When conducting evaluations, we specifically focus on communicating with this demographic. Compared to the previous season in 2018, we have observed growth within our existing audience, allowing us to connect with a fresh wave of young people. And this is very evident in the storyline we had this season and in the calibre of the cast. Notably, there was a significant presence of young actors, including two individuals who rose to stardom after being discovered through public auditions. Their contributions have played a pivotal role in boosting our viewership.
Yes, we still have our existing audience, now older adults but still lovers of MTV Shuga. With this new season, we have successfully attracted a new cohort of audience members who are captivated by the content. They are discovering MTV Shuga for the first time and actively engaging with it.
Are there personal experiences from your encounters with these young people that tugged at your heart?
We have heard a number of heartbreaking stories from young people. And we’ve also tried to document the experiences. Aside from MTV Shuga, the TV drama, other elements form the entire campaign. From peer education, radio drama, complimentary content, documentaries, music, and partnerships. In season four, we had complimentary content, a documentary called MTV Shuga Young Moms, where we followed the lives of three young ladies who were 16 years old and pregnant. So we followed their journeys from when they notified their families up to their birth and also provided support until they had their babies. We collaborated with Hello Lagos under the Lagos State Ministry of Health. We walked with these girls throughout the pregnancy and spoke with their families so that they understood that it wasn’t the end of the world and that they could continue their education after childbirth. We’ve seen and heard some really sad stories, but with the support we can provide for them, they end up in a good place. We are able to bring the families closer so that there aren’t a lot of judgements, and they are well-informed on how to manage situations like this.
What are your takeaways from working with young people on such sensitive topics?
I have a background in PR, so coming into the MTV Staying Alive Foundation was a completely new experience because I had never worked in the nonprofit industry before. It is still an experience for me. But what it has done for me is make me more empathetic to the issues young people face nowadays. Sometimes you don’t have this information. It’s not easy to get access to this type of information. I learn new things every day. I’m not a doctor, but I now understand topics surrounding gender-based violence, HIV and AIDS, and gender equity. It is advisable to have an HIV test regularly, especially if you have multiple sex partners, and I also know it is not a death sentence. I have also acquired lifelong friendships and partnerships through liaising with different departments within the government and private organisations.
