How Kenyan Woman's Feature In Viral Advert Led To Times Square Offer [PHOTO]

An online lifestyle and fashion creator could turn out to be the next surprise success story in the Generation Z era in Kenya when her post celebrating being featured in a roadside advert drew the attention of the United States (US) on Saturday, March 18.

Nyokabi Mukora, who boasts of an active presence on Instagram and TikTok (over 11,700 followers on the former and over 2,188 followers on the latter), expressed her excitement on Thursday, March 16 when she was featured in the advert involving one of the latest smartphones in the Kenyan market.

With a beautiful smile, she was captured demonstrating how to take a selfie with the new phone, while captioning "I did it! I'm on a billboard!"

Collage of Nyokabi Mukora on a billboard and award-winning US journalist Madison Jaye. /TWITTER.NYOKABI MUKORA/INSTAGRAM.MADISON JAYE

Despite the wave of congratulatory messages she received from Kenyans On Twitter (KOT), the platform she had shared it on, one user named Lee Russian commented "That's a fence" in an apparent effort to water down her success.

Viral Tea later discovered that the advert was a wall wrap, a form of advertising hoarding which can be several meters in length, usually around or along buildings or walls, which creates a lot of room for advertising content to build awareness. Their huge size naturally attracts the attention of anyone passing by.

Just like iconic billboards and backlit, hoardings and wall wraps gives customers great exposure that can help in reaching a very large audience segment for campaigns like brand awareness, new product awareness and promotions.

Still, Lee Russian's comment drew the attention of Madison Jaye, a nine-time award-winning journalist and media personality based in New York City, USA, who responded by offering Mukora an offer that could change her life.

"I really don’t like bullies. Hi Nyokabi Mukora. I’m a partner in Billboards in Times Square and 1,500 across America.

"With permission from the owner of the image, I’d like to put you on a billboard in New York City FREE of charge. I'm going to follow and DM you now," she wrote, with Mukora yet to offer an update on the lucrative offer by the time of publication.

As proof of her work, she replied with a 2018 tweet posing next to her self-titled podcast The Madison Jaye Show which was being advertised on a billboard in Times Square.

Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighbourhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Brightly lit at all hours by numerous digital billboards and advertisements as well as businesses offering 24/7 service, Times Square is sometimes referred to as "the Crossroads of the World"," the Center of the Universe", "the heart of the Great White Way", “the Center of the Entertainment Universe” and "the heart of the world".

As one of the world's busiest pedestrian areas, it is also the hub of the Broadway Theater District and a major centre of the world's entertainment industry.

Times Square is one of the world's most visited tourist attractions, drawing an estimated 50 million visitors annually. Approximately 330,000 people pass through Times Square daily, many of them tourists, while over 460,000 pedestrians walk through Times Square on its busiest days.

Among Kenyans who have been featured on Times Square billboards include 20-year-old award-winning Kenyan singer Nikita Kering, after Spotify announced Nikita as the EQUAL Ambassador for November 2022, joining the group of featured female artistes from the continent including Muthoni Drummer Queen and Sylvia Ssaru.

Kenyan-born photojournalist Polly Irungu, who works as the first photo editor for the office of US Vice President, Kamala Harris, also had her photography works in 2020 featured on the US Times Square billboards in New York.

Others include singer Bahati's album, 'Love like this' album poster and Khaligraph Jones's 6th studio album, Invisible Currency

A Times Square billboard cost for a day can start at $5,000 (Ksh635,963) and go up to well over $50,000 (Ksh6,359,630). Moreover, it can cost up to $3 million (Ksh381,577,800) per month to advertise on Time Square’s largest billboard.

Nikita Kering on a Times Square billboard. /FILE