Fish pie seller vs “I’m a Chosen”: Navigating the wild ride of social media fame

Hardly will you scroll past three posts on social media without seeing hot takes, videos or content around the Lord’s Chosen – The revivalist church is the hottest thing on the Nigerian internet right now, and it has unusual testimonies from its members to thank for that.

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One cannot say the exact day it all started, but it is not unconnected to an edited “AK-25” testimony clip of one of its female members that blew up on TikTok and spread like wildfire to other social media platforms.

“I’m a Chosen” trend took over from the fish pie seller, who became a viral sensation.
Photo Credit: @alax.evalsam, Facebook/Onyelike DarlingtonSource: TikTok

How Lord’s Chosen church went viral

In the edited clip released in the second week of September 2024, the female worshipper of The Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Movement (TLCCRM) church excitedly testified about how she disarmed four assailants of their weapons and made a gaffe by referring to the guns as “AK-25s” instead of AK-47s.

Days later, the church would clarify that the “AK-25” testimony clip was edited and that her testimony happened in her dream.

Lord’s Chosen releases full video below:

At this point, it was already late and gossip-thirsty netizens had run with the already viral edited narrative of an incredible real-life gun-disarming incident.

“I’m a Chosen” trend on Nigerian internet

As Lord’s Chosen faithfuls, apologists and non-members dissected and reviewed the “AK-25” testimony clip, other even more mind-boggling testimonies surfaced online.

There was one where a male Lord’s Chosen member testified about being lifted by a lion and another about “miracle money” falling out of the blue for him and his family to meet their needs.

These incredible testimonies shared on the church’s pulpits made the Pastor Muoka-led revivalist ministry a subject of caricature online.

It ignited the “I’m a Chosen” trend on social media. The trend involved people declaring or writing “I’m a Chosen” three times to force changes they desired, no matter how outrageous they seemed.

Memes and creators made content around it as they tried to milk the trend. Nigerian celebrities were not left out as they jumped on the trend and made posts rocking the Lord’s Chosen aprons.

An Imo businessman, Onyelike Darlington, went as far as kickstarting an online giveaway of N500k strictly for his church members – The Lord’s Chosen.

“Fish Pie” and Lord’s Chosen virality similarities

Sometime in August 2024, a young man, Alax Evalsam, became a viral sensation for selling fish pie in a unique way.

It all started with a video of him hawking on the street while screaming, “Fish pie…Na wa o.” His face and expression in the video were welcoming and radiated joy. That singular clip shot him into the limelight.

One of Alax’s clips below:

The short clip amassed over a million views on TikTok and spread across different social media platforms. Of course, celebrities and creators made the most of his virality by promising and offering him money.

Alax, the fish pie seller, caught the attention of the prestigious Eko Hotel and Suites and eventually sealed a deal with them. Content creator Nons Miraj got him a place to stay and gave him some cash.

Moment Nons Miraj gave Alax new abode:

His followership on TikTok hit over a million as influencers and creators collaborated with him, just as his old videos resurfaced and did huge numbers.

Now, it is almost as if Alax was never an internet sensation as the attention of Nigerians from all walks of life has shifted to the Lord’s Chosen and its members.

Public commentators, critics and fence-sitters can’t help but drop hot takes about the Lord’s Chosen – It is almost like a viral infectious disease without a cure yet.

Amid the whole frenzy, there are undoubtedly two similarities between the Lord’s Chosen and fish pie seller cases of virality – The trend started from TikTok and was organic.

Lord’s chosen: Lessons for churches and organisations

The story of Alax, the fish pie seller, provided some very important lessons for all and sundry as regards going viral on social media.

One is that those in the midst of any virality should enjoy the organic ride while it lasts and take advantage of it positively, as it may not be sustained and may never happen again unless paid for— milk it as much as you can.

Also, Alax’s story brought to light the popular saying that success has many friends. Many people masked their intent to tap from his virality as wanting to help or celebrate his industriousness, but sharp-eyed folks could see beyond their kind acts.

Back to the Lord’s Chosen virality, I think it is a wake-up call for churches and organisations to take their social media presence and public relations seriously.

The Lord’s Chosen TikTok reaction and clarification to the viral edited “AK-25” video would have been swallowed up by the buzz if they didn’t have an online presence.

According to Datareportal, there were 103 million internet users in Nigeria at the start of 2024 and 36.75 million social media users in Nigeria within the same period.

With Nigeria’s population currently at 226.5 million, close to half of the population are active internet users.

One doesn’t need to be a PR expert to advise churches and organisations on building and growing their online presence for more reach—don’t always wait to do damage control!

Source: TheTalk.NG

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