Kai Cenat’s Inspiring Visit to Nigeria: A Cultural Immersion & Mission to Make a Difference in Makoko

Kai Cenat, an American online streamer and YouTuber, recently embarked on a trip to Nigeria, where he met with the well-known Nigerian social media personality Adesokan Adedeji Emmanuel, also known as shankcomics. Cenat, who is celebrated for his engaging live streams and comedic content on YouTube and Twitch, has earned the title of Streamer of the Year at the 2023 Streamer Awards and boasts a following of approximately nine million on Twitch.

Meeting Shankcomics and the Nigerian Community

Shankcomics, famous for his risqué comedy sketches, has garnered a significant following himself, with 2.5 million Instagram followers and over 500,000 YouTube subscribers. In a video shared on YouTube, an exuberant Kai expressed his long-held desire to visit Africa, humorously hinting at the possibility of finding a Nigerian queen. His team, including fellow streamer and artist Fanum, who has over 5 million YouTube subscribers, managed to record, film, and edit the content on the same day.

Upon arrival, Kai was warmly greeted by his fans and given the Nigerian name Uche, while Fanum was christened Ikenna. The local artist community celebrated his visit with music, drums, dance, and a portrait gift, even featuring Kai’s likeness on the artist’s boxers. Shankcomics bestowed upon Kai the Yoruba name “Femi Omo Werye” and Fanum an Igbo name Chibuzor. Kai also connected with a fan, promising to send them a streaming kit.

Cultural Experience and Cuisine in Nigeria

One of Kai’s first stops was Makok. During his journey to Makoko, a community he had discovered a year earlier and was eager to assist, Kai made a stop at a local restaurant to sample authentic Nigerian cuisine, including the popular dishes of Amala and goat meat. It was their first time trying these local delicacies, and they embraced the cultural experience by eating with their hands, and thoroughly enjoying the ethnic flavors and traditions. Makoko, is known as one of Africa’s distinctive inner-city slums, with a portion of the community constructed on stilts in a lagoon off the Lagos mainland

A Philanthropic Mission of Support in Makoko

Kai expressed his surprise at the heat in Lagos before visiting Makoko to offer assistance to the community. Upon reaching Makoko, Kai extended his assistance to the community, offering whatever support they required. Touched by the experience, he emphasized the importance of gratitude in life; reflecting, “It makes me realize in this life you gotta be grateful.” Assessing the needs of the community, they provided financial aid to fulfill those requirements, ensuring that the community head facilitated the necessary provisions.

Visit to Makoko Children Development Foundation School and Orphanage

A location, they visited Makoko Children Development Foundation School and Orphanage, Kai and his team were guided by the 23-year-old school principal through the floating school. This institution, accommodating 385 children, is housed in a shanty and dilapidated structure that also serves as a hostel for the children. Kai learned about the challenges faced by the school, including overcrowded classrooms and a sinking building.

Kai recounted “I went to a school five times the size of this school and we complained about going to school”. He assured the school principal of his commitment to help. The principal emphasized the urgent need for support as the school building was sinking, necessitating reconstruction for a stronger structure; and offered to share the plan and cost estimates with Kai. The principal also added, that due to limited space, two classrooms were combined, resulting in overcrowding with all 385 children in one room; expressing the necessity for more classrooms to create a conducive learning environment.

Kai then entered the classroom, warmly welcomed by the children who showed their appreciation with a heartfelt – giving him a LOVE CLAP. Overwhelmed by their warmth and enthusiasm, Kai exclaimed, “This is craz*.” 

“first of all I want to say it’s so nice to meet all of you guys you guys have so much great energy guys you guys have so much great energy. I want to do as much as I can to help you guys and just be able to make you guys get better classrooms and stuff like that. Whatever they tell me you guys need we going to make sure you guys have good stuff”

image credit: emmythewizzard

Kai Cenat’s Continued Commitment and Upcoming Adventures

Addressing the children, Kai expressed his delight in meeting them and praised their energy. He pledged to do his utmost to improve their learning environment and fulfill their needs. He assured them of ongoing support during his stay in Nigeria and even after returning to America.

“I’m going try like through my whole stay here I’m here for like a good week and a half the whole time here I’m going to consistently be making sure that yall getting stuff and on top of that when I even leave I would like to contact you guys at a good basis so I want to see like next time I come here it’s a whole different a whole different thing”

Kai engaged with the students, dancing and singing together before bidding farewell. He invited his followers to join him live on Twitch on March 10, 2024, from 4-5 p.m. WAT (10-11 a.m. EST) as he showcases Lagos, Nigeria, sharing the fun, food, and experiences with them. Kai concluded by announcing his upcoming trip to Ghana at the end of the video.