British-Ghanaian media personality, Peace Hyde, was a speaker at the second edition of the UBA Business Series, where she encouraged young creatives to stay true to themselves and protect their work in today’s fast-paced media world.
The event, organised by United Bank for Africa (UBA), took place at the UBA House in Lagos, Nigeria.
It is part of the bank’s effort to support and empower Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across Africa.
The theme for this edition was “Stronger Together: Building Powerful Business Partnerships for Progress”.
The event brought together experienced entrepreneurs, business leaders, and industry experts to share useful ideas on how partnerships can help small businesses grow and overcome challenges.
Peace Hyde spoke about the importance of staying authentic and having strong values in an industry where attention often takes priority over substance.
Named by GQ Magazine South Africa as Africa’s “architect of unscripted television revolution,” Hyde is best known as the creator and executive producer of Young, Famous and African, the first and only African reality series on Netflix.
The show, now in its third season, has become the most successful African Original on the streaming platform.
It won the 2024 South African Film and Television Award and also earned the media personality a place as a shortlisted Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.
During her talk, she stressed the importance of creatives understanding and protecting their intellectual property, especially in a competitive and ever-changing media environment.
According to her, being authentic not only makes your work stand out but also builds long-term trust and value in an industry driven by trends and fast-moving content.
“What you create is your fingerprint that you’re sharing with the rest of the world, and what will resonate with people is how original and how unique that is. So, you have to have tunnel vision when you’re in the creative world.
“And try not to be distracted by what’s going on, on your left and right. You can learn, but when it’s time to execute, to make sure it’s original and unique to you. And if you don’t believe in yourself, nobody else will.
“If you don’t sell yourself, nobody else will buy or know that you’re even available to be purchased. And if you don’t make sure that you are giving value, quality, and you are functioning with integrity, and a high level of commitment to what you’re doing, this is a temporary shot in the dark that will not bear any fruit.
“So, the long game requires authenticity and it requires the correct character, morals, values, and all of that to make sure you’re in it for the long run, but more importantly, that you are able to connect with your audience and build a product that is bigger than anything you could imagine,” Peace Hyde shared.
Meanwhile, you can watch GhanaWeb TV’s exclusive interview with Arathejay below:
AK/MA
