“It’s not all about being in the office, being an engineer or a doctor, I do something that I like and I’m able to earn more than a doctor“- Wode Maya.
Ghanaian content creator Wode Maya is a successful Youtuber who has carved a niche for himself by what he terms as ‘telling the African narrative in a positive way.’ Even though he runs one of the most successful YouTube channels, Maya has remained humble to the bone; in fact, he doesn’t mind promoting novice content creators who are still on the bottom rungs.
Currently, he is ranked among the best vloggers in Africa owing to his unique videos that cover genres ranging from entrepreneurship, and the untold cultural practices among various communities in Africa.
Maya has widely sojourned the African continent and has been to over 23 countries. He is passionate about what he does and easily establishes rapport with the people he interacts with.
Real Name
His real name is Berthold Kobby Winkler. The moniker ‘Wode Maya’ is a Chinese phrase for ‘my mother’. This name was birthed in honour of his mother who accorded him support when he began digital content production.
Age
Winkler is presumably in his late 20’s and he celebrates his birthday on 3rd of March.
Education
Winkler studied in Ghana before he pursued aeronautical engineering at Sheyang Aerospace University in China (2013-2017). He was a smart nerd and obtained a first class honors. However, he only worked as an engineer for 8 months and called it quits because of what he terms as ‘a rat race’- he was earning big money but had very little to save. In past interviews, he also narrated racial discrimination that he was subjected to while in China.
“I was looking for a job and I went to a company but they told me they were looking for a black man who looked like Obama,” Winkler reveals.
Family and Background
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Wode Maya was brought up in a humble village located in the western part of Ghana. According to the vlogger, his mother who is currently in her 60’s was more receptive to his YouTube idea than the father.
“African parents always want to boast that their children are engineers and doctors; my dad was not an exemption… he was like I didn’t send you to school to become a comedian, I took you to school to become an aeronautical engineer,” Maya disclosed.
Girlfriend
Wode Maya is in a relationship with Miss Trudy, a popular Youtuber from Kenya. Her real name is Gertrude Juma.
They first had a chat on Instagram when Maya had established his YouTube channel and was seeking collaboration from other content creators in Africa. The Ghanaian sent her a DM but she took time before replying.
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Asked what she likes about Wode Maya, she says that he’s hardworking, ambitious and generous. Miss Trudy currently boasts of over 258k subscribers and 35 million views on her YouTube channel which was started in 2014.
Wode Maya’s Unprecedented Rise In YouTube
As they say you don’t have to see the whole staircase to take the first step, the Ghanaian began his YouTube dream using a Samsung smartphone. At first, he concentrated on comedy videos while still in China.
It was a steep slippery climb for him to gain significant audience but he was encouraged by one fan who saw great potential in his work and gifted him a Canon camera.
Through the lens of the new camera, he dropped the first video which earned massive viewership as his subscription rose from 1k to 8k.
The revered vlogger then decided to shift focus and concentrate on showcasing the unreported splendor found in Africa.
Gradually, his channel saw an expanded subscription base. Wode Maya is so passionate about Africa that he has been labelled a racist by some quarters. However, his passion keeps fuelling his ambition as he aims at being able to leave an impact in the lives of Africans.
“The impact that my videos make in the society pushes me to do more. When I meet people and they tell me that because of me they traveled to certain places it makes me feel I’m doing something good,” he revealed in an interview with Alex Chamwada.
Many may admire his explorations in our content but the sojourn across Africa has not been all rosy. He has previously been harassed and arrested by police officers in Kenya and has been deported from Uganda and Zambia. He also faces a language barrier setback and has been forced to look for interpreters in various countries.
By the time of this publication, Wode Maya’s YouTube channel has over 986k subscribers and over 146 million views since it was started in January, 2013. According to him, he won’t be a content creator forever and is aiming at establishing a television station that will bring African content creators together to broadcast the gem of the continent.
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