Why funeral of a TikTok star stunned Kenyans

TikToker Brian Chira died two weeks ago in a road accident. He had amassed a following of more than 400,000 in little over a year. His candid, witty videos, addressing social and relationship issues, delivered straight to camera, amused, and sometimes shocked, many people. Chira’s family and neighbours are still reeling after thousands of them deluged his burial in a rather sleepy and remote village.

The event was initially planned for 500 people but the number of attendees swelled to more than 5,000. They helped contribute to a funeral fund, which raised over $60,000 (£48,000) Lukale is also known as Baba Talisha on social media. He shot to fame in December 2022 when he was interviewed by a local TV station as a road accident witness. The funeral was still a trending topic in Kenya with over 7,000 posts on X days after his burial.

He capitalised on the sudden exposure to build a huge online presence. Chira was left in her care at the age of eight after his mother died. He would later reveal in a radio interview that he was HIV positive, which led him to alcohol abuse. His online outbursts often landed him in trouble.

Chira’s body was found on a road after he was hit by a lorry. In August last year, he was arrested and charged for cyber-harassment against a fellow TikToker. He also wore women’s clothes in some videos, which enraged some people. The villagers watched as the content creators stepped on the graves, contrary to the local Kikuyu community’s traditions.

Police officers who were deployed to control the crowd appeared overwhelmed and watched from a distance as some jostled to take selfies at the gravesite. After the burial, some were seen watering the flowers laid at Chira#38;s gravesite with alcohol. The remaining money was to be handed over to the family - some of it to construct or buy a house for Chira’s grandmother. Critics say the TikTokers abandoned Chira when he battled his life struggles only to celebrate his death.