Young friends in Kenya navigate ambitions and broken dreams in this coming-of-age drama that explores sexual health, relationships and family issues.

The storylines in this season are rape, transactional sex and homosexuality plus a bunch of other issues to be explored included HIV testing, stigma, condom use, gender inequity and the role of multiple partnerships in driving the HIV epidemic.

The third season of the series, dubbed Shuga Naija, was shot and set in Nigeria. Shuga Naija tells the story of several Lagos youths and how they deal with love, sex and relationships.

The fourth season of Shuga was filming in Nigeria, in early 2015. Shuga 4 focused on themes involving adolescent girls, stigma, prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT), HIV testing, gender based violence, first sex and the disclosure of HIV status.

The fifth season was called "Shuga: Down South" and it was based in South Africa. It was set in the cool clubs, hangouts and schools of Johannesburg’s Braamfontein, and the township of “Zenzele”. The seasons themes included abusive relationships, sexual assault, back alley abortions, and "blessers" in addition to continuing the conversation about HIV. This was one of the darkest seasons of Shuga as it featured the death of a character.

The sixth series of Shuga returned to Nigeria and premiered on March 7, 2018. Set against the backdrop of a bustling Lagos metropolis, where we see the northern and southern communities blended together. In this new season we meet a host of new characters dealing with coming of age drama. Friendships are tested, relationships reach risky heights, and secrets threaten to break family ties.

The seventh series was again based in South Africa and called "MTV Shuga Down South".