It was another astonishing weekend as an incredible array of brilliant talent was unveiled on the Episode 3 of Nigeria’s Got Talent. Lagos, the country’s commercial nerve centre, proved itself as the city of stars – with magical talent, a depth of music and enough talent to make previous cities, of Ibadan, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Warri go green with envy.
“Lagos contestants of this show have really made true to the ability of the city to suppress, to thrive and to persist,” said the excited Andre Blaze, who is host of Nigeria’s Got Talent. “It’s going to be an amazing ride!”
The first contestant was Bariyu Yusuf, a 36-year-old doctor wthose comedic skills earned him three ‘yes-es’. The ‘Furious Energy’ dance group’s energetic drama-dance also got affirmative, as did Dapo, Craig and Vince, choreographers, aged 20 and 21, who disguised as females to thrown on a brilliant choreography.
“Oh, and there were those cute little girls – so incredibly talented!” crowed judge Kate Henshaw, who couldn’t resist the charm of the group of three girls whose dance moves got them to the next round.
Magic also took centre stage: Gabriel Ayokojo, also known as the ‘Lion Heart’ pulled unbelievable stunts, playing with fire in his mouth and peeling off a coconut with his bare teeth. “This is is simply ‘juju’!” judge Dan Foster exclaimed. He got a yes, alongside Idowu Dayo, another magician whose trickes included water and smoking – he called his magic trick “The more you look the less you see”.
“For everyone who was on our sets across the country, it was a life-changing experience,” said Adaora Mbelu, who is the show’s Project Manager. “Some performances made you laugh hysterically, and others would just overwhelm you with chills you’d begin to cry. We are hugely honored to have come across such amazing talent as was repeated in Lagos, and are truly excited to share these gems with Nigerians.”
The first-of-its-kind showaalto included martial art performances. A group called ‘United Fist’ – aged 24 – 30 year – got a ‘yes’ from the judges, though a ‘Taekwando’ group called ‘Oracle Team’ was adjudged “boring”. Paul Justice Ogbele, 20, presented a rhythmic rapping performance, and Chuka Solace, 18 and also a rapper, got approval to the next round. Then there was Ekeng Bassey, 29, who dazzled everyone with a sonorous presentation of Westlife’s ‘You Raise Me Up’.
Hosted by Andre Blaze, the judges for the season are radio host Dan Foster, actor Kate Henshaw and entertainment entrepreneur, Yibo Koko, the Airtel-sponsored first season of Nigeria’s Got Talent began to air on 16 September and will run until December 2012. Watch Sundays on AIT (10:30 PM), STV (6:00 PM), NTA (4.30PM) and Soundcity (6:30 PM). Fans in the UK can watch the show on HITV UK Sky 193 (8 PM).
The Got Talent franchise worldwide, which is in its sixth year, has produced many notable performers in the last couple of years including Diversity, Bianca Ryan and Britain’s Got Talent’s 2009 1st runner up Susan Boyle, whose debut album became the fastest selling UK debut album of all time, selling over 3 million copies in the U.S. It is the only talent competition show that is open to any age and any talent with auditions taking the show to numerous cities in search of one-of-a-kind talent.
Nigeria’s Got Talent is sponsored by Airtel and supported by Cool FM, Wazobia FM, Nigeria Info 99.3 FM and Tastee Fried Chicken. For embeddable clips and full episodes of the show, as well as artwork, please visit www.GotTalentNigeria.com. Like the show on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/NigeriasGotTalent and follow on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/NigeriasGotTalent.