Nigerian Idol hosted a dazzling night of food, fun and fanfare as they launched the top 12 contestants for the premier talent hunt show on
Saturday, 16 February, 2012. It was the first night the contestants were officially performing together, and along with celebrity guests
performers Lynxxx, Tiwa Savage and season 2 winner Mercy Chinwo, the newly revealed contestants made sure that the Civic Centre in Victoria
Island was the place to be on Saturday evening.

Ill Rhymz was host extraordinaire for the unveiling, which was a celebratory night as the top 12 contestants officially took to the stage
for the first time and serenaded the crowd with love songs that were the perfect backdrop for the romantic Valentine’s mood of the week. The
talented singers showed off their spectacular vocals and the gathered audience that included celebrities like singer Nneka, Michelle Dede,,
Lala Akindoju, OC Ukeje, Toke Makinwa and more, alongside the judges of the show, Femi Kuti, Yinka Davies and Jeffrey Daniel, sat back and
enjoyed the show as they dined.

  “We know we have got the best talent we can find,” said Rotimi Pedro, Group Managing Director of the show’s production company Optima Media
Group (OMG),  as he spoke about the contestants selected for the current third season of the show. He also extended a word of gratitude to the
lead sponsor of the show, telecoms giant Etisalat, who have supported all three seasons of the show so far, and Pepsi, for being an Associate
sponsor on Nigerian Idol.

The CEO of Etisalat Nigeria, Steven Evans, was also effusive about his praise for the show as he highlighted the partnership Etisalat and
Nigerian Idol had forged over the past three seasons. He said, “You need to watch. [The contestants] are all hungry to be the third Nigerian
Idol…The quality of talent is bigger, brighter and better.”

The performances were the crowning jewel of the evening, starting off with Lynxxx, who, with the help of the live band, seduced the crowd with
a knock out live performance. Tiwa Savage sang a touching tribute to late singer and performer Goldie Harvey, before she performed some of
her most loved hits.

And then came the most exciting part of the evening: the twelve successful season 3 competitors were unveiled. Singing ‘No One Like You’
by P-Square, the talented group were luminous as they made their stage debut. That was not all for the evening, as the contestants then formed
more intimate groups and sang again. Immaculate Victoria, Abasiakan, Joe Emmal, and Kome sang ‘A Whole New World’, from the Walt Disney
animation, ‘Aladdin’. Then Jay Feel, Danny Angus, Debbie Rise and Amara performed ‘Oyi (I Dey Catch Cold)’ by Flavour. Moses, Efezino, Vicci and
Sefeeyat were the last to perform for the evening, singing George Benson’s ‘Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love for You’.

The night was brought to an explosive end as season 2 winner, Mercy Chinwo, brought the house to its feet and started an impromptu party
with her infectious vocals.

Now, the contestants have been unveiled and have had their first top 12 performances, which aired on Sunday, 17 February. Who will be the first
two contestants Nigeria will choose to evict from the show?

Watch Nigerian Idol on Saturday on NTA at 3:00pm, Sound City and ONTV at 7:00pm, Silverbird at 7:30pm, Superscreen at 6:30pm and TVC at
9:30pm, to watch the results show. Then, catch all-new performances on Sunday on NTA at 3:30pm, Sound City and ONTV at 7:00pm, Silverbird at
8:00 pm, TVC at 8:30 pm and Superscreen at 9:30pm  to watch the contestants have their shot at the grand prize.

The power to decide the fate of one of the contestant lies in the hands of you, Nigeria, so vote by texting the number of your favourite
contestant to 33680, from any network. You can also vote for a contestant by dialling his/her number of any using an Etisalat line.

The top prize for this season is worth a superb $100,000, in which the lucky winner will get: 7.5 million naira in cash, a recording contract
also worth 7.5 million naira, and a brand new SUV. Runner-ups will not be left out as they will be given prizes to the tune of 10 million
naira.

Visit www.nigerianidol.com for compelling back story videos, juicy behind the scene news, and get a taste of what is coming. For the latest
information, Like the Nigerian Idol Facebook page www.facebook.com/NigIdol, and follow Nigeria Idol on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/NigerianIdol, and you could be eligible to win some fantastic prizes, including the opportunity to be live in the studio for
a recording.

Nigerian Idol is the biggest music show across Africa and is brought to you by Etisalat, in association with Pepsi and supported by Beat FM.