The show was scheduled for 6pm and guests were to arrive before 5pm for cocktails, alcoholic drinks (if you preferred that) and of course, finger foods. I got to Ultima Studios, the venue for the recording by 3:30pm - hours before the scheduled time - to do my registration and get tagged. Due to poor registration (as always in Nigeria) we had to wait outside longer than planned. They were no seats outside, and I hate the struggle life. As a proper 'omo eko', I hustled for 2 seats, for a friend and I.
At about 6pm, a comedian known as Bash thrilled the arriving guests with wonderful jokes. I laughed so hard, for a moment I forgot what I came there for and at exactly 6:20pm, Bash welcomed Oyinkansade a former contestant to the outside stage. He performed his debut single produced by TY-MIX and 10 minutes later, Iyanya and Praiz mounted the stage and gave mini performances.
Guests were ushered inside the beautiful studio at 7:40pm. Commediene, Mandy dished out wonderful jokes to lighten the mood. Since it was a recorded show, we were advised to switch off all phones so as to have a smooth recording.
The Hosts of the show, the handsome Joseph Benjamin and the gorgeous Adora Oleh came on stage and introduced themselves. They also welcomed the Judges - Ade Bantu, Ty-Mix and the amiable Bibi Brew from Ghana. They also welcomed The Academy - Joke Silva a.k.a Mummy J, Kaffy, Miss Ige and music maestro, Ben Ogbeiwi a.k.a Uncle Ben.
Now it was time to reveal the 18 contestants. They came out in batches after a short clip played on the screen. The judges had to send 12 contestants into the Academy while the remaining six would have to sing again to fight for the last 3 slots.
Handsome Praiz came on stage and gave a great performance of his singles "Stay" and "Rich & Famous" which earned him a standing ovation from the audience. Oh! I fell in love with him.
The 6 remaining contestants then performed one after the other. Niniola's performance was fantastic, Gbemisola was average, and Johnny (who was obviously good from what we heard and saw on screen) had great support from the audience and gave a very good performance. The "showboy" of the season, Daniel whom the audience called Dbanj because of his looks had a very poor performance. People were not surprised because he came on stage and seemed to care so much about his appearance. Veronica's performance was average.
The star of the night was the small and tiny Olawale. When Joseph Benjamin said he was going to perform Alicia Keys' "No one", the audience didn't give him a chance including yours truly and most people were of the opinion that he picked the wrong choice of song. Surprisingly, Olawale made the song his own and everybody in the studio including the judges and academy got up to sing and dance along with him. He got a very loud ovation and people called him " small but mighty".
At exactly, 9:55pm, Iyanya came on stage looking dapper. He performed his first single and my favourite Iyanya song "Love Truly". You can imagine how I felt. He also performed "Flying Without Wings". It was a great performance.
Thereafter it was time for the Judges to reveal the contestants who made the last 3. Just as we expected, they confirmed Niniola, Johnny and Olawale while Daniel and Veronica were dropped. In an interesting twist, Gbemisola who thought it was all over was also given a chance to go into the academy by the judges.
The top 16 contestants then came on stage and it was announced there would be be a Wild card competition next week where someone will be given a chance to join the academy. Joseph Benjamin also announced that all cash prices have been doubled. Wow! This is definitely a great motivation for me to audition next year.
Iyanya came back on stage to perform his hit singles," Kukere" and "Your Waist", which turned out to be another fantastic performance.
BRODCAST SCHEDULE
I must tell you guys to brace up, for this year the competition is going to be stiff. We have amazing talent in the academy this year. I must give it to the stylists who did an amazing job and made the contestants look like superstars.
Apart from the time factor, the opening gala and recording was really smooth. They improve every year. One of my best moments was watching clips from the audition, My goodness! They need to package the auditions and sell them. Every home in Nigeria need these videos.
And so, once again Project Fame has kicked off in style. Laurasboxx will review performances weekly and every week we'll have 3 panelists: L, Lady Joy and a guest judge. If you're interested in reviewing, please send a mail to laurasboxx@gmail.com
Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to MTN Project Fame West Africa Season 6!
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