Obi Asika, D’banj, Simi Take Centre Stage As Nigerian Idol Returns
Osakioduwa Retains Anchor Role
MULTIPLE award- winning entertainer, D’banj and superstar singer- songwriter, Simi, have been unveiled as judges for the seventh season on Nigerian Idol. Leading Entertainment Company and organisers of the reality TV singing competition, MultiChoice Nigeria, made the announcement today January 18, 2022 as the countdown to the show’s premiere in February 2022 begins.
Popular radio and TV personality, IK Osakioduwa, will be returning as the show’s host for this season, alongside Obi Asika who makes a comeback as a judge.
Speaking on the introduction of new judges for the new season, Executive Head, Content and West Africa Channels at Multichoice Nigeria, Dr. Busola Tejumola said: “We could not think of a better trio to be the season’s judges than Obi Asika, D’banj and Simi. The three of them combined bring decades worth of experience in the music and entertainment business, as well as individual mastery of their crafts. We have no doubt that they will keep the viewers entertained in what will be a spectacular season!”
D’banj expressed his excitement at being one of the judges this season saying, “I was out of the country when I found out that I was going to be a judge for this season of Nigerian Idol and I couldn’t contain my excitement. I’m coming in with my own strategy so viewers should expect a bang.”
On her part, Simi said, “I’ve always loved the idea of being a judge and I think it’s a fun thing to do. I plan to be very honest and have fun and hopefully gain inspiration from those that come on the show.”
Returning judge Obi Asika added, “I will be looking for special talents and new faces this year. I’m also excited to work with the rest of the judges this season, and I will be very fair and real to every contestant just like I was last year.”
After a thrilling ride filled with suspense and humour in the last season, IK Osakioduwa return as a second- time host for Nigerian Idol season 7. He has always given nothing short of savviness, excitement and humour both on- air and now on stage, which is why we have no doubt that the Nigerian Idol season 7 is in good hands.
IK is a media personality to be reckoned with, having spent over a decade as a broadcaster at Rhythm 93.7, and hosting a number of high profile events across the continent including the Big Brother Africa show.
“I’m so excited to be back on the show because coming back for a new season means that I did well the previous season. I’ll be bringing a lot to the table this season and I can’t wait for the viewers to see what we have in store.” He said.
His versatile presenting skills cut across a variety of shows and events. He has been the only male host of the AMVCA since 2013. He has also hosted the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant for five years in a row, Rhythm Unplugged for four years in a row, Comedy Club: Live in Lagos for four years in a row and The Voice Nigeria for two years in a row. He has appeared on other shows including Mnet’s Studio 53, Temptation Nigeria and Comedy Nites.
With his demonstrated savviness and ability to keep an audience engaged, IK is undoubtedly a host who will deliver value to the show.
Nigerian Idol has without a doubt been a huge and successful singing competition famed for producing some of the biggest music acts in the country such as Timi Dakolo and Omawumi ( it was then referred to as Idols West Africa) and break- out gospel singer Mercy Chinwo.
In the sixth season of Nigerian Idol, Kingdom Kroseide emerged winner after months of intense musical contest involving over 10,000 hopefuls from across the country, and over 16 million votes recorded at the finale. Following the completion of the online and physical auditions last November, the countdown is officially on for a seventh season of the show, which premieres February 6, 2022 on Dstv and Gotv.
Headline sponsor of Nigerian Idol season 7 is Bigi Drinks and co- headline sponsor is Binance.
In his remark, Director of Binance Africa, Emmanuel Babalola, said: “In a world of diversity, music scales through differences and unites people of contrasting backgrounds. As such, it is a thrilling opportunity to sponsor the popular musical competition, Nigerian Idol, as it is another step in our efforts to drive the mainstream adoption of crypto. Nigerian music continues to take centre stage globally and it’s never been a more exciting time to support this.”
The Nigerian Idol season 7 will end on Sunday, May 22, 2022 with the winner taking N50 million worth of prizes.
Also, as part of its mission to drive blockchain adoption and enable greater access to financial services for the world’s unbanked, Binance has provided free crypto education classes to over 541,000 Africans since 2020 - on topics ranging from user protection to building a career in blockchain.