Long before Big Brother Naija had Nigerians glued to their TV screens, there were other reality competition shows that were loved – Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Idols West Africa, MTN Project Fame, Maltina Dance All and others. Nigerians were hooked on other reality shows.
And just as Big Brother Naija creates stars out of its contestants every season, music competition shows like Idols West Africa and MTN Project Fame gave Nigeria some of the stars in the entertainment industry today.
Idols West Africa (popularly known as Nigerian Idols) was the West African franchise of the international Idols series created by Simon Fuller, following the success of the series in other parts of the world. The singing competition debuted in 2007 with ten contestants, but it unfortunately was short lived with only two seasons.
MTN Project Fame had a successful run for nine seasons. The music reality show launched in 2008, and was hosted by Joseph Benjamin and Adaora Oleh. Winners of the competition were entitled to cash prizes, vehicles, and production deals. And also end up becoming ambassadors for the telecommunications company MTN.
These shows have produced some big names in the Nigerian music industry.
Omawumi – Omawumi was a contestant on Idol West Africa in 2007. She contested alongside Timi Dakolo and was the first runner up in the competition. Omawumi impressed the audience and the judges with her powerful vocals and has since the competition become a force to be reckoned with in the industry.
She has since released three albums and won the 2009 Headies Best Vocal Performance award for her hit single ‘In The Music’.
Timi Dakolo – The ‘Iyawo mi’ singer appeared on Idols West Africa in 2007 and emerged winner of the competition. While in the competition, Timi was consistently in the lead and it came as almost no surprise when he finally emerged victorious in the competition. Dakolo released his debut album Beautiful Noise in 2011 and has continued to build a successful career for himself since.
In 2019, the singer signed a Virgin EMI record deal and released his first album under the label, Merry Christmas Darling. The album featured collaborations with British singer-songwriter Emeli Sande and Grammy awards winner Kenny G. Some of Dakolo’s famous hits include Iyawo Mi, The Vow, Wish Me Well, among others.
Chidinma – Chidinma Ekile first appeared on the third season of MTN Project Fame in 2010. She won the competition as well as a cash prize of N2.5 million naira and a production deal. She released Chidinma, her debut studio album in 2011 that featured producers including Cobhams Asuquo, Tee-Y Mix, WazBeat and Oscar Heman Ackah.
Later that same year, Clarence Peters directed the visuals to Jankoliko, her single that featured Sound Sultan. In 2012, she released Emi ni Baller with Illbliss and Tha Suspect under CAPital Hill Records, which won the 2013 Headies award for Best Pop Extra Video.
In 2012, she won the Best Female West African Act at the Kora Award. She has appeared on several stages and performed in numerous countries across the world – Republic of Benin, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Cameroun, Equatorial Guinea, Niger and Ghana.
Iyanya – Iyanya won the first edition of the MTN Project Fame competition in 2008 and started out his career. He released My Story in 2009 after the competition, but it was in 2013, after the release of Kukure which was accompanied by the Etighi dance, a cultural Calabar dance that Iyanya hit national recognition.
In 2014, he won the Headies Artist of the year award. His album Desire and his hit single Ur Waist were also nominated in the same year. In 2016, Iyanya became one of the artists signed to the Mavin record deal. In 2018, he announced that he was now signed to Temple Music.
Niniola – The Maradona singer started off as a contestant on the sixth edition of MTN Project Fame in 2013. In 2014, she released Ibadi, her hit single produced by Sarz. It wasn’t until 2017 that she received wide acclaim for the release of Maradona. The single earned Nini nominations at the 2018 BET Awards and SAMAs.
In 2019, Niniola’s Maradona was sampled in Beyoncé’s ‘Find Your Way Back’, a song off her soundtrack album The Lion King: The Gift. Nini is also credited as one of the track’s songwriters and composers.
In April 2020, she received her Grammy nomination certificate for her work as a composer on The Lion King: The Gift. The singer known for her energetic live performances, has released hits like, Designer, Boda Sodiq, Omo Rapala and others.
Praiz – in 2008, Praiz came close to winning the first Edition of MTN Project Fame against Iyanya, coming second place. Since the competition, the R&B singer has released ‘Rich and Famous’ ‘Sisi’ and ‘I Love You’.
He combined forces with Bez on his 2011 single, ‘That Silly Song’, which made a world premiere on BET’s 106&Park.
In 2014, Praiz released his Rich & Famous album and in 2015, he won the Nigerian Entertainment Award for Best Pop/RnB Artist of the Year.
Praiz has been associated with acts like Wizkid, Chidinma, Seyi Shay, Cobhams and others.
Ayoola Ayolola – in 2012, Ayoola won the fifth edition of MTN Project Fame. He has transitioned from music into acting, since 2015, he has been appearing as Mide in the Ndani web series Skinny Girl in Transit. He has also featured in drama series The Men’s Club and landed roles in movies like – The Bling Lagosians, Isoken, If I Were President and others.
The post Chidinma, Timi Dakolo, Niniola and other Nigerian artists that have competed in music reality shows appeared first on Nigerian Entertainment Today.
by 208headlines