MY9JA

1. For entertainment enthusiasts, and millions of talented but opportunity-challenged acts spread across the country, the next few weeks promises to be interesting, as the world's biggest music talent show Idols comes to Nigeria. Optima Media Group (OMG), one of Africa's biggest production companies, announced this week it has secured the right to produce Idol in Nigeria and across sub-Saharan Africa. We're starting with 'Nigerian Idol', obviously because Nigeria has the biggest market for us, and the Nigerian music industry is the biggest, and most promising on the continent right now' Chichi Nwoko, a spokesperson for OMG told journalists in Lagos. Nigerian Idol, Nwoko says, is 'a dream come true because finally we get to give millions of youths an opportunity to be heard. We want to say to them - accept no Limitations. You can make your dream come true!' Nigerian Idol, the producers say, will produce the biggest music star this year. The man or woman who'll sing Nigerians to sleep and wake them up the next morning. The one singer that will in a matter of months, move from obscurity to celebrity; from shame to fame; the one singer who will move from the back seat to the A-league.Forms will be available in July and audition held across Nigeria for persons aged between 16 and 28.Nigerian Idol will be aired both on cable and terrestrial television across Nigeria between September and December 2010

2. Musical powerhouses John Legend & The Roots are presenting fans with a fiery new offering, Wake Up! The upcoming CD, planned to be released by Sony Music on September 21, 2010, will feature soulful music from the 60’s and 70’s all with an underlying theme of awareness, engagement and consciousness. After being inspired by the recent historical Presidential election campaign of 2008, the R&B singer Legend and hip-hop band The Roots produced a passionate album representing change, hope and activism – not only referencing one particular moment in time, but on a larger scale, holding true no matter what the political climate may be. The resulting album features eleven profoundly evocative songs infused with sounds of gospel, rock and reggae inflections with hip-hop influences. Wake Up! blends Legend’s expressive, thoughtful vocal interpretations with an element of funk that only The Roots can provide.

3. Although this year's Afrofest wouldn't turn out to be the big celebration festival for African football as anticipated by organizers due to the exist of Ghana, all is set for an exciting event nonetheless. July 10 and 11 will see the almost magical transformation of Queen's Park into an African village for this free annual celebration of African music and culture in downtown Toronto. With main-stage performers The Occidental Brothers Dance Band International featuring Samba Mapangala and 'Zimbabwe's Rebel Woman' Chiwoniso, along with JP Buse (Congo), French-Cameroonian singer Muna Mingole, Masaisai (Zimbabwe), Waleed Kush (Sudan), Mohamed Diaby & Manding Foli Kan Don (Guinea), Doody Le Tigre (Haiti), Kae Sun (Ghana), Nati Haile (Ethiopia), Jabulani (South Africa) and Soul Influence, Afrofest's musical line-up is as powerful as ever. This event of song, dance and drumming, presented by Music Africa, will be once more a showcase of the richness and diversity of African culture..