NOTHING BETWEEN ETISALAT AND WANDE COAL -Management

NOTHING BETWEEN ETISALAT AND WANDE COAL
-Management
There are speculations recently that one of Nigeria’s telecom companies- Etisalat is currently having talks with Mo’Hits signed on act- Wande Coal to become their ambassador probably to serve as a replacement for Banky W or join him as the face of the company.
In a swift reaction, the manager of the artiste- Sunday Are told us over the phone that there was nothing of such. “There is nothing going on between Wande Coal and Etisalat at the moment. I can authoritatively reveal that to you”, he said.
Rumour has it that the company had agreed to sign up the artiste in a mouth watering deal up to N50M.

NEA HOLDS IN SEPTEMBER

The fifth edition of the Nigerian Entertainment Awards (NEA) is billed for September in New-York City. The executive producer of the awards, Tope Esan, told this blog over the week in a meeting that lasted for about 30 minutes.
Tope who has been frequent in Nigeria of recent time trying to net sponsorship for the awards said they are planning to make this year award more bigger that the previous years. “NEA has always been very big in America. We fly the artistes from Nigeria to America every year to be part of epoch making event. Even though we are yet to secure any major sponsor from Nigeria, it still remains the biggest Nigerian awards in the diaspora and I think Nigerian companies should identify with their own. As a matter of fact, it is the most attended Nigerian event in America”, he said.
The nominees for this year’s award will be out by June and the organizers are working round the clock to meet the target.
The awards ceremony started in 2006, and the first event was held at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center of the University of Maryland at College Park. The second and third editions were held at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts in New York City while the fourth edition was held at the Howard University’s Cramton Auditorium.
The NEA Awards of 2010 will take place on September 18 2010 at the Tribeca Performing Art Center in New York City.

DEKUNLE FUJI RETURNS TO STORM

DEKUNLE FUJI RETURNS TO STORM
Popular act cum actor- Dekunle Fuji is retracing his steps. He has returned to Storm Records ahead of the release of his new album titled Fumilayo meant to be out by June.
According to Dekunle in an exclusive chat with SEUN APARA, he revealed that he signed the contract with the management of Storm Records few days back. “Yes, I have returned to Storm Records. I just singed a two-year contract with them and I’m very happy about it”, he said.
You will recall that Dekunle’s hit single that launched him to the lime light- Mo Like Jesu Gan- was released on Storm Records before the act quit the label to release the full album. Since then, he has been doing everything by himself which include promoting his songs till his recent return to Storm Records.
Dekunle’s new album is made up of seven tracks with production imprints form the likes of Dr. Frabs, Jesse Jag, Flow and OJB. Some of the songs on the album are Ohun Yen, Sabojo, Music is my Life, Fumilayo and three others.

TERRY G HARASSED

One of Nigeria’s budding acts, Terry G, has not been enjoying the best of media hype recently due to his carefree attitude. What he ordinarily termed as a child play has been hurting him and leaving a negative impact on his career.
On Thursday April 22nd, 2010 on the campus of University of Lagos where he was meant to perform at a concert, he was greatly harassed by angry fans that used the opportunity to display their grievances.
What happened at Unilag was as a result of a breach of contract on the path of Terry G few weeks back where he was invited to perform at concert in Benin. Terry G collected the money for the concert and refused to show up. This angered the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and they immediately placed a ban on him not to perform in any of the Nigerian campuses anymore. This ban was what they tried to enforce on Thursday at a concert where Terry G was meant to perform and they disrupted his performance.
Different versions of reports of the ugly incidence have since been reaching us. While some affirmed that he was beaten to pulp, some said he was only harassed which got the windscreen of his car broken. Some even said he has since been admitted to the hospital due to the effect of the beating.
This blog later placed a call across to Terry G but his phones were switched off. A close source to the artiste who later spoke with us said what happened at the venue was just a misunderstanding. “Terry G was not beaten and he was not admitted in any hospital. He is doing very well. We have already concluded to refund the concert money to give room for peace”, he said.

TIMI DAKOLO JOINS SOFORTE

Succour has finally come the way of the first West African Idols Winner- Timi Dakolo. Having waited for so long looking for an avenue to release his debut album after the organizers of the competition reneged on their promises which include a record label deal, the young vocalist has finally found solace in Soforte.
Timi has signed the dotted lines with Nigeria’s first automated distribution company- Soforte to release his debut album. He has now joined artistes like 9ice, Lara George and recently D’Banj, who has chosen the company to distribute their albums world wide.
Timi’s debut album is self titled but the date of the release is yet to be announced.

Soforte has a working relationship with Sony Music UK for international retail distribution. The deal was sealed few months back at the corporate office of Sony Music in the UK. The relationship covers international standard packaging for labels and Artistes working with Soforte Distribution. Sony would ensure product supply to its partner retail stores worldwide as long as demands come from them.

MNET PATNERS WITH NMVA

Music videos and the act of its production have evolved rapidly from just serving to promote the artiste and his songs and metamorphosed into a full blown industry. Music videos depict a people’s culture and way of life. They can now be arguably referred to as a phenomenon, with an out of the ordinary following which transcends age, religion, class and creed.
The 2009 edition of the Nigeria Music Video Awards may have come and gone, but it does not seem like resonating will fade any time soon, as callivision network, organizers of the event and mnet have concluded plans to broadcast a complete package of the show which is still being talked of as one of the most successful awards in that year.
The objective of the NMVA which was instituted on 2nd December 2007 has remained to stage a world class event with the capability of establishing benchmark that will stamp out mediocrity, enthrone excellence and inspire practitioners to take the Music Video production business more seriously. This is against the background that Music Videos markets, exposes and celebrates, a people’s cultural-heritage, way of life, and so much more.
In the coming days viewers all over Africa can expect to behold the NMVA 2009 in full colors with rare behind the stage footages and green carpet shots. NMVA guns to become the most credible, most attractive and most respected out of Africa. Plans are at advanced stage to put out a 24 hours dedicated channel in furtherance of the music video revolution in Nigeria. Already plans are in top gear to ensure another very successful outing at the 2010 edition of the NMVA which promises to be another show stopper.

FUNKE AKINDELE BRANCHES OUT

Popular actress, Funke Akindele is diversifying. The award winning film maker has concluded plans to try her hands on something else and at the same make a success out of it. This she revealed to us during one of her outings in Lagos recently.
According to the A-List actress, she will be rolling out her own line of products before the end of this year. This involves base ball caps, handbags, purses and others series of products in that line. There will also be Jenifa Wigs, hair extensions, among others. “I have been working on this project for a while because I want it to be a success. By the grace of God if everything works out as planned, we would launch the product in 2010. We are into full merchandising”, she proudly revealed.
She is also working on her talk show which she calls ‘Jenifer Talk Show’. The show will deal with issues affecting the youths especially in the areas of teenage pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, cultism and other vices.
As a follow up to the monster hit movie- Jenifer, Funke is currently working on another movie she titled ‘The Return of Jenifa’. She revealed that the film is not in anyway related the to the popular Jenifa movie. “Jenifa is brand now and we will be using the brand in different movies. We will focus more on issues that affect the youths because I represent the youth. Jenifa film addressed issues like HIV/AIDS, female prostitution in campuses and other vices. The Return of Jenifa that I’m about shooting will go deeper into those vices because I want people to laugh and at the same time learn lessons from it. I’m not a comedian but I want to do things that will educate people in very relaxed way. I will still play the Sulia”, she revealed.