After three weeks of gruelling screening and listening to brilliant singers with huge potential, some not-so-good crooners who have honed their skills in the bathroom, and some outright terrible pseudo-singers, the judges on the Nigeria Idol show have decided which contestants will continue their journey at the theatre week.
For the past three weeks, Omawumi and Ric Hassani, joined by Emem, DJ Neptune, and 9ice as guest judges, have been painstakingly trying to find Nigeria’s next music superstar.
The show’s ninth season has proven to be more challenging, as the best of the best have shown up. Contestants from previous seasons have also returned, hoping to improve their performances this season.
The third day of auditions was a battle for the much-coveted golden ticket, as many contestants gave their best to impress the judges. Gracia received a golden ticket after three yeses from the judges when she sang Jennifer Hudson’s One Night Only. In Omawumi’s words, “she ate and left no crumbs.”
25-year-old Maio used his smooth voice to win the judges’ hearts by singing beautifully. After only reaching the top 29 in the 8th edition of the show, Maio makes a second attempt at becoming the next Nigerian Idol. His rendition of Sam Smith’s Stay With Me earned him a pass to the next stage.
The saying “like father, like son” came into play as Professor Kelvin continued to become a bigger star than his musician father. After making it past the auditions in a previous season of the show, he came back to give winning a second chance.
His rendition of Adele’s Rolling in The Deep earned him two yeses, giving him a pass to the next stage. He was, however, told to be mindful of being nervous while on stage.
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Not all the auditions ended in a golden ticket, however.
Flops
General Makinde, the first contestant of the episode, planned to blow the judges away and believed he had what it took to become the next big thing in Nigeria. The judges were not impressed, though, and he walked away empty-handed.
Lil Queen, a 23-year-old lady, decided to stand against all odds during the audition after sharing a heartfelt story of how people attribute her voice to a cat. She gave her all during the auditions; however, the judges must be convinced she should pursue a music career.
Outstanding contestants were given golden tickets, allowing them to move to the theatre week. Nigerian Idol is about recognising the best out of all the talented hopefuls. During the auditions, contestants were allowed to choose and sing their songs. Most of them predictably chose their most comfortable song due to voice range, familiarity with the lyrics, the genre of music, or because it was their favourite song. That is fine, but it will only sometimes be easy, so theatre week is different.
During theatre week, the singers will be given specific songs to sing. Those who do not impress the judges with their rendition will be dropped in that period. Judging from the end of the third episode, the competition is about to get hot, and contestants have got to give it their best shot.
Follow the 9th season of Nigerian Idol with new episodes every Sunday at 7 PM on Africa Magic Showcase (DStv Channel 151, GOtv Channel 12) and Africa Magic Family (DStv Channel 154, GOtv Channel 2). Viewers can watch the highlights on Showmax every Monday at 7 p.m.