Audition for the maiden edition of Naija Star Search kicked off in Lagos on Friday, July 22, 2022.
The reality TV show, which will produce the next Afrobeats superstar, is being organised by StarTimes, in partnership with Kennis Music.
According to the Kennis Music’s boss, Kenny Ogungbe, who led ID Cabasa and Asa Gangali as judges for the audition, Naija Star Search is unique because the focus is solely on Afrobeats, an umbrella term for all kinds of songs originating from Nigeria.
Ogungbe said, as judges, they would be looking out for authenticity, potential, originality, and street credibility among the talents that will finally be selected for the show. Ten finalists from the show would be groomed by Kennis Music label and given a platform to turn their raw talents into superstars.
“In 10 seconds, I can tell if a contestant has that fire in him or her. I can tell you because I am a radio DJ and I know when the talent is there. This is something I have been doing for almost 30 years and the idea with this is to take it to the masses, the grassroots, your next door neighbour,” Ogungbe quipped.
Also speaking, ID Cabasa, a celebrated music producer responsible for several hits from 9ice to Olamide and Wizkid, said Naija Star Search couldn’t have come at a better time.
“Naija Star Search is coming at a time when Afrobeats has been able to gain its ground as a global genre. What platforms like this will offer aspiring talents the opportunity to hit it big as well as getting paid in dollars.
“I will be looking forward to what the talent is bringing on, which includes the talent, the energy and the star power because the plan is to ensure our winners go on to do great things in the Nigerian, African and global music scenes. We just don’t want to have a show and the winner goes home; no, we would be working with winners and supporting them to get their footing and succeed under our mentorship and support.”
On his part, co-judge, Asa Gangali noted that all contestants should know that they are winners, having qualified for the show. “I am glad that this talent hunt is focusing on Afrobeats genre to enable us breed and groom the next big Afrobeats star,” he stated.
On the selection process, Ogungbe explained, “We have streamlined the participants so we don’t have those who don’t know what they want. Again, we have stressed that we want young, vibrant and energetic talents with vibes between the age of 18 and 35.
These talents will be singing or rapping Afrobeats basically and not other genres because, on a global scale, Afrobeats is the genre from Nigeria and is currently on the front burner, so much that it has displaced Jamaican reggae/dancehall. We will spot, nurture and groom these talents to stardom and also use all our platforms including Kennis TV, Kennis Music, Kennis FM, and our brands as well as StarTimes channels, to push and promote these winners and talents from Naija Star Search.”
Naija Star Search reality show would soon hit the StarTimes screens.