Critic Circle, a creative music production and promotion company, in conjunction with the Edo State Government and Edojobs, on Friday gave aspiring artists in Edo State an opportunity to showcase their talent and take their musical career to greater heights.
That was the essence of the grand finale of the NXT UP Talent Hunt show which took place at Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub in Benin City, Edo State capital.
The show was aimed at finding true Nigerian artistes and harnessing their talent and the participants were mainly students.
In an exclusive interview with The Nigerian Observer, the founder of the brand Critic Circle, Mr. Nelson Omorotionmwan, also known as Big Man Critic, informed that the show was the first edition of the NXT UP Talent Hunt as a creative in Benin City.
“The focus of the show really is the idea of looking for artists, not just rappers, singers, but artists who want to take it professionally; people who want to do music on a long-scale level. So, that’s the essence of the event,” he said.
The talent hunt began over a month ago with over 15 participants who registered either online or physically with a token registration fee of N2,000 per participant. Since then, it has gone through several stages before getting to the grand finale.
The first round had the participants auditioning in a music studio in Benin City, followed by the elimination stage where they had to perform their original songs that produced eight contestants for the grand finale.
The grand finale of the show was judged by Yoma, Kidda X, Ndidi and Stunna, according to Mr. Omorotionmwan.
He said the three finalists would be entitled to a free management of their musical talent as well as engagement with their music career.
The event, which was sponsored by many brands including Edojobs, Golden Penny Foods, Martini, Edo Film Festival, and Edo Gist, featured dance choreography by God of Dance, comic relief by Prophetic, as well as a musical performance from the eight finalists.
The audiences were also swept off their feet by musical performances from artistes Harry Carter, Taeliredd, Sabi Boy – Magiq, Dr Karma, saxophonist and flute player Precious, and many others.
The highlight of the event was the announcement of the three finalists of the talent hunt show. Razzy was announced as the winner, Zelda as the first runner-up, and Kaylah as the second runner-up.
The event was attended by some big names in the entertainment industry as well as students from various higher institutions across Edo State.
