Twenty-six-year-old lawyer, singer and songwriter Victory Gbakara hugged the limelight on Sunday, 16 July 2023 when he emerged winner of Season 8 of reality TV singing competition Nigerian Idol after besting fellow finalist Precious Mac from Bayelsa State.
The Law graduate of Benson Idahosa University (BIU) who hails from Usiefrun town in Ughievwen Kingdom, Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, walked away with N35m cash, a brand new SUV, one Bigi Refrigerator and one year’s supply of Bigi soft drink, an all-expense paid trip courtesy of Tecno, a music record deal by a reputable label that will include a video shoot, one-year supply of WAW detergent, and a fully installed DStv Explora with one year of Premium subscription.
In a congratulatory message, Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, who described him as a true son and proud ambassador of the state, said “beyond the prize money, Victory reached for greatness with his God-given talent and distinguished himself as a future star and role model and we are very happy to have him bring honour to our state once again”.
But Victory’s journey to victory was not an easy one as it had taken eight highly competitive weeks to reach the finishing line.
“The journey was tasking mentally as well as physically. Nigerian Idol, as much as they make us very comfortable, they also don’t want to make us so pleased that we forget it is a battle here and out there. So, they try to prepare us mentally and physically as much as possible,” said the 26-year-old in an interview with Premium Times.
From over 10,000 auditioners who started the journey, the number of contestants was whittled down to 29 before further dropping to the top 10 contenders – and Victory was right there at the end to clinch the highly coveted grand prize.
The singer, who has several singles to his name, auditioned with the song “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars, which caught the attention of the judges through the exceptionality and uniqueness of his vocals. With that awesome performance, he had earned himself a spot in the competition.
But the battle was far from won. He had to perform several songs by talented musicians, including “Blessed” by Wizkid and “Prisoners” by Reggae legend Lucky Dube, in the weeks that followed.
The final battle for the grand prize was between Victory and Precious Mac, and Victory, son of the founder of God’s Will Mission, Archbishop Solomon Gbakara, was declared winner of the competition after the results of votes across the country were announced during the grand finale.
“It was tasking. You must be motivated to go through something as rigorous as that. I’m just grateful that God gave me all of this. It’s a blessing. I had no idea I was going to win. Nigerian Idol is very competitive. I was hoping and praying,” Victory said.
He now joins the league of other Nigerian Idol winners, including Timi Dakolo, Mercy Chinwo, Kingdom, Omawumi, and Progress Chukwuyem, his fellow Deltan, who won Season 7 of the competition.
