The invitation cards for the first Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards were as much in demand as one would wish for an oil block from President Jonathan. And if getting an oil block is so easy in Nigeria, then it means those of us who received the beautiful and well-packaged jewel- encrusted invitations with an ATM-cloned VIP card attached, got our 'allocations' for the event quite easily. One good thing the card did for whoever got it; it made one feel special and honoured. On that level of planning, the organisers deserve an 'A plus'.
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The night was one of glamour, glitz, fun and little screw-ups: at least to the discerning eye present in the hall. I was among many of the invited guests from Nigeria and other parts of Africa; a mix of the artistes, business men, government officials and perhaps the usual event crashers. Almost everyone present looked dapper and dazzling, with fashion designers having a field day for this event, I can bet my last buck on that!
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The venue, Eko Hotel and Suites, was the perfect event centre for this show. The ambience of hospitality could be felt as guests trooped in. There was much mingling and lots of greetings and hugging going on with almost everybody looking so resplendent, it seemed surreal!
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With guests seated inside the hall, the show kicked off at exactly 7pm. I must commend the MNET team and the broadcast crew for the strict time-keeping.
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There was no silly 'African Time'. It showed the guys meant business and those who came late were either asked to lounge a bit at the built-in bar at the foyer or had to wait a bit for the commercial breaks before they were allowed entry.
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I'm sure millions of people watched the live broadcast on satellite television so I need not explain much. However, inside the hall, what you saw in your homes must have been a well-packaged broadcast?
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Because I was following trends on Twitter and Facebook about the live show and many people were twitting that it was 'like the Oscars in Africa!'. Really?
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I will point out the good, the bad and the ridiculous in my opinion of the whole show in no particular order; irrespective of whose ox is gored.
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I got into the hall about ten minutes to the live broadcast and sat down in the middle row, facing the stage. I do not know if the audience in the hall were told by the floor managers before I got in that being a live show, they should expect a long stretch of breaks in between the show which to the viewers at home was packaged as commercial breaks with sponsors messages. To many in the hall, there were murmurs about what was going on during the first couple of breaks. Many in the hall thought there were hitches in the planning until they were brought up to speed by the very talented IK, the presenter, who mercifully did a few stand -up acts for the audience to keep them concentrated on the mood of the live broadcast. I would have thought that in between those breaks, for the benefit of the 'studio audience', some three minute entertainment should have been arranged.
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The performance by Femi Kuti ,who was the first musician of the night, was quite pulsating. Some who sat next to me wondered why Femi Kuti would start a show of such magnitude with a lewd song like 'Bang, Bang, Bang'. Thinking about it, I think it was better he sang 'Bang, Bang, Bang' than the politically- charged songs like 'I sorry for Nigeria' which would have been disastrous and out of place, being that the show was being broadcast to fifty-two countries! I have seen Femi live on stage many times over the past twenty years and he's always a great performer.
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However, at the awards, he seemed restrained and lacked the energy his stagecraft is known for. It was as if, true to his song, he had been 'banged' out of his performance mojo. He just gave an average performance and left. The guy next to me whispered;
'Na so? Dem pay am. He 'Bang, Bang, Bang' collect money and waka go?'. I didn't know what to make of that statement but Femi Kuti made amends at the end of the show when he came back to perform.
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The trio of the Federal Ministers, High Chief Edem Duke, Olusegun Aganga and Diezani Allison- Madueke, all gave a good account of themselves in their speeches. Judging them on composure and oratory, Duke and Aganga were masterful and inspiring, although High Chief Duke took a bit longer than necessary. Mrs Allison-Madueke read a good speech like a trained newscaster on behalf of the President of the Federal Republic. Someone could tell her that a little smile here and there won't hurt her appearance in such events. There's a difference between reading a speech at a Petroleum Forum and reading one at an Entertainment Award Night. In the former, one can be all sour-puss and scowls but for an event like the AMVCA, a loosening up of the facial muscles is required! Duke and Aganga did very well in that regard. None-the-less, the three Ministers showed last night why they are assets to the Presidency. Some other government representatives would have fumbled with long, boring and drone like speeches.
The Award was great. So many celebrity showed up to respect the great initiative. Can't wait for when next it'll come up