Toke Makinwa has built one of the most remarkable careers in modern broadcasting; using her work on radio, her Vlogs, and TV shows to build a brand that continues to grow.
Very few OAPs get to cross over successfully to TV. None, in recent times, has a book to their name.
Toke will bring plenty insight to the panel discussions at #NECLive5. Register for the conference here.
Alex Okosi is the driving force behind Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) Africa, home to Viacom’s powerhouse entertainment brands MTV Base, MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., NickToons, VH1 Classic and BET on the African continent.
An 18-year veteran of the entertainment industry on 3 continents, with a broad background in marketing, affiliate sales, events, strategy and management, Okosi achieved a personal and industry milestone when he launched MTV Base, MTV’s 100th channel internationally, and Africa’s first bespoke MTV channel on 22 February 2005. His tenacity and belief in Africa soon paid significant dividends. VIMN Africa has become Viacom’s fastest growing international operation in terms of revenue growth – thanks to the rapid expansion of its footprint across Africa as a multi-portfolio brand distributed on multiple platforms including pay-TV, FTA, internet, SVOD and mobile platforms. Now in its thirteenth year, VIMN Africa delivers more channels to Africa than any other international network. Its collective footprint reaches 52 territories and more than 100 million viewers.
Appointed Senior Vice President and Managing Director of VIMN Africa in July 2007, Okosi’s association with the company goes back to 1998 when he joined the sponsorship development and trade marketing team in New York, before becoming part of the MTV Networks Affiliate Sales and Marketing division in Los Angeles in 2000. By mid-2003, Okosi had transferred to MTV Networks International’s Strategy and Business Development team in London where he developed the business plan for MTV’s expansion into Africa and, in 2004, secured approval for the roll-out of Viacom’s localized play in Africa with the launch of MTV Base in 2005.
Okosi’s vision has always been to develop content and experiences for audiences that not only entertain and showcase the best of African music and entertainment, but also serve to socially empower audiences in Africa and around the world. As Africans, he believes, we have to keep living the mission of showing a “reimagined Africa” to the world. A tireless supporter of initiatives that motivate, empower and educate Africa’s youth, Okosi is recognized as an influential figure on the continent and was also named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2013.
Okosi managed the growth and development of the MTV Africa Music Awards (MAMA) – the largest celebration of African music and achievement on the continent. Launched in 2008, with an Africa reimagined narrative, the annual awards franchise has given top African artists a continental and international platform to raise their profiles. In 2015 he was instrumental in bringing the BET Experience to Africa for the first time. This successful BET franchise celebrates the rich and varied faces of the urban lifestyle experience under one roof.
Born in Nigeria, at the age of 12, Okosi moved to the US where he was educated at the Philips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire and attended St Michael’s College in Vermont on a full basketball scholarship before graduating magna cum laude with a double major in Business Administration and Economics.
In March 2017, Okosi was appointed to Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Viacom International Media Networks Africa.
Okosi is based in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Follow Alex Okosi on Twitter @A_Okosi
Some of Nigeria’s leading comedians have signed up for the fifth edition of Nigerian entertainment conference holding in Lagos on April 26, 2017.
Now in its fifth year, NECLive is the umbrella conference for the entertainment industry in Nigeria, providing an opportunity for strategic discussions, and a marketplace for ideas, products and services.
The organisers say this year’s edition will focus on how Nigerian entertainment, and indeed entertainment from Africa is finding renewed favour with fans at home, and the world over.
In 2016, Nollywood movies surpassed Hollywood and Bollywood in cinema earnings and the share of customer voice, in Nigeria. Nigerian music finally went global, riding on the back of our peculiar pop music, and nomadic musicians. The world’s attention has understandably shifted to Africa with funders, labels, producers, and awards looking to play within the region. Nigeria is at the fore of this new wave, but places like Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania and Ghana are equally well positioned.
Has the time come for Africa to provide entertainment for the major percentage of the world’s 7 billion people? They say we tell a different kind of story in Africa; we have a rare, peculiar sound. And they’re buying it from America to London and Singapore. Back home, the booming youth populations are also more interested in local content like never before. From Iroko to Mavin and Africa Magic, the numbers show audiences on the continent are increasingly embracing our creativity; millions are choosing their own local entertainment over the imported.
But the diverse entertainment industries are still struggling. The structure to rip the dividend of the boom continues to lie comatose. From weak government policies to unsustainable business models, it appears we have plenty work to do, if we are to benefit from what’s coming in significant ways. It could indeed be time for Africa. But what does this mean for the industry players? What do we need to know? To do? And how can we make sure we do not collectively miss this opportunity?
One of the industries leading that change is comedy, and NECLive5 will feature some of the most important players in the sector, from pathfinders Ali Baba and Opa Williams, to trail blazers Basketmouth, Basorge Tariah, Tee A, Frank Donga, and Teju Babyface. This year will feature a workshop on comedy, featuring established and fast rising acts.
Happening just a month before the recently announced Eko Comedy Festival, NECLive is placing a well-deserved attention to an industry best described, just like Nollywood, as a rose that grew out of concrete.
‘Our comedians are superstars everywhere. From Mr. Ibu to Aki n Paw Paw, Bovi, I go Dye, Baba Suwe, Basketmouth, Ali Baba, Tee A, Okon, Gbenga Adeyinka, Julius Agwu and Gandoki. They’ve carved out a sub-industry, groomed it, expanded it, and exported it with little support from government or organisation. They’ve dominated stand up, TV, music, and now they’re redefining home entertainment through what the likes of AY, Kayode Peters, Bunmi Davies and others a doing in Nollywood. It’s time to revisit how it all started, discuss what their individual and collective successes mean for the rest of the industry and our continent, take lessons from what’s worked and what’s not, and design a path to a good future’, conference founder Ayeni Adekunle said today.
NECLive5 will hold at Landmark Events Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Wednesday April 26, 2017. The conference will be hosted by Tee A, for the fifth year running.
The fifth edition of Nigerian Entertainment Conference, NECLive, will hold in Lagos on Wednesday April 26, 2017, according to an announcement by the organisers today.
NECLive, the umbrella conference for the entertainment sector in Nigeria has featured many musicians over the years: 2face Idibia has been a speaker, Davido has recorded a track live on stage, Banky W has delivered a critically-acclaimed paper, Dbanj has given a presentation and performed, while many others – from Falz to Tiwa Savage, Darey, M.I, Lagbaja, eLDee, and Dr. SID – have made remarkable contributions to lead panels over the years.
Now, Nigerian musicians are set to take the stage again, as NECLive enters year five.
According to information revealed today, the trio of Adewale Ayuba, Sir Shina Peters, and Daddy Showkey have been confirmed to lead musicians of different generations to this year’s conference holding at Landmark Events Centre, in Lagos, on Wednesday April 26, 2017.
All three music icons will make their debut at the conference, to join other participants in discussing the past, present and future of Nigerian music and how Africa, indeed, can use the opportunity the recent interest in Nigerian sound presents.
Raised in Ajegunle, a notorious Lagos ghetto, Daddy Showkey fought poverty and misdemeanour to emerge a national music star, and inspiration to millions of young people across the country. Starting off as a boxer and acrobat, after he had enjoyed brief fame as a kid star, featuring in FESTAC 77, Showkey formed different groups with neighbourhood friends, before settling for a solo career in 1995. His deep, screaming dancehall voice, his acrobatic dance routines and ghetto stories soon won him millions of fans everywhere, changing his life for good and focusing the nation’s attention on talents from hitherto ignored areas. Showkey now devotes his time mentoring ghettos kids, supporting upcoming musicians, and encouraging successful Nigerians to share their stories and hold the ladder for otherwise hopeless kids.
Shina Peters, a multi-instrumentalist, singer, bandleader and performer, took Juju music from Ebenezer Obey and King Sunny Ade, and gave it a complete overhaul, introducing what he termed ‘Afro Juju’. Using unusually fast tempo, excess percussions, electric drums, and new languages, he sold an art form hitherto reserved for the mature and the old, to younger audiences; he lured young boys and girls to a genre that was mostly patronized by older men only.
Sir Shina Peters built his entire career on doing new things. From being a band member with Prince Adekunle, to being the musician while Segun Adewale sang, in their band ‘Sir Shina Adewale, SSP worked his way up rising to new challenges and happening to do what was deemed impossible.
Many years after he’s talked about his platinum records, big money hits, career setbacks, industry politics, and many more in his music and interviews, he will now take the stage at NECLive on April 26, 2017, to share his story with the world, in what will be first-of-its-kind for a musician in his category.
Ayuba and Shina Peters released their career-defining albums around the same time, in 1989. While Shina’s ‘Ace’ took over homes and parties, Ayuba was grabbing everyone’s attention with a new twist to Fuji music, called ‘Bonsue. It was KWAM 1, the former Ayinde Barrister band boy that began leading the genre to new audiences in the early 80s. But Ayuba, good-looking, soft-spoken, yet philosophical and bold, that recruited a new kind of elite to the music: the working class young men and women usually reluctant to identify with a music form that came from the streets.
All three musicians created new markets for their genres, opened new opportunities, and built brands that have stood the test of time, in spite of many documented set backs. How did they do it? What lessons are inherent? And now that the world is opening up to our music and musicians again, what do we need to learn from them?
Showkey, Ayuba and Shina will be joined by other music experts at NECLive, including hit-maker ID Cabasa, super producer Cobhams Asuquo, Uk-based promoter Corey Johnson, Nigerian promoter Cecil Hammond, band leader Akin Shuga, former talent manager, Lolu Durojaiye, and many others.
The theme for this year’s conference is ‘It’s Time for Africa’.
In 2016, Nollywood movies surpassed Hollywood and Bollywood in cinema earnings and the share of customer voice, in Nigeria. Nigerian music finally went global, riding on the back of our peculiar pop music, and nomadic musicians. The world’s attention has understandably shifted to Africa with funders, labels, producers, and awards looking to play within the region. Nigeria is at the fore of this new wave, but places like Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania and Ghana are equally well positioned.
Has the time come for Africa to provide entertainment for the major percentage of the world’s 7 billion people? They say we tell a different kind of story in Africa; we have a rare, peculiar sound. And they’re buying it from America to London and Singapore. Back home, the booming youth populations are also more interested in local content like never before. From Iroko to Mavin and Africa Magic, the numbers show audiences on the continent are increasingly embracing our creativity; millions are choosing their own local entertainment over the imported.
But the diverse entertainment industries are still struggling. The structure to rip the dividend of the boom continues to lie comatose. From weak government policies to unsustainable business models, it appears we have plenty work to do, if we are to benefit from what’s coming in significant ways. It could indeed be time for Africa. But what does this mean for the industry players? What do we need to know? To do? And how can we make sure we do not collectively miss this opportunity?
NECLive is organised By Thenetng, with support from Multichoice, MTN, Newsroom Nigeria, Hip TV, MTV Base, AV Edge, EDS, Sodium Group, First Class Incorporated, ID Africa, TNS, 234 Stars, BHM and Edi Lawani & Associates.
NECLive will be hosted by Tee A, for the fifth year running.
In 2016, Nollywood movies surpassed Hollywood and Bollywood in cinema earnings and share of customer engagement, in Nigeria.
Nigerian music finally went global, riding on the back of our peculiar pop music, and nomadic musicians like Wizkid.
The world’s attention has understandably shifted here, with funders, labels, producers, and awards looking to now play big in the region.
Nigeria is at the fore of this new wave, but places like Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana and co are as well positioned. Has the time come for Africa to provide entertainment for the huge chunk of the world’s 7 billion people?
They say we tell a different kind of story, they say we have a rare, peculiar sound. And they’re buying it- from America to London and Singapore. Back home, the booming youth population is also more interested in local content like never before. From Iroko to Mavin and Africa Magic, the numbers show audiences on the continent are increasingly embracing our creativity; millions are choosing their own local entertainment over the imported.
But the industries are still nothing to write home about. The structures to rip the dividend of the boom continue to lie comatose. From government policies to business models, it appears we have plenty work to do, if we are to benefit from what’s coming in significant ways.
It could indeed be time for Africa. But what does this mean for the industry players? What do we need to know? To do? How can we make sure we do not miss this opportunity?
On April 20, 2016, Nigerians came together for the fourth edition of the Nigerian Entertainment Conference (NECLive 4) to discuss how entertainment can rebuild Nigeria’s wavering economy.
#NECLive4 featured an interesting line-up of professionals not only from the entertainment industry but from all works of life to serve as panelists and moderators who gave insights from the business and creative sides of the entertainment world and how the industry can revamp the economy of Africa’s most populous country.
The 4th edition of the Nigerian Entertainment Conference, which held at Victoria Island, Lagos was expected to attract about 2,500 Nigerians from different parts of the country.
Between April 19 and April 22, 2016, #NEClive4 drew in over 12,000,000 people online.
Themed Entertainment As Last Hope For Africa’s Largest Economy, the recently concluded #NEClive4 event attracted 2,749 people on site on April 20.
Some of the panelists and moderators that graced the event include CEO 141 Worldwide, Olubunmi Oke, Founder Spot Studio, Sebastian Paszek, Nigerian conceptual designer, Kayode Olowu, Director, Public Affairs, Nigerian Communications Commission, Tony Ojobo, Tiwa Savage, TY Bello, Gbemi Olateru-Olagbegi, Kaffy Shafau Ameh, amongst others.
Ayeni Adekunle, founder of the Nigerian Entertainment Conference delivered a welcome address Entertainment as Last Hope for Africa’s Largest Economy.
D’Banj, Banky W and Funke Akindele who were speakers at the event gave intellectual presentations titled Content as the New Crude, the Power of Music & Comedy, and the Economy of Talents respectively.
CEO Braincraft, Olatunde Falase provided an in-depth analysis of Emerging Global Business & Disruptive Models while Managing Director of MultiChoice Nigeria, John Ugbe discussed Case Studies of Intervention Strategies.
In 48 hours, #NEClive4, which was a top trending topic on Twitter, gathered over 62 million impressions on Twitter and Instagram from 1,000 users across Nigeria.
Some of the brands, platforms and individuals who contributed to the #NEClive4 conversation include MTN, The Guardian, Bella Naija, The Cable, This Day, Funke Bucknor-Obruthe, Wofai Ifada amongst others.
Nigeria wasn’t the only country interested in NECLive 4. 11 other countries including Ghana, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Canada, Britain, Iran, Italy, Sweden, Netherlands, Poland, and U.S.A joined the conference via television and livestream on social media.
The infographic below summarizes NECLive 4 in numbers.
Download the full report here.
Popular comedian, Bovi Ugboma, better known by his stage name Bovi, has pleaded with Nigerians to be patient and allow the Buhari-led government implement its plans and agenda for the country.
He said there hadn’t been any government Nigerians didn’t have to groan about.
The rib cracker spoke with newsmen at the ongoing Nigerian Entertainment Conference in Lagos state.
According to him, “I think they need time. Every government has issues like this when they are just starting out. There are always strong and weak points of setting up government.
“There is no government we’ve had that people don’t complain in Nigeria so it is all part of democracy.
“I believe they really deserve to be given time.
“I don’t think anyone goes into government with the sole intention to make his people suffer,” the father of two added.
This post first appeared on dailypost
So many Nigerian celebrities including Banky W, Funke Akindele and Tiwa Savage, gathered in Lagos at the recently held Nigerian Entertainment Conference 2016 to share some of their wealth of experience.
In his speech, Banky W said that the structure of the music business in Nigeria needs a lot of fixing while sharing his thoughts on ‘Content Marketing: The Power of Music, Comedy& More.’
The singer said, “I think that the structure of the music business in general needs a lot of fixing in Nigeria. We all need to come together and fix the structure. Everybody in the industry values change.
“Yes the artiste records but the producers should also get money on the back-end. They should be getting royalties for every of their music that is played. I always like to use 9ice’s Gongo Aso album as example. In my opinion, it’s one of the best albums that have ever come out of Nigeria in our history. I think the producer that worked on it, ID Cabasa, should be getting royalty from the album. His children’s children should be paid from every song he has produced.”
Akindele deliberated on ‘Economy of Talent: Using the Entertainment Industry to Rebuild Nigeria,’ and urged Nigerian celebrities to work harder.
“I believe structure matters a lot. How many celebrities have lawyers, good managers, and offices? Do we have websites? How big are we online? How are we imparting on people’s lives? What can they see us giving back to the society? In all, I just want us to work harder and together as a team. We all have talent and we should come together and also help the up and coming ones. Do not wait for the government. When you work hard and you are good at what you do, people will look for you,” she said.
While speaking on difficulties many Nigerian artistes go through in order to promote their content, the Eminado singer and Mavin first lady, Tiwa Savage, said, “I was in the UK recently. They have people called, music pluggers. These people are professionals who help artistes plug their songs on radio and also ensure that the songs get enough airplay. But here in Nigeria, we artistes have to take our CDs to radio stations ourselves. We tend to build relationships with OAPs and DJs. We always ensure that we send messages to them on their birthdays because many of us believe that if we don’t do that, they might not play our songs.”
Other panelists that spoke at the event include, Kemi Adetiba, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, Bovi, Falz, Timi Dakolo and TY Bello.
This post first appeared on punchng
Investment banking expert and Chairman, Dunn Loren Merrifield Group, Sonnie Ayere has called for extensive government support to the entertainment industry in Nigeria.
Ayere while speaking at Nigerian Entertainment Conference#NECLive4 during the lead panel session on ‘Restructuring the entertainment industry as ‘last hope’ for Africa’s largest economy’, he opined “while we note the growing government support, much more can be done as an estimated 80% of funding in Nigeria’s entertainment industry still comes from personal funding and from groups within the industry.
The role of government cannot be over emphasized by providing adequate support for a structured environment, aiding the business of entertainment to thrive”.
“The remarkable performance of the entertainment industry which is essentially private sector driven can be further explored through strategic partnerships with the government to boost economic growth”.
Sonnie Ayere also highlighted that opportunities within the Nigerian entertainment industry have not been fully harnessed due to the huge fund requirements for its operations. “With a sustainable structure in place, the nation’s capital market could become a source of funding for the industry in the medium term. This supports the need to improve engagement in the creative industry through strategic funding and provision of intervention funds” he added.
This post first appeared on Vanguard Nigeria
Popular comedian, Gbenga Adeyinka D 1st, has opined that entertainers should take ownership rather than waiting for government to help build the Nigerian entertainment industry.
Speaking as a panelist at the just concluded 4th edition of Nigerian Entertainment Conference (NECLive4), the University of Lagos graduate said, ‘I don’t believe that government should do this for us. I believe we should all individually build our structures. I would say we should take ownership.’
He added: ‘There are still entertainers who collect money for shows in cash, put it in their cars, spend it; and then go to bank and the bank says how much are you worth, they say oh, I make about 10 million every month and they say show me and there’s no record.
‘Everything has to be documented, everything has to be done right. In Nigeria new things will always come. Tomorrow, there will be Falz The Good Guy, whether you like it or not. But what have you done as Falz The Bahd Guy? Have you monetized enough? Have you built enough structure?’
Like Gbenga Adeyinka, Funke Akindele, Falz The Bahd Guy and Timi Dakolo also shared their thoughts on why entertainers should not depend on government at the conference.
This post first appeared on theNETng