1st group were very good, i don't know what the organizers where thinking of but they put very good 6 singers in that group, only to have 6 average (and below average) performers in the next group.
I think the top 2 in group went in deservedly but it was a tough call, Lara (Bajomo) George is already an established performer, with KUSH she had performed for a number of years, she has an edge over all the other contestants and i think people won't forget this when voting, at a time this would affect her.
2nd group was simply not in class of the 1st, I think Jarry was simply unlucky, and his choice of clothing was a sad one. Even Nana(the female judge) commented on his looks not being an advantage, i think an idol also needs the looks not just the voice. Eric gave us a good performance, and on the night of not so great performances, his was relatively good. Jerrilyn (for the avid watchers) would always scale through as long as she doesn't sing off key. Her history sends the shivers down many spines and the sentiments would always play a part, she would make a nice poster girl for what Idol west Africa is all about -from grass to grace. She can only be her own undoing, cos if you ask me, Oge's performance was far better.
As for 3rd group - Ama for all her great looks, didn't have a lovely night, maybe it was the crowd or the occasion but she faltered from the word go, Ernst and Mercy did do well and choosing between the two (for me) was hard.
but undoubtedly, the Lady of the competition so far is Jodie, She's been impressive right from her 1st auditioning, and at top 80 cut, she was fantastic, drawing a standing ovation from her peers. I think she's the one to beat
We'll see what the 4th group has to offer come weekend.
But i hope to see Lara win a wildcard.
Ta

gush, i luv goin on d website, especially d auditions, n d worst auditions r just too funny man!, but i lyk d site, but i just cant stand dat dede guy of a judge, he is just too annoying, i wud say he is tryin hard to be lyk simon cowelll, well, he tried but he is just annoying. lol, d rest of d judges r ayt doe.

Well to me i dont think the show'd be that interesting without Dede on it. Thats just my own opinion.

I wish I could watch Idols on Nigerian television. Anyway, I would have preferred the American judge in Dede's role.

I agree!!!

Dede dosent even know a thing about good music cos he is wack on his own side when it comes to music. What amazes me is "who the Bleep made him a judge" he is just too anoying.

Hi Idols Fans!

Wasn’t the last Group amazing? Here’s their performance clips for your viewing pleasure…

http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_top24_g4_tony_st_100k.wmv


http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_top24_g4_temitayo_st_100k.wmv


http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_top24_g4_omodele_st_100k.wmv


http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_top24_g4_joan_st_100k.wmv


http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_top24_g4_james_st_100k.wmv


http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_top24_g4_sokari_st_100k.wmv

Voting closes at 12:00 noon!

Tapuwa

HAHa lol i watched Idol west africa and i laughed my ass off dat day, it was freaking hilarious, D naija judge pisses m off cuz hes overdoin his reactions, i luv d Ghanian woman shes sooooo niceee the other guy where is he 4rm?? OMG I believe i can fry!!!!! I believe Michael fly Smook da thug!!!! duh this is crazeee but hilarious i love it!!!!!!!!!

D good ones were rare I THOT D WHOILE OF NAIJA HAD TALENT!!!!! WAT D HELL HAPPENED!!!!

so very disappointed those ignorant judges left lara george out of the wildcard selection. not surprised though as none of them really understand and know a good music/voice when they hear one. yeye pple

Hi people,

I missed today's selection process. Which two made it from group 4 and who are the two wildcards?

Thanks.

Joan and Temitayo made it from group 4 and Uche from group 1 and Omodele from group 4 got the wildcards. they totally robbed the best deseved i.e Lara George out of that one sa. So unfair!

Well, the votes are in and we now know who the Top10 contenders for West African Idols are. But, my word, it was a truly shocking results show yesterday with two totally unknown quantities making it into the top10. following from Sunday’s show when Group 4 performed their hearts out, Africa voted pretty predictably. Tony Ighofose performed ‘More than words’ by Extreme with a certain endearing appeal that would have been good enough to see him into the Top10 if he had been in Group 2 or 3. Unfortunately for him though, no one remembered his performance by the time Omodele Fatoki was done with her award-nite worthy performance of Wet Wet Wet’s “love is all around.” Moving with graceful ease on the stage she seemed totally at home as she belted out the popular tune with some major variations that gave the song new allure.

Then came Miss Sokari Briggs, Group 4’s hottest looker singing Shania Twain’s “Still the one.” During her interview, Africa saw a singer they could be proud of. She had great looks and her speech was flawless; she was very articulate and actually convinced me to vote for her before I had heard her sing a note. One could easily imagine her on TRL or on Oprah’s yellow couch and not be scared that she’d mix up her tenses on international television. But the singing didn’t exactly come together for her. Despite hitting a couple of brilliant highs in a performance that hinted of true talent and of great things to come, on the night a surprisingly shaky voice that had too many squeaks ended her dream of becoming West Africa’s first Idol.

I had been waiting all month long to see James Brendan perform at Planet One. His performance during the open auditions had me seriously considering him for the final three. Singing Backstreet Boys’ “Show me the meaning of being lonely” he gave a credible performance but regrettably did nothing special to compel Africa to remember to vote for him. Banking on his “ladykiller looks” to get him top of mind recall was the wrong strategy and he paid for it dearly. His exit was painful for me because I believe he actually had the best male voice in the top24.

Joan Ekpai had me in stitches during her open audition as, despite having a clear-as-a-bell voice, she seemed not to know the lyrics of Celine Dion’s “I’m Alive.” Luckily the judges didn’t hold this against her as they were blown away by the sheer purity of her voice. On Performance night she got the perfect song for her voice: Show me heaven by Maria Mckee. According to Dan Foster, if you shut your eyes during her performance you’d have heard Celine Dion, Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston all rolled into Joan Ekpai. For singing, her performance on the night was without equal.

But for sheer drama, the night belonged to Temitayo George singing Vonda Shepard’s “Searching my soul.” The cowgirl costume got Africa to take notice while the rambunctiously suggestive dance moves got them to remember to vote. We heard better singing on the night but the Idols thing is about the whole package and the performance helped her get the votes in. It was thus no surprise that she made it into the Top10 alongside the best singer of the night: Joan Ekpai.

Then it was wildcard time. Two people from the remaining sixteen were to join the eight already in the final round. Considering Omodele Fatoki’s brilliant performance and having not seen her voted into the top10, I thought the judges would be silly not to give her a wildcard, cos, that girl can sing the stuffing out of any song you give her. So when her name was called as the first wildcard, I knew the judges were thinking straight for once.
But then they turned right around and showed their capacity for inexplicable decisions with their choice of the second wildcard. My money was on Lara George for her unbelievable performance of Celine Dion’s “It’s all coming back to me now” that has been hailed by the international press as being easily the equal of (if not better than) the original rendition. Even Celine Dion was said to have been so impressed when she saw the performance that she has shown some interest in meeting Lara. Just listen to the audio of that performance without watching the video, and you’ll hear one of the most flawless renditions of that song to come from a non-Celine Dion throat.

Mike Magic succeeded for the first time in creating mind-thumping, edge-of-the-seat suspense by parading the entire fifteen remaining contestants and sending those from groups 2 and 3 away empty-handed. When the contestants from Group 1 took the stage, the tension was palpable as everyone knew the wildcard had to come from this group. Incredibly, Uche was announced as the wildcard, and I’m like “Hello? Where did that come from?” For those who might have forgotten, Uche did a pretty good job with Monica’s ‘Angel of Mine’ from the first week of Top24 performances. But he was nowhere near Lara’s class. He wasn’t even within shouting distance of Ibitoru’s mind-blowing performance that night. He then proceeded to turn the stage into a revival ground with repeated shouts of Glory to God delivered in true televangelist fashion.

We have come to understand that the mindblowing decision was a measure to try and even out the gender imbalance in the Top10. Had Lara gotten the wildcard, there would have been seven females and three males in the Top10, so they had to sacrifice talent for gender balance and I think that sucks royally. Even if the fact that Lara is a somewhat ‘established’ singer was held against her, there were people who did better than Uche, truth be told.

Anyways, we cannot argue with the judges as their decision is final. But at least we have our own opinions of the judges to console us, if you know what I mean.

So folks, there you have the Top10. Irrepresible Omawumi, hot Timi, GQ-esque Eric, sentimental Jerrilyn, majestic Mercy, unbelievable Jodie, clear-voiced Joan, theatrical Temitayo, born-to-sing Omodele and lucky Uche. Let see what they’ve got as they bring their game come Sunday.
See y’all then.

Lawyerchap, what can I say? Your powers of summary/incisive analysis are awesome. If I ever need a lawyer for a case I'll choose you. ( assuming you are actually a lawyer).

Anyway the fact that Lara George was left out was terrible, I hope the judges can live with themselves after that. It sort of diminishes the impact of the judges' impartiality for me.Anyway let's see how it goes.

sure that dede was behind not selecting lara george. he is jealouse of her achievements and the fact that he cannot match the lady up in the singing biz. foolish man that all he's got as a musical pedigree is copying fela. and the other judges then are dunces who don't seem to have a mind of their own!

I had posted earlier that Lara being a success already with KUSH was going to be her undoing!
Idols West Africa especially this being the first edition would seeking a perfect poster person, That is a definite as they come, someone with an African story, good looks, remember able performances and a presentable voice.
Its obvious already; Some great voices along with Lara did not make the top ten for not making up in other areas, Jarry & Oge [on my scale] performed better than jerrilyn in group 2.
Ernst from Ghana [group 3] had a better performance then Uche [group 1] relatively.
Brilliant Ibitoru had set high standards being the first performer, but i guess an over made up mother of 2 without a precise vocation might not appeal to the rest of the world.
But Africa still has a top ten thats worth it, Jodie and Omawunmi make my favorite 2 for the title, Timi i feel is the strong contender, Jerillyn is the perfect poster girl with her story, she needs an okay performance to make it.
Temitayo hasn't proven her voice capabilities, and when she gets to sing a song which doesn't require booty shaking, we'll know her true worth.
Can't wait till sunday!

West African Idols are the best thing after half & half and Eve! I'm a South African but didn't get to see our ones, I wonder if the contestants were this funny, ? Dede is the best, big up to Nigerians! But guys it's was though for the top 24. You could never tell who was going to make it in the last 4. I wonder what the top 10 has for us, ? I'm looking forward to it,

I'm so so happy. I got tickets to the next stage of West African idols at Planet One, Spectacular. I'm i not just lucky.

Remember to get good pictures

@lawyer chap

great analysis, let's see how Sunday plays out.
since they have promised us better styling, stage , effects and the works

So far with the whole West African Idol of a thing, I have a problem with Dede.

Dear Nairalanders,

Here's your weekly dose of Idols video, the Top 10 perfromances, enjoy!

http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_jerrilyn_3_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_joan_4_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_jodie_8_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_eric_9_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_timi_7_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_uche_6_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_temitayo_1_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_omawumi_10_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_omodele_5_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_mercy1_2_100k.wmv

Hot or Not? Guys, guys, guys,  Is Jodie to die for or what? Damn! That Chick gives me goose bumps![color=#990000][/color][b][/b][i][/i] Who do you think will be eliminated? Who do you think was the weekest link last night? West African Idols get better by the day!

Weakest link for me is Jerrilyn. I think Omodele is better but I am not sure if she has a fan base yet, so she might go before Jerrilyn. I also feel Mercy has a great voice, but lacks a certain connection with the audience. She sings very much as if she is alone and does not know how to hold the audience. The best at grabbing the audience and opening himself up emotionally is Timi when he performs. He is very unique in his performances. Eric tries but comes across for me as too smooth and Uche was very good last night, a lot of charisma and charm. Joan last week was fantastic and connected more with the audience. Temitayo great performer, not too sure if her voice is so great. Omawumi good performer, need to hear both of them do a ballad next.

i agree with you.

@thabs

I concur
my thots exactly

jerrilyn is most likely riding on sentiments, she sings the same all the time.one never gets to hear the full range of her voice
whilst temi has such great personality in her performance that it overshadows the flaws in her voice

lack of a fan base worked against modele
all that girl needs is a good producer and the rest is history


I'd like to see more tasking performances like duets, group songs and performances
even performances with live instruments

The first spectacular lived up to its name in set design, lighting and camera work, but not quite in performances. Sure enough, there were quite a few notable performances on the night, I mean, you can always count on Jodie, Timi and Omawumi to bring the house down. But it was a night on which everyone punched way below their respective weights, perhaps with the exception of Jerrilyn who gave probably her best performance (but which is really not saying much).

Temitayo opened with a rousing performance of Tina Turner’s River Deep, Mountain High. It was a brilliant impersonation of the world’s sexiest grandmother. She played to her greatest strength, the ability to sing and engage her audience with lots of movement. She is particularly good at picking songs that do not require a particularly good voice to render and relies on lots of booty shaking to get her votes in. Plus, I suspect there’s a “fan club” (a.k.a voting syndicate) behind Temitayo. But the performance rocked the house and set the tone for the night.

That performance was always going to be tough to follow and Mercy had the distinct ill-fortune of coming on next. Singing Whitney Houston’s I have nothing, from The Bodyguard Soundtrack, Mercy disappointed everyone who saw her breathtaking rendition of Sinead O’Connor’s Nothing compares to you. She started off well enough but along the way, the song showed it was too big even for Mercy’s outstanding skills. She lost her way in a meandering maze of pitch changes that left her sounding like a bad day at the opera. And Africa took note. However, she brought it home quite well, but the damage was done. Didn’t expect to see her in the bottom two, though.

The sob-story of West African Idols Jerrilyn Mulbah took the stage in a sultry performance of Toni Braxton’s Unbreak My Heart. For me, it was her best performance yet. She showed good control of the song’s undulating tune and for once opened up her pipes to show us the upper reaches of her voice range. Combining pure notes with growling back-of-the-throat interjections, she showed she’s not in the Top10 on sentiment alone. There is considerable talent in that small frame.

Clear-voiced Joan Ekpai was up next, singing (surprise, surprise), Celine Dion’s Save the best for last. As her voice sounds remarkably like the Canadian diva’s she’s tactically choosing songs that best showcase that similarity. So I was prepared for a treat, but got such a safe performance that I was thoroughly unfulfilled, knowing what she’s capable of when she means to really sing. It was thus not surprising when I saw her in the bottom five of the Top 10.

Omodele Fatoki was born-to-sing but on the night, she chose the wrong song. Singing Luther Vandross’ Here and Now, the lows proved too deep for her to carry off convincingly, and when she tried for the higher notes they came out gratingly high. She tried to embellish the song with some tonal variations but they too fell flat. It just was not her night. Perhaps the song was too big, perhaps her confidence was too small, but she’s still a phenomenal talent who only needs studio time and the right producer to ensure that her reach doesn’t exceed her grasp as it did on the night.

Group1 returnee Uche took the stage dressed up like John Legend, and singing “Used to love you.” A truly popular song, it got the crowd going and Uche’s stagecraft also helped to distract everyone from the fact that for the most part of the performance, he appeared to be struggling (and winning, but struggling nonetheless) with the higher notes in that song. His voice is a deep gravelly contra-alto, much unlike the lighter purer alto of John Legend. Where on Earth did he get the idea that he sounds like John Legend?

One of the surefire hits of Idols West Africa is Timi. With a distinct voice that is instantly recognizable once you’ve heard him sing, Timi brought the house down with a version of Luther Vandross’ Dance with my father that had tons more attitude than the laid-back original. The crowd went wild as Timi sprang the song’s variations on us. Already a firm favourite for the title, a fan club appears to be forming around Timi. Arguably the strongest male performer on the night.

If you want to see a realistic contender for the Idols crown, look no further than Jodie. Consistently outstanding in her performances, her rendition of Aretha Franklin’s “Natural Woman” was the best performance of the night (as usual) but was her weakest performance so far. (If you saw her Top 80 and Top 24 performances, you’d agree with me). But it was still good enough to raise goosebumps all overmy body. Jodie is one talented performer, and though it’s early days yet, I’m tempted to tell the other nine contestants to reserve their flight tickets, cos they’ll all be going home sooner than Jodie.

Smooth, sinfully handsome Eric came on to sing Boyz II Men’s End of the Road. A safe performance that went to the edge when he sought for and got the crowd’s participation in his performance. A sure mark of a confident performer. He’s not all about the looks, he’s got real talent and the way he took command of that stage shows he’s in for the long haul. Definitely eye candy for the ladies, he’s just the sort who’d have an all-female fan club voting him to within striking distance of the title.

Omawumi closed the night with a mindstopping performance of Whitney Houston’s Wanna Dance with Somebody. In a characteristic theatrical performance marred only by breaks in sound due to her improper positioning of the microphone, she brought the audience to their feet with a closing note that needs to be heard to be believed. I was surprised to find her in the bottom half on results night, but so long as she got through, nothing spoil.

Omodele got voted off on Monday night. I guess we saw it coming. She’s a talented young lady who will go far if she keeps her dreams alive. Well, here’s looking forward to the next spectacular. By the way, how does one get to be part of the live audience? I wuld lovee to watch those performances in person. Would appreciate any info on this.
See y’all on Monday.

Lawyerchap i rarely say this but I do appreciate your input. I didn't watch the show and yet I feel as if I did.

Not surprised it went the way it did because I am not very impressed with the Top 10 and I expect much from very few people and it's almost certain who the Top 5 will be. Some will be there based on their talent and some just because they can perform. With respect to Jerrilyn, the sentiment wears off at a point so if she's not a strong singer she will be so surprsied how fast she will be voted off the show (not that it's her fault anyways!)

As for those protesting on Lara's behalf. Quite frankly, she may just have bitten off more than she can chew and it was bound to bite her in the ass. Who is she trying to convince she doesn't have a record deal? If she didn;t then why the heck is her single out and under what record label? I mean c'mon. We all know better. That alone disqualifies her from being on idols and the fact that she was chosen was just appaling because even if nana and dede can feign ignorance, Dan Foster knows better. But this is Naija so let's leave it at that.

As for the judges, if we are gonna copy the american style then we use some form of common sense while we are at it. For example, American Idols Judges: Simon Cowell (Record Company Executive). Paula Abdul (Musician/Dancer etc fallen or not) and Randy Jackson (Producer). Nigerian Judges: Dede Mabiaku (Singer Fela's Protege), Nana (Singer as well) and Dan Foster (Radio Personality). What the hell kind of a crappy combo is that and what the heck is Dan Foster doing on the Show. He does his job which is to play music that is brought to his station, he is not an authority in music and quite frankly, as annoying as Dede may be, he does make sense sometimes. Dan NEVER makes sense to me and someone needs to tell him that he is FAR from FUNNY!!!

I think i have said enough for one day so I will give it a rest but I will definitely be back. Have a fantastic evening y'all

@lawyerchap

i disagree with you here though

unless you all had your TV's tuned off, Timi did not perform upto par at all, he took the pitch way to high for his voice and some parts of the song you couldn't hear him. He just feels all his songs so well that the audience doesn't hear all that. remember he was in the bottom five

then jerrilyn, its sentiment that's keeping her, voice wise when she finally opens her mouth its almost like she's playing safe. all her performances are the same.For someone who could perform in hotpants then why is she so shy!

Tapuwa:


Dear Nairalanders,

Here's your weekly dose of Idols video, the Top 10 perfromances, enjoy!

http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_jerrilyn_3_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_joan_4_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_jodie_8_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_eric_9_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_timi_7_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_uche_6_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_temitayo_1_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_omawumi_10_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_omodele_5_100k.wmv



http://mfile.akamai.com/14080/wmv/kuduclub.download.akamai.com/14080/idolswestafrica/E-mnet-mnetmedia-MNA_idols_t10_mercy1_2_100k.wmv

Thanks for posting.The show is great though.Is dere anysite we can see wat d judges had to say?

salsera:

@lawyerchap

i disagree with you here though

unless you all had your TV's tuned off, Timi did not perform upto par at all, he took the pitch way to high for his voice and some parts of the song you couldn't hear him. He just feels all his songs so well that the audience doesn't hear all that. remember he was in the bottom five

then jerrilyn, its sentiment that's keeping her, voice wise when she finally opens her mouth its almost like she's playing safe. all her performances are the same.For someone who could perform in hotpants then why is she so shy!

I agree with u salsera. Immediately I heard Timi start that song, I knew the key was too high for him. Although his overall performance was still one of the best. Let's see what happens tomorrow.

Sentiments aside, Jerrilyn needs to go, her voice aint all that at all, she also struggled with the Toni Braxton track

Anyone watched it today? I didn't. I recorded it though and will watch it tomorrow. Pls give us gist.