Mar 4, 2007

Idols West Africa Auditions - Idols or Idles?

They came in different shapes and sizes, dressed to impress with all kinds of crazy attire. Each had his own unique style, pose and speech. However, despite all these varieties, they ended up in 2 groups. Those who smiled out of the room and those who didn't. Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the latest Comedy show in Nigeria starring Dan Foster, Nana Abrewa and Dede Mabiaku, featuring guests comedians (sorry artists) from all around West Africa. Welcome, to Idols West Africa!

I watched the auditions and I knew I was going to blog this. The show was so funny that at a point, I started wondering if it were really singers who were being auditioned and not comedians. When you see someone with a guitar looking so confident and who sings "bad" and plays guitar "worst" (as Dede put it), or another person who was putting so much energy into his dance steps and was panting so much that his voice was barely audible; or the guy who decides to sing ultra high falsetto he sounds like a whistle, another guy who says "I and I was not created to sing that kind song" when asked to sing R Kelly's "I believe I can fly". The show was hilarious, in the very least. The crown of it was when some "45 year old looking" guy came in. When asked about his name, he spent the next 5 minutes gesticulating and talking about his name with adequate references to Nature and Jah. Even the judges had to cool down, I guess they were kinda afraid of him. Another funny personality was "Shnook da thug" who looked almost like Snoop Dog but couldn't rap like him... and the wannabe Fela who came in dressed only in his underpants. Damn!!! Generally, the ladies were less hilarious than the guys. (You wouldn't see a lady with full dreadlocks trying to sing Raggae or Afro) although they also had their shortcomings. You know your voice is a Lauryn Hill, yet you go singing Celine Dion, of course you can't pass.

The trio of Dede, Nana and Dan did not waste words in telling people off (Dede had a way of twisting his words such that you never really know what he's about to say), although honestly, there were some good singers who were told off. I was personally pissed off when the lady who sang "Stickwitu" (PussyCat Dolls) was rejected and the one who sang after her was taken. IMHO, she performed much better than the next lady. I mean, she literarily performed the song like it was done. Also the guy who sang "you're not alone" (Michael Jackson) was told off without a single vote of yes. I think the guy did fine. Maybe not too well, but he did better than the type of judgement he got.

The lady who sang "Irreplaceable" by Beyonce was another comedian. She didn't know half the words of the song and substituted her own words (which didn't make sense) to fill the gap. Quite surprisingly, she was taken. She had attitude anyway, and confidence. I was also surprised to see Lara George (nee Bajomo) of Kush. In my opinion, she doesn't need West African Idols to get famous. She's a star anyday. But of course, she could always use a record deal. Ibitoru was another who impressed me. The girl could sing.

People had a lot to say about the judges. Dan Foster likes fine girls (with his "shower singing" and "water in her voice" thoughts), Nana likes good looking guys ("I like you, I like your voice, but it's just not werking for me!") and Dede was too razz (what else did they expect?). I'll say it all added to the uniqueness of the show.

Now the list is down to 24, and the voting begins. You can follow their progress here. As for me, I'm keeping my fingers crossed as the first group performs. Good luck to all the contestants.

NB
If you missed out on the Idols West Africa auditions, you can still catch some of the action on Channel 37, DSTV. The auditions will continue on this channel until 18th March.
Meanwhile, the search is on to vote for the worst audition!!! Check it out here

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Tayo. I'm doing a bit of work on Idols West Africa. I have to say I think you are doing a fine job on this blog. Your thoughts on the show are insightful and very well written - keep it up!

Unknown said...

Hey Dexterity, thanks for dropping by my blog, and thanks for the comment. Good to know you're also doing some work on Idols West Africa. Could you post a link? I'm interested. Thanks a lot.

Zoe Believer said...

Very interesting post. I haven't really been following it but I found some of the auditions hilarious!! esp the Fela wannabe! (I no be gentleman e o!!). ha ha, on a serious note, i find dede a bit condescending and rude at times. I know he is trying to be the 'simon cowell' but i think he overdoes it a bit!

Anonymous said...

Tayo, i like d way u describe events, scenes etc. Keep it up, bros. I'll have to agree with u on d show. Although, i'm based at jand, ive seen some of d auditions online and dat fela-lookalike was off da hook. Just too funny.

Unknown said...

@Believer, Dede is a big annoyance. He's really overdoing the Simon Cowell part and it's not cool one bit.
@Wienna. Thanks for you comments and encouragement.

blogger said...

Hi Tayo,don't mind the Judges. One does not have to be fine to have a very nice voice. I wondered what Lara was doing in there too at first I felt maybe I didn't know her again.