Stardom Calls as SOO Live The Dream™ Talent Hunt Debuts

For many talented young Nigerians who have dreamt of becoming superstars and aspire to fame and fortune, a new music talent hunt project has been born. The new project, SOO Live The Dream™ Talent Hunt, is poised to offer Nigerian youngsters within local communities a platform to bring their musical talents to the spotlight, with this first edition targeted at giving life to the aspirations of music-oriented youths from Esan North-East/South-East Federal Constituency of Edo State, Nigeria. SOO Live The Dream™ Talent Hunt, scheduled to hold from 17th to 20th September, 2015 is the first of its kind in Nigeria, introducing an array of innovations in talent hunt that will give the participants a chance of a lifetime to kick-start their careers. Powered by Hon. Barr. Sergius Oseasochie Ogun (SOO), the Honourable Member representing Esan North-East/South-East Federal Constituency, and organized by Dihoo Records Ltd, the project aims at identifying budding talents in singing and music production. Speaking to journalists during a pre-event media parley, Oseasochie said that the objective of the first edition of the SOO Live The Dream™ is to promote gainful and socially accepted enterprise among the youth population of Esan North-East/South-East Federal Constituency, as well as to jumpstart the careers of music-oriented members within the target population. “One of the sectors that have really shown some inspiring growth in Nigeria is the entertainment industry, and the youths are the energy behind this sector that not only brings recognition and honour to the country but also adds a lot of value to the economy,” he said. Speaking further, he noted that one of the promises he made to his constituency is to empower the youths and SOO Live The Dream™ is one of the platforms that will be used to launch the careers of the next super stars in Nigeria and Africa. The Judges With thousands expected to take part in the competition, singing their hearts out to prove their mettle in different genres of music, a super select Panel of Judges, comprising Muyiwa Asenuga a.k.a Nomoreloss, Sydney Shocker, Monique D Vibes and Elcee McEdwards would be saddled with the difficult task of complimenting and criticizing the contestants in their search for true talent. It is expected, of course, that they would find some surprises along the way. With a unique strong compelling voice and her over seven years’ experience as an OAP, Monique D Vibes will be looking for that artiste that will rock her mind and make her give a nod to their ambition of joining the stage with Tuface, Davido and P-Square. “The task will be enormous; finding that super star will involve looking at every detail, their voice, performance, energy and charisma,” she said. It sure would not be a problem for the presenter who also has a single to her credit as she will draw from her experience as a judge in several reality shows including MTN Project Fame. Multi-faceted and multi-talented artiste and media specialist, Elcee McEdwards, whose creative dexterity has seen him penning down and composing over 70 songs in a musical career spanning over 20 years, will be on the lookout for uncommon balance and excellence in delivery and mastery of notes. “I will be looking for that person that will give me a combination of styles; that is confident and knows it; that will believe in his or herself and sing a song that will make sense. I want that singer that would move from the SOO Live The Dream™ stage to join the A-List artists in Nigeria. That’s who I will watch for,” he enthused. With a strong passion for music, two music albums and many recorded studio songs, Elcee will definitely be a tough bridge the contestants will have to cross to get to stardom. How to Enter: To participate in SOO Live The Dream™, eligible participants are to pick up free entry forms from any of the designated Form Collection Centers or visit the SOO Live The Dream website at http://soolivethedream.com/ to download the entry form online. Completed entry forms are to be submitted at the Form Collection and Submission Point nearest to the intending contestant. The Form Collection Points are: Ubiaja Post office, Edo State. Hon. Barr. Sergius Ogun secretariat, 67 Market Road, Ubiaja. Uromi Post Office, Edo state. 19, Mission Rd, Kuddy Ranky, Opp. 1KD Supermarket, Uromi. 52, Old Agbor Rd, After Iyere Plaza, Uromi, Edo State. Cooperative Fast Food Restaurant, Ambrose Ali University, Ekpoma. Auchi Poly, Esan Students Meeting Ground, Opp. Man-O- War Base.Unicafe Business Centre, Shop 1, Shopping Center Uniben Main Gate. Auditions for SOO Live The Dream™ will take place on Thursday and Friday, 17th to 18th September, by 8 am prompt. During the auditions, it will be at the discretion of the judges to choose 20 candidates who will go on to the next level of selection, called the Performance Screening. On Saturday 19th September, the Performance Screening will take place, during which 10 exceptionally talented contestants will be chosen to slug it out in the next stage known as the Grand Finale. Seven of the 10 contestants will be determined by the judges, while three would be ‘saved’ by the audience who would be guided to choose their three favorite contestants from the remaining thirteen. Unlike other talent hunt shows where the winner takes all, SOO Live The Dream™ will afford the 20 contestants an opportunity to attend a one-day seminar, where heavy industry players will coach them on the business of being a recording artiste, music promotions and legal frameworks free of charge. The Grand Finale will see the emergence of the winner of the competition and prize presentations by the initiator of the project, Hon. Sergius Oseasochie Ogun. The SOO Live The Dream™ Grand Prize winner will clinch a cash prize of N200,000 and an all-encompassing record deal with Dihoo Records, while the 1st and 2nd runner-up will get a promotional contract that would see each of them recording two singles that would be promoted locally along with cash prizes of N150,000 and N100,000 respectively. CEO of Dihoo Record, Morgan ‘Diwise’ Uwadileke, who will be present at every stage of the competition, will be looking forward to meeting the next act that will pen down the chance-of-a-lifetime record deal with his music outfit. “I am ecstatic, I am optimistic. I am waiting for the next artiste that will sign up with Dihoo, and it’s in your hands,” he told journalists during the unveiling. This edition of SOO Live The Dream™ is open to persons between the ages of 18 and 30 (as at August 15, 2015), as long as they are natives of Esan North-East/South-East Federal Constituency of Edo State, Nigeria. All prospective participants who meet this criteria and submit their application forms on time will be contacted via e-mail and text messages. Get updates on The SOO Live The Dream™ on our Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SOOLiveTheDream And follow on TWITTER @soolivethedream Judges Bio Elcee McEdwards: Elcee would best be described as a multi-faceted and multi-talented artiste and media specialist, having competences in writing, editing, public relations, magazine production and online publishing. His creative dexterity has seen him penning down and composing over seventy songs in a musical career that spans over twenty years, with several of his songs celebrated in and around Nigeria. Considering his very active involvement in media practice that cuts across print media, online media and public relations in the past thirteen years, and his evident leadership and painstaking managerial qualities, Elcee brings an uncommon balance and excellence in the myriads of projects he has been involved with. He has worked as Editor and Consultant Editor for a number of print media publications and top-flight public relations agencies, with his work as Editor getting him involved in the planning and execution of several stakeholder roundtables, conferences and seminars. Aside his involvement as a singer, song writer and music coach, Elcee has had the opportunity of participating in different management, business and media related seminars and conferences, and has served as facilitator and speaker at different productivity seminars organized by Wisdom House, Lagos. Teaching and counseling being second nature to him, Elcee has been involved with the House of Elcee (an NGO devoted to the promotion of workplace productivity, responsible sexual behavior, and family values) since his university days, organizing a number of seminars, talks and workshops that explored issues of friendship, love and productivity. Due to his strong passion for music, Elcee has recorded many studio songs and has two music albums to his credit. He boasts a thorough knowledge of the Nigerian and international music industry. Monique D Vibes Monica Aigbe (Formerly Monica Okhihie), a.k.a Monique D Vibes, is a multi-talented OAP with over 7 years in Broadcasting /Entertainment Industry. A graduate of Theatre Art from the University of Benin, Monique loves nature, reading, singing, entertaining people and playing hard. Monique started her career at an early age in her secondary school where she got involved in extracurricular activities such as acting, dancing, singing, poetry, fine art and broadcasting at ‘Infinity Radio’ owned by the school. Up on graduation, she did hosting and co-hosting of events, Red Carpets and Voice Over for Radio and Television jingles and adverts. In 2008, Monique co-hosted the popular television show in the South-South region of Nigeria known as ‘Grand Style’. Her Professional Career started with SilverBird’s Rhythm 93.7FM Benin in 2008, where she spent 4 years thrilling her listeners with inspiring yet entertaining topical issues. At Rhythm 93.7FM she hosted “Rhythm and Soul”, “Rhythm of the Night”, “Sunday at the Rhythm” before moving to Vibes 97.3FM where she currently produce and presents programs such as “Vibes Divine”, “Flight973-The Cockpit”, “Daybreak Benin- Community Square”, “Vibespiration”, “Swing Low Show”, “What’s Cooking”. She has served as a judge for the MTN Project Fame West Africa both in 2013 (Season 6) and 2014 (Season 7) Benin audition and co-hosted the South-South Music Awards (SSMA- 2013) She has a strong and compelling voice (one of her unique asset), which will sure keep you glued to her programs. She has interviewed a wide range of celebrities from the likes of Tu Face Idibia, Sound Sultan, Dammy Krane, Harrysong, Terry G,Da Prince, Faze, Praiz, Cynthia Morgan, Cyrus Da Virus, Fame, Patoranking, Splash, Waje, Oritze, BNG, Efex the Entertainer, Maleke, Oriri, Lanceslot Imasuen, Dayo of HipOnTv and have worked with Derenle Adun (Channel O), Adams (SoundCity), Joseph Benjamin (MTN Project Fame West Africa), MacEbi (Saturday Spice), Andy Bello (Lockdown Entertainment/Convener; SSMA) and many more… AWARD NOMINATIONS • Best Radio Presenter - Naija Delta Advancement Awards (Presently) • Governor Adams Oshiomole’s Youth of Excellence Awards 2014 • Nigerian Broadcasters Merit Awards 2014. She also has a single “Big Girl” released in 2013.

Monique’s Social Media platforms Website:www.moniquedvibe.com, Twitter:@moniquedvibes, Instagram- @moniquedvibes Email: moniquedvibes@gmail.com Facebook- Monique D Vibes.

APC, PDP Bicker Over Anti-gay Law As Italian Based Activist Urges FG To Reverse Anti-gay Law.

The issue of gay right is now a topic in Nigeria’s forth coming general elections following allegations by President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and his supporters against his main challenger, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who he claimed assured western nations of his preparedness to support same sex marriage if he wins the elections on March 28. President Jonathan, who spoke through his campaign organization, said General Buhari made the pledge to secure the support of the western countries to win the election. Spokesperson of the President Goodluck Jonathan campaign organization, Mr. Femi Fani Kayode, said four western countries extracted a commitment from Gen. Buhari to support a legislation enabling same sex marriage. Amid the flurry of apparently election fuelled allegations, the gay support claim by the Jonathan camp seemed the most serious. Still, Fani Kayode, reputed for making unsubstantiated allegations against political opponents, refused to give the names of the four countries he was referring to. Gen. Buhari, seen by his supporters as a a no-nonsense former military leader, whose brief administration in 1980s waged campaigns against indiscipline and corruption, has not given any hint suggesting he would condone same-sex relationship already out-lawed in Nigeria. In a related development, a Nigerian born gay activist who had to leave the country following stringent anti-gay laws in Nigeria has called on the federal government to revisit and reverse their policy on Lesbians, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) people in the country. Emmanuel King Oduh, a 31-year old native of Isselu Uku in Delta State said due to what he described as the harsh legislatures against same-sex relationships in Nigeria, he had to flee for his life and as well as discontinue his education due to the stigmatization he was getting from both his family and society. “I left Nigeria due to my homosexual tendencies, which, as is well known, can not be publicly manifested in Nigeria,” he said. The federal government had in January 2014 signed into law a bill that criminalises same-sex relationships even against pressure from western countries. The Act stipulates penalties of up to 14 years in prison and bans gay marriages which it describes as amorous relationships as well as categorizing it as illegal any membership of gay rights groups or any kind of support that will promote LGBT activities in the country forcing so many gay people who have been living in underground existence to either leave the country or remain in the closet. Before the law was signed into law, homosexual activities or sodomy was punishable by jail term but the new law now gives a maximum sentence of 14 years, a development that faced strong criticisms from western countries as well as renowned Nigerian authors like award winning Chimamanda Adichie calling the law “un-African and goes against the values of tolerance and live and let live that are part of many African cultures.” Speaking to National Daily from Italy where he now resides, Oduh said that though he knew he was attracted to persons of same sex while he was a kid, he did not engage in any homosexaul relationship until he was admitted to study at Kaduna Polytechnic in Kaduna State where a man that helped him secure admission introduced him to active same sex relationship.

In 2005, I went to visit my brother in Kaduna from Lagos State where I grew up because I wanted to enrol into the Kaduna Polytechnic at that time. I was 21 then and my brother introduced me to his friend who promised to facilitate my enrolment. Along the line, he made advances at me and we started a sexual relationship. From then on, Evans, started introducing me to other gay individuals and at a point I slept with a high ranking lecturer in the institution who promised to make sure I secured the admission. My relationship with Evans lasted till 2006 when he left for the United States and by then, I had become familiar with so many people within the homosexual communities. When I finished my Diploma program, I returned to Lagos ,” he said. He continued: “I continued having relationships with several partners until some people in my area at Ikeja, Lagos noticed that I was always in the midst of gay individuals and informed my family. The stigmatization I got was hell and was beaten, scolded and at times beaten up by my family members. I had to get some work and remained behind the closet though I secretly met my partners,” he said. But with the new law passed in 2014, Oduh knew he needed to be careful as he was already a known homosexual in the area and with activities of a militant group, the Odua Peoples Congress (OPC), which had in the past administered jungle justice to some persons who committed crimes as minor as stealing being burnt to death, they made it clear to him that he was a target. “I decided to leave Nigeria at that point and left after my friend who I met online helped arrange papers for me to join him in Europe. I have since been advocating for gays rights in Nigeria and pleading with the Nigeria government to reverse the harsh laws on people like us. Imagine the number of Nigerians that are going into exile from their country just because of their secual preferences. Right now, I have seeking to remain in Italy and cannot come back home because of the situation. I hope that they will have a rethink and allow LGBT persons to come back home and help in the rebuilding of our country,” he said.