With a long music adventure slowly winding down, it was difficult to predict how tonight’s episode would play out on Nigerian Idol Season 6, Africa’s biggest music talent show.
The contestants were now down to three, and by the end of the night, one person would see their dreams of clinching the grand prize grind to a halt. The viewing public clearly put in the work within the past week: 11 million votes were counted in the online polls! Everyone was keen on saving their faves, and social media conversations had been heated in the days leading up to tonight’s show.
The night began with a lively performance of Bruno Mars’ “24K Magic” which featured the top 3 – Akunna, Kingdom and Francis Atela – as well as five of the other contestants who had been eliminated in the past couple of weeks: Faith Jason, Comfort, Beyonce, Faith Mac and Emmanuel. It was great seeing them together again, and all eight of them displayed great chemistry as they performed, with the judges – DJ Sose, Obi Asika and Seyi Shay – rising from their seats in approval.
The first person to be confirmed as part of the competition’s Top Two was Kingdom, who struggled to contain his emotions. Judging from the votes, the fans had also chosen to save Francis Atela, who heaved a huge sigh of relief. For Akunna, the 23-year-old entertainment lawyer, it was the end of the road.
Akunna was described by the veteran music producer Cobhams Asuquo as “a powerful singer”. Kingdom praised her work rate and performance ability, while DJ Sose noted that she had an awesome stage presence. For her farewell performance, she covered Adele’s hit single “Set Fire To The Rain”, with vocal assistance from the live band.
The remaining two contestants were each mandated to perform three songs. Kingdom’s first performance of the night was a soulful cover of A Great Big World’s “Say Something.” Seyi Shay described it as “perfect”, and Obi Asika lauded the confidence on display.
Francis Atela, whose voice was described by Obi Asika as a “lethal weapon”, opted for John Legend’s “So High” as the first song he would be covering for the night, with backing vocals from the live band. Seyi Shay had kind words for the performance, and DJ Sose described it as “emotive”.
For the second round of performances, Kingdom went with “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”, which he described as the song which he enjoyed covering the most during the course of the season. Obi Asika appeared overly delighted, and DJ Sose seemed pretty pleased with what he heard.
Francis Atela was more than happy to hand in another performance of Bryan Adams’ classic “Please Forgive Me.” DJ Sose noted that he didn’t walk the stage enough, but Obi Asika commented on how he “owned the song”.
Kingdom’s final performance of the night was a cover of Bruno Mars’ 2010 hit “Just The Way You Are.” Seyi Shay found it difficult to contain her excitement, and Obi Asika acknowledged the growth in his performance and stage presence.
Francis Atela closed out proceedings with a high-pitched rendition of Marvin Gaye’s “Sexual Healing.” Obi Asika lauded him for his unique spin on the classic, and DJ Sose found no fault with the performance.
It’s the final voting week, and the power to determine who emerges as the winner of this competition is solely in the hands of the viewers. Voting on Nigerian Idol is via the website, mobile site, MyDStv, and MyGOtv apps and via SMS on participating networks – Airtel, MTN, and 9mobile. Voting ends on Thursday, July 8, 2021.
You can vote for your favourite contestant via the Africa Magic website, www.africamagic.tv/nigerianidol, and the Africa Magic mobile site by selecting contestants of your choice and entering your number of votes and clicking VOTE. Voting via these platforms is limited to 100 votes per user. MyDStv App and MyGOtv App votes are free, and votes are allocated based on your subscription packages.
