After a brilliant opening, it was time to get serious. This was the very first of the nominations at MTN Project Fame West Africa season 9 and as usual the hosts of the show were Joseph Benjamin and Bolanle Olukanni.
The first contestant to perform was Mirabel who sang “On My Own” by Whitney Houston. It was wonderful to see someone try to deliver such a strong song, but the judges didn’t agree as Tee-y Mix felt her performance wasn’t confident and at some point couldn’t control her pitch. Uncle Ben believes that she should trust herself a little more and be confident in herself.
WHAT YOU MISSED LAST WEEK.
Dapo performed “More Than Words” by Westlife which got us wishing he was performing a piece from Michael Jackson. Bibie Brew agreed, as she also commended his brilliant expression and great marketing, and Ige couldn’t resist concurring as she also commended his performance, “Cuddly, cuddly, cute Dapo!”Gabriel also performed “World’s Greatest” by R-Kelly which got positive remarks from Praiz and Joke Silva.
This week’s show wasn’t looking so fabulous for our “Fuji Master”, Yusuf, as he clearly struggled with singing “I Wanna Know” by Joe without infusing notes of Fuji into it. The judges commended his performance but admonished and advised that he focuses more on his band and not get distracted.
Solomon who shared facial similarities with the new judge Praiz Adejo performed a safe rendition of “Pillow Talk” by Zayn Malik and BB had to caution him to make his performance believable, while Uncle Ben advised him to always make it a night to remember.
bolanle olukanni and praiz adejo
Winner was however the highlight of the night as she delivered not only a wonderful but also flawless performance of “Hello” by Adele. Tee-y Mix was no doubt blown away as he clearly didn’t expect so much from her and of course Uncle Ben couldn’t deny her the title “Super Woman”
Okiemute the drama queen left no stone unturned as she delivered the song “Yoga” by Janelle Monae. Despite her efforts the judges were left confused as they couldn’t match her singing and dance routines. On the other hand, Joke Silva felt she was thrown off after an amazing performance from Winner.
Oluchi performed “No” by Megan Trainor, and Praiz wasn’t impressed at all. He felt she had no stage performance and she should smile often. Miss Ige disagreed with the smile comment, but agreed Oluchi needed to use the stage more.
Elizabeth on the other hand served us Lemonade by performing “Daddy’s Lessons” by Beyoncé. Tee-y Mix loved her voice, her interpretation and body movement which were all in sync. Uncle Ben didn’t see her wonderful performance coming but he agreed with the judge’s verdict.
Eli gave a powerful performance of “Uptown Funk” by Bruno Mars which according to Bibie Brew had a lot of energy and good communication, and Joke Silva saw his performance as a committed one.
Steve performed “Every Time I Close My Eyes” by BabyFace which earned him high praises from Praiz who was totally blown away and Ige who was amazed at his vocals.
Kite perhaps couldn’t feel his voice as he performed “Can’t Feel My Face” by The Weeknd. It was an obvious try as Tee-y Mix and Joke Silva agreed.
Pere closed the show with an unforgettable performance of “Writing on the Wall” by Sam Smith and Bibie was all “Bravo! Kudos! Good!” about the performance. Uncle Ben as usual didn’t see it coming, as he called it an unpredictable performance.
Back to Reality Check, four of the contestants were put on probation and their fates — to stay in the house or leave — are now left in the hands of the viewers and audience who will be voting for them.
The four contestants to be put on probation are Dapo whose voice Bibie Brew believes needs to mature; Yusuf who was clearly put on probation because of his performance as was stated by Tee-y Mix; Favour whose performance lacked energy and whom the judges believe could do more; and Oluchi who was put on probation because Bibie Brew believes that her countenance on stage matters, including her smiling.Over to the faculty, Joke Silva disagreed with Bibie as she believes that performance isn’t all about smiling especially based on the genre of music been performed.
We can only hope for the best and vote our favourite contestant to keep them in the house.