The word icon gets thrown around quite often, but every now and again, a true icon does something extraordinary and reminds us what the word truly means.
No one has ever doubted Cobhams Asuquo‘s legendary status in the Nigerian music sphere but he decided to refresh our memories at the 2018 edition of the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards. From Adekunle Gold’s groovy performance to Falz’s high energy display, the night was not lacking in spectacle and Mr. Asuquo’s acoustic delivery brought a whole new energy to the AMVCA stage.
The show was off to a bright start with a special cultural performance by the SEKI traditional dance troupe. Their ‘kaleidoscopesque’ costumes glistened as they danced and sang their hearts out on the brilliantly lit stage. Adekunle Gold’s colorful Afrobeat instrumentation filled the hall with good vibes and had everyone grooving along. Falz gave us all the pop performance we want from a big show like the AMVCAs, he came through with everything from backup dancers to flashy costumes and it was an astonishing sight.
While the men brought the drama, the ladies brought calm with their powerhouse performances, award-winning Nigerian soprano, Omo Bello, had everyone in awe with her glass shattering vocals, while Bisola gave us a surprisingly emotional performance with her tribute to the film industry’s dearly departed through one of Evanescence’s biggest songs.
Nigerian producer, singer and songwriter, Cobhams, took to the stage to perform a special version of his single, ‘One Hit’, rewritten just for the AMVCAs. Why perform an old song when you can remake it, right? The original version of Cobhams’ ‘One Hit’ name dropped a plethora of moves-making Nigerian artistes. However, in the AMVCA edition, Asuquo replaced the names of the artistes with names of Nigerian actors.
Everyone from Omotola Jalade-Ekehinde to Odunlade Adekola got a special shout-out from Cobhams. The performance was definitely one of the highlights of the star-studded show. Cobhams’ performance not only thoroughly entertained both audiences at home and at Eko Hotel, it also served as a charming little surprise for all those watching.
Making every single moment of an award show as big as the AMVCAs count is truly a Herculean task, but the organizers of this year’s edition have so perfected the craft, that they make it seem effortless. Creating memories for viewers and nominees alike is what makes the event truly wondrous; all the performances are a grand example of that.
Year after year, MultiChoice’s devotion to looking out for everyone in their audience when putting together the show is truly commendable. Just when you think they’ve knocked it out of the park, they raise the bar that much higher. Celebrating icons while they are still alive is one thing the AMVCAs are known for, but giving us an opportunity to enjoy them in their element while they are still with us is a gift we should all be thankful for.
Other award shows will come and we are sure that they will also have brilliant performances but it will be a while before any show or performance comes close to the sheer perfection displayed by the musical performances at the AMVCAs. Those performances will remain the most inspiring thing on television for longer than a minute and you can take that to the bank.