Constance Ikokwu
3 August 2008
Washington, D.C. — Nigeria rocked the world with the third leg of the THISDAY "Africa Rising" music and festival held at the prestigious Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. on Friday.
An impressive line up of renowned musicians including Senegalese recording artist, Youssou N'Dour, American pop stars, Jay-Z and John Legend gave a sensational performance leaving the audience wild with excitiment.
The 2,400 capacity hall was packed.
Nigeria's own Deola Sagoe and Momo put up an impressive fashion show with great collections made from local fabrics including aso oke. Supermodels, Oluchi Onweagba, Alek Wek, Liya Kebede, Tyson Beckford and a host of others graced the runway.
Beckford sent the girls into frenzy when he hit the stage with his bare chest, showing off a string of tattoos and a fit stature. The ladies screamed for more as he stared at the audience for a few minutes, making a connection with his eyes.
Shouts of "Alek, Alek" filled the hall when the supermodel from the South of Sudan stepped on to the runway. Her infectious smile and warm demeanour made her the darling of enthusiastic fans.
Jewelry designer, Chris Aire also lit up the runway with an astonishing collection of diamond skirts, wristwatches, rings, dresses and bangles. He left the audience gasping when he revealed his collection for the night was worth a whopping $450 million. Some of the cloths have security officials guarding them, he said.
The show started at about 8pm and ran into the wee hours of the morning. Washington Post columnist and Associate Editor, Eugene Robinson and newscaster Paula Zahn introduced the artists for the night, conducting brief interviews on stage with Sagoe, Momo and Aire.
Tickets sold for between $45 and $400.
N'Dour gave the festival an African flavour. His songs were rendered in the local Seneagalese language. His performance was topped with a sort of samba dance from one of his band members.
Legend worked the crowd as usual. His sensational moves, cute looks and impressive piano rendition left fans yearning for more. He also performed two new songs from his yet to be released album.
Jay-Z held the audience spell-bound for almost an hour. He left no one in doubt that he was a rap guru. Dressed in his signature t-shirt, baggy jeans, bling necklace, he electrified the crowd. He went political when he juxtaposed pictures of President George W. Bush with that of wars, poverty, starvation on the huge LED TV screen at the background. Jay-Z ended the song with a picture of Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama, apparently presenting him as the alternative.
The THISDAY music festival now in its third year is meant to showcase talents from the African continent. It aims to paint a positive picture of a continent viewed by the international community as a hopeless case. With more than 23 African countries growing at an average rate of five per cent in the last few years, the festival intends to draw attention to the success stories hardly told in the Western media.
This year's event kicked off in Abuja, followed by Lagos and Washington, D.C. The grand finale will take place in London on October 10.
The success of the festival is underpinned by the performance of big names in the music industry. Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, Busta Ryme, En Vogue, Ciara, Missy Eliot, Rihanna and Ursher are some of the artists that have featured in past events.
Local artists such as D'Banj and 2Face have also made Nigeria proud with their songs.
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I was just watching the programme on bisi olatilo show and i am bowled over and so proud of the work the editor-in-chief is doing can i just say in caps NDUKA ROCKS U GO THE SKY IS THE LIMIT FOR U ,U R TAKING US PLACES AND BLESS UER HEART. JUST KEEP DOING WHAT U R DOING DONT STOP.