Entertainment
Victoria Kimani Speaks on Tiwa Savage, Ycee, Chocolate City Others
Kenyan-born singer, Victoria Kimani, set the Internet into frenzy last week after she dropped her version of Kizz Daniel’s Fvck You challenge.
In her song, she called out Nigerian rapper, Oludemilade Alejo, popularly known as Ycee for stealing her song – an allegation that left tongues wagging.
However, in subsequent lines in her song, she seemed to have insulted a Nigerian female artiste and even though she didn’t mention any name, the adjectives she used to qualify the artiste made most people speculate that she was referring to Tiwa Savage.
In an exclusive interview with Saturday Beats, Kimani noted that she didn’t mention Savage’s name but people only took a cue from the content of her song.
She said, “I don’t have any issue with Tiwa Savage at all. I approached the ‘Fvck you challenge’ with a below the belt move.
“It is common knowledge in the industry that this girl doesn’t like performing in the same show with other female artistes, everybody knows this. I never mentioned any names in my Instagram post, people just attached meaning to whoever they wanted to attach it to.
“Secondly, I never mentioned her name in the record but when I saw that she was sending fake Instagram accounts to attack me, that was when I realised she was offended with what I said.
“It was meant to be a light-hearted challenge, I had to be forced to send my statement, and I don’t have a problem doing that. I don’t have a problem defending my statement about blocking women from certain platforms, this is common knowledge that has happened over the years and people don’t like to admit it.
“At the same time, it is not fair for me to body shame, so I apologised for that, but for the other statements, everybody knows that.”
Kimani also spoke about the reason she has been absent from Nigeria for a while, attributing it to the bad experience she had with Chocolate City, her former record label.
She added, “When I was signed to Chocolate City, I had my team there that was where I was pushing. Ever since I lost the label, my focus shifted and I felt I could only come to Nigeria if I have bookings.
“It wasn’t like I forgot about the country, after having a bad experience in Chocolate City, I just wanted to make sure that if I am doing anything in Nigeria, then it is done correctly. I didn’t just want to be there in everyone’s face.”
She also revealed the reason she called Ycee out for stealing her song, adding that they are still very good friends.
“Ycee and I are still friends; the ‘Fvck you challenge’ for me was more like a rap battle. Sometimes in rap battles, things below the belt are said and then at the end, you can still shake hands and still be friends.
“My perspective was that we can go below the belt in music and there will still be love and respect outside of that.
“Before the song came out, he told me he borrowed a line from my song. My ‘Fvck you challenge’ is not meant to be as serious as some people are making it seem.
“I never planned to take the issue to court or anything and that was why I decided to use the ‘Fvck you challenge’ to tease him, but it is not like in a bad way,” she stated.
The Punch
Nigeria’s Afrobeat music star and multiple award-winner, Rema, will be featured this week on African Voices Changemakers, CNN International’s magazine programme, sponsored by telecommunications company, Globacom.
Born Divine Ikubor, the 24-year-old artiste from Edo State, discovered his passion for music as a church chorister and a rapper who entertained his peers in his secondary school, Ighile Group of Schools in Edo State.
Rema came into limelight after posting a viral freestyle on Instagram to D’Prince’s song “Gucci Gang”. Wowed by his rare talent, D’Prince flew him to Lagos and offered him a record deal with Jonzing World, a subsidiary of Mavin Records owned by music executive and producer Don Jazzy. His 2019 hit “Dumebi” was the first fruit of the contract.
His international breakthrough happened in 2022 with his single “Calm Down”, which led to a remix with American singer Selena Gomez. The song peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and first on Billboard Afrobeats Songs chart for a record-setting 58 weeks.
His talents have earned him several awards including the MTV Video Music Award for Best Afrobeats Video and the Billboard Music Award for Top Afrobeats Songs.
He was recognised for achieving 1 billion streams worldwide during his London concert on November 7, 2022 and he also performed at the Ballon d’Or ceremony held at the Theatre du Châtelet in Paris, France on October 30, 2023.
The edition will be broadcast on Saturday at 8.30 a.m., with repeats at noon the same day. More repeats come up on Sunday at 4.30 a.m., 7.00 p.m. and on Monday at 4.00 a.m.
Kellyrae, on Sunday night, was crowned the winner of this year’s Big Brother Naija Season 9, taking home the grand prize of N100million
He pipped the likes of Wanni, who emerged runer-up and Onyeka, who emerged as the runner-up.
The final featured Wanni as the last remaining contestant, with Kellyrae winning the competition with 35.95% of the votes. Onyeka emerged as the second runner-up, receiving 11.46 per cent of the total votes in the final show on Sunday.
Kellyrae now joins the likes of last season’s All-Stars winner Ilebaye Odiniya (Gen Z Baddie), to claim the grand prize.
Regarded as Nigeria’s most anticipated TV show, this season’s theme ”No Loose Guard”, which premiered on July 24, 2024, welcomed 14 pairs of housemates,
However, only one pair and six individual contestants made it to the final.
The other finalists were Victoria, Ozee, Sooj, Nelly, and Anita.
This year’s edition had an unusual twist as the participants were required to apply in pairs.
Among the eight finalists, Kellyrae, Victoria, and Wanni were considered favourites by many viewers to make the top three and earn final podium spots.
Though Wanni placed second, she proved to be talented. After Wanni expressed interest in acting, famous actress and filmmaker Funke Akindele recognised her talent and offered her a possible opportunity to work with her production team.
Globacom, Nigeria’s telecommunications and digital solutions services provider, on Thursday treated its business partners across the country to a luxurious ceremony in Lagos. The event was held at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island.
At the event, Globacom honoured its top-performing partners that fulfilled all regional and national deliverable requirements with millions of naira in recognition of their outstanding work.
A total number of 71 partners were rewarded in two broad categories, with the winners receiving millions of naira in cash prizes. Category 1 comprised 22 Activation Award winners and 33 Divisional Recharge winners.
In Category 2, 16 partners were rewarded for outstanding performance at the national level. They included partners who performed excellently in Sponsored Data and Activation and those who won national awards in the Recharge category.
The event was held to “honour not just individual successes, but the collaborative spirit that drives innovation and growth”, according to a statement from Globacom. It added that each of the partners “continues to play crucial roles in Globacom’s mission to empower people and businesses, pushing the boundaries of what is possible in telecommunications”.
Globacom shared with them its current and future projections to grow the company and maintain a win-win partnership with the business partners and promised to constantly take their interest and that of other stakeholders into account in all of its plans and projections.
“We are excited about the future, of our continued partnership in serving our customers, fulfilling their needs and helping them achieve their ambitions. We count on you all to be by our side all the way”, the company reiterated to the business partners.
Globacom, which recently clocked 21st, noted that it has grown from being a telecommunications service provider to becoming a Digital and Technology Company, leading the drive into Nigeria’s digital future. It promised to continue to explore unlimited opportunities to serve the customers by investing heavily in the latest tools and technologies.
The company recently unveiled My-G which gives subscribers more data value and more freedom to explore their passions. It has also reinvigorated the Glo Cafe app to give subscribers total control and access to entertainment, gaming, data solutions and other VAS services on their mobile devices. Glo also enhanced the Berekete tariff plan to give unparalleled juicy benefits to subscribers, ensuring that every new business innovation, product and service bring Glo customers one step closer to their goals.
However, the partners had a terrific time being entertained, so the event wasn’t just about business presentations and prizes. Lilian Yeri Danceworld, an all-female dance company with a lot of versatile dance movements, was available to entertain the guests.
Celebrated musician, Flavour, also brightened up the evening with great music, adding color to bring the celebration to a close. Several guests joined him on the dance floor to enjoy his songs and flow along with his captivating performance.
