LAG'S FINEST 3!!!
LAG'S FINEST
In August 2007, Skillz Entertainment organized a Hip-hop
Battle event tagged "Lag's Finest". The competition was aimed at
rewarding the best 'emcee' (Rapper) in Lagos. The Battle lasted for 3 weeks
with 8 finalists emerging from the two initial editions resulting in a battle
of winners in the third and final edition, where a winner (Dark Poet) and
runner-up (Felony) emerged. The hype and attendance received from the
competition was massive, not to mention the awesome display of raw talent by
the competitors. The call and anticipation for a second edition gave rise to
the conception of Lag's Finest II, the second edition of the event.
THE SEQUEL
In April 2008, the British Council indicated their interest
in sponsoring Lag's Finest II under the aegis of its Words and Pictures (WAPI)
initiative. The event showcased lyrical skills, creative punch lines,
imaginative metaphors, and rhymes from some of Lagos City's best 'emcees'.
Apart from the rap battle itself, Lag's Finest II propagated a message; 'being
the best at whatever you do' No matter what your talent is, 'just be your
best'. Hence the catch phrase for Lag's Finest II: DARE TO STAND OUT! The
audition for Lag's Finest II took place on Saturday the 28th of August, 2008 at
the Amphitheatre-University of Lagos. A total of 16 'emcees' were selected from
the audition. The preliminary stage of the event took place on Saturday the
19th of July, 2008 at the British Council, with Hip-Hop artists like: Mode 9,
Ikechukwu, Toni Doe (Radio Continental)& Dark Poet (Lag's Finest I) on the
panel of judges, while M.I and Mofe Duncanplayed host. 8 finalists emerged from
this stage to proceed to the finals (main event), which held at the main
auditorium, University of Lagos on Saturday 23 August, 2008. The finals
witnessed an uncanny display of talent and wit by the contestants, but it was
ChijiokeOnouha A.K.A C-Jay that won the crown of the best emcee in Lagos city
(Lag's Finest II).
In 2010, we held a series of promotional/hype eventstagged
"Lag's Finest Pre-Sessions", the first of which took place at La
Cache, GRA, Ikeja-Lagos. The second Pre-Session held at Koko Lounge, E-Center,
Sabo-Yaba, Lagos.While the third edition of the Pre-Session series took place
atO'neil Sports bar, Herbert Macaulay Rd, Yaba, Lagos. The Grand Pre-Session
was the last of these series of events, it held on Friday December 10, 2010 at
Swe Bar, City Mall, Onikan, Lagos. The event was mind blowing with performances
from known Hip-hop acts like Blaise, Pope, Psalmurai (Kaliphate) and also
upcoming ones like C-Jay (Lag's Finest 2), Dez (Channel O Emcee Africa)
&J'Berg but the most exciting part was the rap battles from our Hip-hop
Gladiators.
LAG'S FINEST 3 is the third edition in the series of
events.This edition aims to raise the bar by making the event grander than its
predecessors. The catch phrase for Lag's Finest 3 is 'Rep ur Hood'. One of the
core values of Hip-hop culture is the attachment to locality, the element of
neighborhoods('hood' in urban lingua) is central to the culture. As such, Lag's
Finest 3 intends to portray an even representation of Lagos State urban
neighborhoods by drawing contestants from all over the metropolis to represent
their 'hoods'. The Prize reward for Lag's Finest 3 is One Million Naira.
SEGUN (D.R.E.) SHODUNKE
Segun Shodunke is the CEO & Founder of Skillz
Entertainment, with a Master's Degree in Business Administration. Segun has
always had a drive for entertainment, he was formerly a part of TU-HYPE
productions, an entertainment outfit that promoted raves and shows in tertiary
institutions and clubs, in the late 1990's, he was also the creator of 'Da
Carnival' a rave that took place at the Ogun State University sometime in 1998.
Segun is a great lover of music; he was one half of the rap duo FACTION OF
FUNK, which contested at the Star starlets' night in 1997 against such other
groups as DEF O' CLAN ft. HAZARDUS & DEBAINA the event also featured performances
by Yinka Davis & Dare Art Alade.
Recently, Segun has been involved in research work on the
origin of RAP music, with focus on West-Africa. Apart from music, he is also a
technology savvy and has consulted on several Information Technology projects.
FUNKE MARTIN-LUTHER AKA BLAISE
Born Funke Martin-Luther in Lagos State Nigeria, Blaise has
always had history with music. From writing spoken-word poetry to break-time
busting in secondary school, her passion for the art of music naturally led her
to a music career which she started out as a rapper. Her debut in the Nigerian
music industry came in 2002 as part of rap collective The Trybesmen comprising
crew front- man Eldee, Freestyle, Kaboom,2shotz, Sasha, Timi, Dr.SID and
Double-O and made a name for themselves with their monster hit track
"Oya" in 2002.
After a rather short run with The Trybesmen, she split from
the group to finish up studies in Architectural Technology at The Polytechnic
of Ibadan and re-entered the music industry in 2006 with her first solo effort
titled "The Definition" which also happened to be produced by former
crew-mate Freestyle. The song did very well and after a few number one spots on
top radio stations in the city of Lagos, the doors were thrown open for more
work and more appearances and several award nominations as an iconic female rap
act in Nigeria.
Also worthy of note, is her role as front-woman in 2011's
BET Rap Cypher , the very first in Nigeria with other female rap talents like
Eva, Sasha, Muna and Zee.
Throughout her rap career Blaise worked behind-the –scene as
a music composer and producer working with production companies like Mnet on
short film productions like "Mama Put" in collaboration with film
production company DVWorx. She was also responsible for the sound design in Eve
Ensler Vagina Monologues' first showing in Nigeria in 2006.
Currently:
After a period of hiatus from the music industry, Blaise
emerged in December 2014 with a new title to append to her rap status. Music
Producer. Bringing her composer/producer side out of the background to join
forces with her rap talent, the multi-instrumentalist and singer re-enters
mainstream music as a performer under her label Beat Cellar Entertainment.
TONY DOE
Tony Doe is a Media Entrepreneur and Hip Hop enthusiast who
rhymes occasionally for fun, whether in support of his favourite football team
(Arsenal) or just as an artistic expression (reverbnation.com/tonydoe).
Tony served as a judge in one of the editions of Lag's
Finest II, sharing the esteemed panel with Ikechukwu, Mode 9& Dark Poet
(Lags Finest I).
He currently runs his own ship as a media service provider
with voice talent and audio imaging&production skills, after a few years of meritorious services in media houses such as Radio
Continental 102.3FM and City 105.1 FM, serving as Production Manager in the
Latter.
Tony runs a podcast (among others), where he showcases
the finest in Naija Rap Talent and it's called DE LOKAL RAP SHOW (available on
his mixcloud.com/tonydoeradio platform).
WILLIAMS EKI MELVIN
Williams Eki Melvin also known as Hev, is an entrepreneur in
the visual entertainment industry specializing in Photography, Television and
more. A graduate of creative arts from the University of Lagos.
Melvin is the producer of Raptitude, Green Passport, Live
and Direct amongst other shows under the aegis of SnapTV.
As a part of the Lags Finest 3 team, Melvin will be in
charge of visual creative and direction.
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