Funmi becomes youth global leader
The World Economic
Forum has honoured Nigerian broadcaster and producer Funmi Iyanda as a
2011 Young Global Leader. Each year, the World Economic Forum
recognizes up to 200 people under the age of 40 for “their professional
accomplishments, commitment to society and potential to contribute to
shaping the future of the world,” The 190 YGL honourees for 2011 were
selected from a pool of over 5000 candidates from 65 countries and all
segments of society. They reflect different kinds of leadership in
different parts of the world. Speaking about the recognition, Iyanda.
“I am extremely humbled and honoured to receive this award. Along with
my fellow honorees, I look forward to sharing our unique challenges,
and creating opportunities for interaction, the exchange of ideas and
best practices and a roadmap for a better future.”
Other Young Global
Leaders for 2011 include CNN’s Hala Gorani and award winning author
David Eggers. Iyanda is also an African Leadership Institute Tutu
Fellow, an ASPEN Institute ALIWA fellow .
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Encomium black and white gathers momentum
Encomium magazine
will host its annual ‘Black and White Ball’ on Sunday March 20 at the
Pine Park, Lekki, Lagos. For this year’s edition, the event would
feature The Elegance and Style Awards and a fashion show themed ‘Change
our future for good’ unlike its previous editions.
According to its
publicist, BigSam Media, the ‘Change our future for good’ theme was
chosen to encourage people to maximize their civic responsibility and
vote responsibly. While the Elegance and Style Awards was incorporated
to the event “with the aim to celebrate those who have made our world
more colourful”.
The Elegance and
Style Awards will feature 22 categories ranging from Most Elegant
Woman, Most Stylish Man, Most Stylish Governor, Most Elegant
First-Lady, All Time Beauty Queen, Most Dashing Celebrity Couple and
others. Billed to start by 4pm the ball would last for 6 hours.
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RuggedMan to anchor Star Quest again
Michael Ugochukwu
Stephens, popularly called Rugged Man has been unveiled by Nigerian
Breweries Plc, , as this year’s host of Star Quest.
Star Quest has
since inception in 2002, been anchored by a Nigerian musical act and
Rugged Man would be anchoring the programme for the third successive
year. The trio of Paul Play Dairo, acclaimed R B crooner, Freeze,
popular radio on air personality and KC of KC Presh, winners of the
first edition of Star Quest, have also been selected as judges for this
year’s edition of the popular musical talent hunt programme. As judges,
they would be saddled with the task of pruning the large number of
applicants who are expected to besiege the audition venues for a chance
to participate at Star Quest, down to the 36 who will ultimately
compete at the Fameland. Although the grand prize winners will be
determined by the public who will vote their preferred musical band via
SMS, the judges will play a vital role in determining which band gets
to the finals. According to Yusuf Ageni, Nigerian Breweries Corporate
Affairs Adviser, the choice of Rugged Man as show anchor and Paul Play,
Freeze and KC Presh’s ‘KC’ as judges is geared towards raising the bar
of Star Quest as Nigeria’s best musical talent hunt competition.
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50 Cent joins “Gaddafi performance regret club”
U.S. rapper 50 Cent
has joined what one entertainment website called the “Gaddafi
performance regret club,” making a donation to charity after news
emerged that he performed for the clan of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
“In light of the
ongoing events in Libya, 50 Cent will be making a donation to UNICEF,
which is providing vital relief supplies to meet the needs of women and
children at risk during this crisis,” a spokesman for the artist told
E! News.
50 Cent, whose real
name is Curtis Jackson, joins a growing list of pop stars who performed
for members of Gaddafi’s family at exclusive parties around the world,
sometimes commanding seven-figure sums in the process.
The appearances
have become a major source of embarrassment since the Libyan leader’s
brutal response to a popular uprising against him in Libya.
Beyonce, Nelly
Furtado, Mariah Carey and Usher have all issued statements saying they
would donate or had already given money to charities after they
appeared for the Gaddafi clan in recent years.
50 Cent did not
name the amount of money he earned from a private concert given during
the 2005 Venice film festival. Media reports said that some artists
were paid by Gaddafi’s family merely to attend the parties.
On the Twitter
website, Furtado said recently that she was paid $1 million for a 45
minute set before the Gaddafi clan in Italy in 2007.
