Nigerian Breweries Plc. through one of its brands, Goldberg Lager Beer, came up with ARIYA REPETE, an annual talent hunt show launched to discover talents and showcase them to the world.
As many already know, music, like love, has remained a universal language understood by everyone. In Nigeria, music occupies a large part of our culture and tradition. In fact, our brand of hip-hop has not only obliterated the foreign brand completely, it has also become some sort of export, as most Nigerian music stars have become the continent’s favourites.
This year alone, the company, after spending hundreds of millions of naira to audition and select from over a thousand musicians in Yoruba music genres of fuji, juju and drums, the company was still able to present prize money totalling N9,750,000 to the winners and runners-up in the three categories. This is a huge increase from what was given out in the previous years’ winnings.
This journey of Ariya Repete which started in 2014 when it was called ”Fuji T’O Bam!” has now given rise to the birth of many stars who have gone ahead to fulfil their dreams in music and drums. This career success is possible due largely to the die-hard mentality of the average Nigerian, as well as the determined efforts of the sponsors to ensure more stars are born each year.
Speaking to journalists, the duo of Twinzobia Twins agreed that without such a programme by the sponsors, they would not have been as successful as they have been today. They opined that prior to winning, they were singing their fuji music without anyone paying attention to them, but since becoming Goldberg Ambassadors in 2014, after winning the talent hunt show, it was like magic as they began to get more calls for shows and events more frequently so much so that in no time, they were able to afford their own cars and even build their own home.
They stated further that the programme has helped many others like them to achieve their dreams in life, calling on the sponsors to continue sponsoring such a life- transforming show in the country.
According to a music enthusiast, who was present at the finals in Ibadan, “Most Nigerians know that if the platform is available, many music artistes will excel greatly.” Adding that “even if all you do for a Nigerian artiste is buy him or her few key instruments, such a person will succeed exceedingly, no matter the state of the economy.”
Many young and old artistes signed up for the auditioning and eventually only 16 made it the finals. Out of which only nine of them won the cash prizes. Out of all the contestants in the fuji music category, Olushola Martins, a fuji musician and entrepreneur from Ibadan, Oyo State, won and was presented with a cheque of N2 million prize money even as he was decorated as a Goldberg Ambassador while his counterpart, Ayodele Olatunji, a.k.a. Femi Bright, won the juju music category and was also presented with a N2 million cheque and also crowned Goldberg Ambassador.
