AFRIMA hosts jurors at annual patron’s dinner
…Surprises Onasanya @ 61 with special birthday shoutout
IT was an exciting blend of glitz, glam and euphoria as the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) hosted its annual patrons dinner with the jury members, Wednesday, in Lagos, Nigeria.
The event, which feted stakeholders in Africa’s creative economy, including media and music executives, African entertainers, among others, gave a glimpse into the expectations from this year’s edition, as the #RoadToAFRIMA22 continues to take an interesting glide.
Held at the EbonyLife Place, in Victoria Island, Lagos, the dinner was an intimate experience into the AFRIMA experience, as the dignitaries present met with AFRIMA jurors, composed of music aficionados from across all five regions in the continent and in the diaspora, as well as a representative from the African Union Commission (AUC). Also present at the event were artiste managers, as well as musicians such as Eltee Skhillz, Major AJ, Tariq, among others.
Hosted by AFRIMA Patron, Dr. Bisi Onasanya, the annual patrons’ dinner with the jury is a special gathering, held during the annual adjudication, to appreciate the jury members for their unflinching support in sieving out the best of talents for nomination at the awards.
The jury members are presently in Lagos, Nigeria, for an 8-day adjudication which began, last Friday, to select the nominees for this year’s edition from 9,076 entries submitted – the highest the awards has ever recorded since inception in 2014. The nominations list would be unveiled Monday, August 22, 2022, while voting begins Wednesday, August 24, 2022.
Onasanya expressed enthusiasm at the successes recorded by AFRIMA, noting that the enduring vision of the award body, in conjunction with the AU, will continue to come to fruition.
He said, “This event is to appreciate all the jury members. They are wonderful. They have been very thorough and have given AFRIMA the credibility it has today. They have been working assiduously for the growth of our creative sector. I am very proud to be associated with AFRIMA.
“African music is taking over the whole world by surprise. You go to other parts of the world these days and you hear African music being played. I am always excited, because it didn’t happen a decade ago. The whole world is now respectful of African music, and they are learning from us. This is a great achievement. AFRIMA, last year, was awesome. It was broadcast all over Africa. If you think last year was awesome, just wait until you see what will happen this year.”
In her keynote speech, a juror representing the African Union, who is the Head of the Culture Division at the African Union Commission, Mrs Angela Martins, appreciated the stakeholders in Africa’s creative space, as well as the award’s organisers for their invaluable contribution to the development of the African creative economy.
She said, “The African Union Commission, which has been a partner with AFRIMA since its inception in 2014, wishes to congratulate AFRIMA for his enthusiasm and priceless efforts in promoting the growth and development of the music industry in the continent, despite the challenges including the Ebola crisis in 2015 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. In 2020, AFRIMA played a key role in supporting the AUC in thinking out of the box and finding creative ways of using music to sensitise the continent on issues relating to the pandemic and to mobilise resources for the AU COVID-19 response fund. Hence, we organised a joint conference titled, Stronger Together.
“Since AFRIMA’s inception, we have been part of this pan-African music platform and we have watched it grow and bear fruits and award the most deserving music talents on the continent. This is a great contribution to the development of the creative economy of the continent. It has created opportunities for young people in the creative sector. The great work that AFRIMA is doing would not have been possible without the support of well wishers and believers in the potential and viability in the creative economy of the continent.
“We know that this is enormous for the well wishers and supporters, but on this occasion we wish to pay special tribute to the AFRIMA patron who came on board last year and has been supporting this pan-African
