The journey to crown the ‘Next Afrobeats Star‘ has reached its thrilling climax. After a nationwide search and months of intense competition, six exceptional talents have secured their place in the finale.
The finalists include Lucky Yay, Somto O’Laker, Kaekon, Ayo Benz, Dave Cash, and Astro Boi.
The show, which launched in August, began with 300 hopefuls selected from open auditions. Following a rigorous training camp, the pool was cut to 48, then further narrowed by judges’ and audience votes to 24, and finally to 12 top contenders.
These final 12 were divided into four teams, each mentored by an iconic producer — Puffy Tee, P.Prime, Sarz, and Andre Vibez — who honed their sound and stagecraft.
Now, only six remain to battle for the ultimate prize: a $100,000 recording deal from ONErpm and U-Records, with the other finalists also guaranteed deals ranging from $25,000 to $75,000.
During the house tour on Thursday — before the eviction of Eniola and Tunexz — the final eight contestants reflected on their transformative experience, their artistry, and their vision for the future of Afrobeats in a session with journalists.
Somto emphasised that beyond raw talent, the key has been discipline. “Knowledge of the industry, but most of all discipline. This place is teaching you how to be disciplined in your craft, your character on stage. It’s like a 360,” he said.
“Of course you have talent, but most important is hunger. But that hunger is in terms of continuity, because as much as you have present pressure, you must continue.”
He identified the ultimate qualities for a star as “charisma, swag, knowledge of the industry, and discipline”.
The finalists see themselves as part of the genre’s exciting evolution. Tunexz highlighted how the show’s structure pushed them creatively.
“We have four producers. These producers, we do not choose them, anybody can work with anybody. As an artist, you may want to work with someone like Sarz because that’s the kind of sound you want, but here you won’t be the one to choose. That can shape you into another kind of sound,” the singer said.
“I am getting more education, more stores, more kinds of sound to improve on. It is shaping us into another kind of person we didn’t think we were going to be.”
Lucky Yay spoke about the global potential rooted in authenticity. “We will go global by using our own stories, our personal stories, our authenticity. Afrobeats is very diverse,” he said.
“We now have Afropop, Afro R&B, Afrosoul, Afrofusion. All of us have that spice, that originality. We have barely scratched the surface.”
The “house” has been a pressure cooker, revealing strengths and demanding growth. Eniola pointed to the emphasis on live performance as a major differentiator
“In Nigeria, we have just about 10 major artistes that can give a proper live performance. Most performances these days are like studio sessions. Live performance is a totally different ball game. Growing up, my mindset has been: no matter how you move, the stage should be your leading point,” Eniola said.
For Kaekon, the challenge was personal evolution: “I had to embrace my inside. I did not used to act sexy, but I met people who told me, ‘Girl, you are a girl, act like it.’ Clothes I do not want to wear, I am not comfortable in, but beauty is pain.”
As the six artistes prepare for the final stage, they carry more than just the hope of a grand prize. They carry refined skills, a deeper understanding of their craft, and a collective determination to imprint their unique flavours on the ever-expanding universe of Afrobeats. The stage is set for a spectacular finale.
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