ENTRIES FOR NMVA '09

Entries for the NMVA '09 is still on so, if you an artiste with a tight video produced between september '08 to september '09 and you still haven't entered for the NMVAs then you are on a long thing!!!

Hurry! Urge your favourite artistes to enter those great videos now by logging on to http://www.facebook.com/l/;www.livebeats.net and clicking on the NMVA link for entry forms and procedure for submission. You can also pick up entry forms @ the secretariat on 9, Toyin Street Ikeja-Lagos. Entry closes 7th september2009.

It's up to you!

RISE celebrates United Nations’ INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY MASTERCLASS 2009 With DR. MRS. OBY EZEKWESILI {Vice President of the World Bank}

RISE, Nigeria’s leading Youth Interaction Centre has in the last three years hosted one of the most successful Youth forums in the Country with 2009 being the hallmark of our accomplishments so far. This year, the impact of the DARE TO BE DIFFERENT NATIONAL INTERACTIVE YOUTH FORUM in 8 Nigerian States has rekindled a new sense of hope in our Nigerian Youths.












On 22nd August, RISE will hold a Master Class with Dr. Mrs Oby Ezekwesili, Vp of the World Bank to get young professional Nigerians to discuss and map out strategies for survival, at this time even as we celebrate the UN International Youth day, World Over on August 12th. This will be her 2nd Visit to Nigeria since her appointment into that prestigious office.
In the face of the current global recession and the turbulence in the Nigerian Financial Sector, young business owners are closing shop, thousands of young professionals are being laid off from banks, corporations and multinationals, many more are faced with a terrible option to “market” their private assets to acquire huge unrealistic deposits for banks or earn leaner salaries than what they currently are placed on or join their compatriots in the jobless fold. In the face of these undesirable situations and choices, there are still several young people making a difference to make our Country, our own Nigeria, stated Miss Toyosi Akerele, team leader of RISE in her Press Statement. Young People are working hard, pacing and catching up with innovation, more, making history and doing our Nation Proud. We are not pleased but we are not giving up; we have to be encouraged. The Power situation is crippling businesses that are forced to spend 50% of profit on diesel or petrol to keep work going or they relocate to their Villages, our graduates don’t have jobs and ASUU isn’t willing to budge until FG is responsive to their aspirations; the result is that more young people are motionless and we are not even allowed to speak nor soar. The Question is though we are trying but how will our generation keep up and match our contemporaries in other African Countries since Ghana can keep the Lights on and we can’t? Must our generation read with candles and kerosene lanterns when students in South Africa are the real X generation? This explains the reason behind the organization’s packaging of the program.
For the sake of our Nigerian Audience bearing in mind, our collective burden and challenges as young people, the theme will be “Sustainability, our challenge, our future: Key Lessons for Business”. In the Course of the Program and under the supervision and guidance of Dr. Mrs. Oby Ezekwesili, the young professionals will break into groups to begin a discussion process that will ensure SUSTAINABILITY in diverse areas. It is expected that these young professionals will remain a team, holding one another accountable and keep working together after the Session.
The event will commence at 11am and end at 4pm and the Gathering will comprise of 100 young professionals who already manage Processes and Projects and will therefore find the knowledge and interaction at this forum useful for prolonged development. Participants should look forward to valuable learning experiences. This Year, the Event is sponsored by MTN, UBA and Sahara Group with generous support from M2, Business Day and Encomium.

1ST CORA HIP HOP CONFERENCE

In keeping with its role as cultural landscapist, the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA) is billed to convene its first Hip Hop conference as a direct intervention in the blossoming of a popular youth culture and its attendant music and sound.

Set to hold on Sunday the 26th of July 2009 from 2pm till 6pm at the main Exhibition Hall, National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, this first Hip Hop Conference is planned to provide a platform for leading proponents of hip hop music and hip hop culture and other enthusiasts to critically evaluate the musical output / cultural production from amongst their cadre in the past decade, in peer review sessions moderated by CORA.











This conference is intended to provide material for scholars and journalists working in the field of youth culture and to aggregate a cross section of perspectives on the successes and failures of a fast growing industry from the leading proponents of the music genre in question. The event will be covered extensively by the press in print and electronic media.

RISE DARES NIGERIAN YOUTHS AT THE “DARE TO BE DIFFERENT”

RISE, Nigeria’s leading Youth Interaction Centre has proved critics wrong by taking ‘DARE TO BE DIFFERENT’ NATIONAL INTERACTIVE YOUTH FORUM out of Lagos to 7 other Nigerian cities. ‘Dare to Be Different’ National Interactive Youth Forum was borne out of a need to encourage, empower, enlighten and educate the Nigerian Youths about issues that affect their everyday life. The Enugu event which held on the 18th July 2009 at the DANNIC HOTELS played host to over 1,800 youths from neighbouring communities like Awka, Owerri (for those who missed the Owerri edition), Ebonyi and Port Harcourt.

The Interactive Youth Forum is enriched with experiences and lessons of the excelled and established of our time, which RISE believes will help the participants work out a structure and plan for their own life and make critical decisions which will positively affect their lives. To ensure that this focus is effectively achieved, there are various sessions in the programme asides the Speakers presentation that gives the youths more opportunity to talk about issues affecting them in the academic institution, workplace environment and the society at large. The Interactive session with Guest Speakers gives the participants opportunity to ask any question from all the Guest Speakers while the Interactive session with Young Entrepreneurs borders on the topics (Sexuality, HIV & Aids, and Prostitution & Yahoo-Yahoo). The Confidence of Youth session gives chance for a little demonstration of confidence anywhere you go and Nigeria Youth Message Document Adoption which is a compilation of all comments from Speakers and Participants suggesting solutions and ideas to all stakeholders in the youth sector on how the youths can be seen as an instrument for change in Nigeria rather than a weapon for Mass destruction.

Unlike other locations covered so far (Lagos and Owerri), it was amazing to see young people troop in from various parts of the state, despite the ASUU strike. Present as Guest Speakers at the event to open the hearts of the participants on how to overcome various challenges include Mrs. Iquo Ukoh (Consumer Maximization Manager, Nestle Nigeria), Mr. Mitchell Elegbe (MD/CEO, Interswitch Nigeria Ltd) and Dr. Okey Ikechukwu (Special Adviser to the Vice President of the World Bank). Other distinguished personalities who spoke at the event are Mr. Uzoma Onwuchekwa (MD, EXP Nigeria Ltd) and Mr. Chidi Odinkalu (Senior Legal Officer of Open Society Justice Initiative and a visiting Harvard Professor). As always, Telecommunication giant, MTN was there to ensure the participants had a Y’hello experience. Other major brands present to ensure the success of the Event include NESCAFE, DANA AIR, NIGERIAN BOTTLING COMPANY, MACLEANS AND VERVE.

Young entrepreneurs were celebrated in the course of the event and the participants were engaged in a thought-provoking session of what they thought RISE stands for. The participant, Aja Reuben, who won the prize for this session made a very spectacular statement. In his opinion, “RISE makes you a crocodile amongst lizards”.

While the Enugu Youths are still reeling in the euphoria of the RISE event, Benin youths have rolled the drums out for the National Interactive Youth Forum scheduled to hold at the Peniel Chapel, Benson Idahosa University, 2nd Ugbor Road, GRA, Benin City on the 1st of August, 2009.

ENCOMIUM WHITE GIG PARTY

Here are pictures from the recently held Encomium White Gig Party held at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos
The good, bad and ugly ones...lol

NDUKA OBAIGBENA'S 50TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION

The Editor-in-Chief/Chairman of ThisDay Newspapers celebrated - Nduka Obaigbena his 50th birthday on the 14th of July at the T.B.S in Lagos. Of course it was a massive one and only the very best could be expected, the celebration was not short of expectation and right from the few pictures you can see …Enjoy!

Picture thanks to Solomon Ekhaiyemhe

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Book Launch and Reading

The public presentation of ‘The Thing Around your Neck’, the newest book of award winning author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was held on the 11th of July at the Silverbird Galleria, Victoria Island. The inspiring evening of readings, discussion and celebration gathered literary minds from far and around, from writers, journalists, critics, artists to all lovers of art.
Check out pictures from the event: