300 People, Places, Events and Things That Shaped 2010 – Full List

By Dimeji Ogedengbe, Chiagoziem Onyekwena, Dynamo Pebbles, Wallace Olalekan and Tomiwa Fawunmi

 

Okay! No long stories. Here’s the much talked about ‘300’ list…

2FACE IDIBIA

More controversies, more success stories could well be 2face’s slogan in 2010. After a series of mishaps that almost left him grounded, Mr Idibia finally found the grace to jump high again in 2010. He kicked off with the release of his album ‘Unstoppable (The international edition)’ with a price tag of N1000; a feat which many immediately emulated. Idibia followed this up with a UK concert before hosting Nigerians to his well attended solo gig at the Expo Hall of the Eko Hotel and Suites. The album brought forth hit after hit, backed with near-excellent videos and promo machinery. Not surprisingly, Idibia’s year was filled with several nominations and awards – including SMVA and MAMA. And he capped it up with his inclusion in the One8 project teaming up with R.Kelly and 7 other African music giants.

50 CENT

Just when many thought 50 cent had nothing more to offer other than weak diss tracks, he pulled off one of the greatest shock in the year. He had to lose as much as 54 pounds to feature in the movie Things Fall Apart. Curtis Jackson may no longer be number 1 on the list of top hip hop earners, but he did show to the world what it means to make a sacrifice through his severe loss of weight and thereby taking his movie career to another level.

50th Independence day

Nigeria’s 50th anniversary was held this year amidst razzmatazz, fanfare and bomb blasts. You don’t want to know the details…

9ICE

Mr. Abolore Akande started the year 2010 in controversy and ended it in controversy. He separated from his wife in January, took up battles with his producer ID Cabasa, and caused major drama with the release of the track ‘once bitten twice shy’ on his Tradition album. The song was widely believed to be directed at his estranged wife Toni Payne and rapper Ruggedman. Remember the private phone called made public? Remember the diss songs and Twitter wars? Remember… Okay, that’s enough!

234 NEXT

A couple of challenges here and there, but NEXT remained a model for what a 21st century newspaper should look like. Their daring coverage of the Yaradua disappearance, appearance and eventual death won them fans from all over, and they used the power of technology to drive their website to the very top.

Abuja film festival

The 7th Edition of the Abuja International Film Festival took place at the Silverbird Entertainment Centre, Abuja. The event was attended by actors, film makers, script writers and industry stakeholders from Nollywood and beyond.

AGN

Just like last year, the Actors Guild of Nigeria met with a lot of controversies with many skeptical about how the funds donated to the entertainment industry will be handled by its president  Segun Arinze.

AFRICAN MAGIC

The introduction of the Yoruba and Hausa versions this year drew more attention to one of the most watched channels by Nigerians on DSTV.

ALABA MARKET

So 2face made the Jewel cases fashionable again this year… Soforte developed a distribution chain that made many heave a sigh of relief… And it looked like we were finally ready to push Alaba out of business? Nah! The market continued to thrive as the most potent distribution centre for CDs and DVDs, and, sadly, as the haven of piracy…

AMAA

This year saw the African Movie Academy Awards still maintaining top spot as  the biggest movie awards in Africa right now with its expansion into other African countries honoring and rewarding deserving movie practitioners.

ALICIA KEYS

While many were still celebrating/condemning the singer’s marriage to producer Swizz Beatz after few months of engagement, the announcement of the delivery of her first child Egypt brought smiles to the faces of her fans, friends and well wishers across the world. This is indeed a memorable year for the award winning singer and her hubby.

AMOS ADAMU

News of corruption charges had been trailing the former University lecturer all through his career, but the most embarrassing was this year when he allegedly agreed to receive £500,000 in order to influence the voting procedure with his vote for the 2018 FIFA World Cup bid. He denied any wrong doing but after an investigation by FIFA that did not favour him, the world soccer body banned him from soccer administration for three years, thereby ending the year on a bad note and bringing Nigeria’s name to disrepute yet again…

ASA

Despite her absence from the music scene for almost two years after the dazzling impact of her self- titled debut album ‘ASA’ in 2007, the French born singer ends the year on a high note with the release of her superb sophomore album ‘Beautiful Imperfection’ . This album further justifies her musical expertise and makes her a true musical export amongst several other female artistes across the country.

ASHLEY COLE

Chelsea FC and England National Team Left full back, Ashley Cole and Singer Cheryl Tweed officially divorced in September 2010 following accusations of infidelity on Ashley’s part.

Atiku Abubakar
A Former Vice President, Mr Abubakar declared his intention to run for the nation’s presidency in 2011 after cross-carpeting from the ruling PDP to AC and then back to PDP and eventually beating ‘evil genius’ Ibrahim Babangida to  become the North’s consensus candidate for the 2011 PDP presidential ticket.

Airtel

The mobile telecommunication network was launched in Nigeria in November to replace Zain. Airtel is the major sponsor of MTV African Music Award since its inception in 2008.

Amara Nwakpa

The founder of #LightupNigeria is a Product Manager with Abuja-based Galaxy Backbone but his claim to fame in 2010 was the LIGHT UPNIGERIA initiative – using social media and physical advocacy to draw global attention to the horrible situation of electrical power in Nigeria.

Avatar

In 2010 James Cameron produced ‘Avatar’, the groundbreaking animation-like attracted massive turn out at the cinemas across the world. This film is one of the best movies this year, with the prestigious Oscar award to show for it…

BABATUNDE RAJI FASHOLA

BRF as he is fondly called is turning out to be one of the most charismatic leaders in the country. He has left no stone unturned this year in his effort to transform Lagos state into a city to adore. Lagos being the capital of African entertainment, Governor Fashola declared his support for the entertainment stakeholders at different times this year. Notably was the Lagos state’s involvement in the recently held MTV Africa Music Awards.

BANKY W

Mr Capable could well boast of a successful 2010 with the success of his W Experience album. Wonderful videos for ‘Lagos party’ and ‘Strong Ting’ earned him various nominations and awards all through the year – even though he lost the coveted MAMA prize. He also succeeded in turning EME kids Skales and Wizkid into household names.

BASKET MOUTH

Mr. Bright Okpocha surely deserves to be on this list for so many reasons. He may have kicked his regular show ‘Basket mouth uncensored’ to the sidelines but he metamorphosed the show into ‘Lord Of The Ribs’ which turned out to be one of the biggest comedy shows of the year. The dreadlocked comedian crowned the year up with smiles as he walked down the aisle with his long time lover and mother of his only child.

BARRACK OBAMA

On Friday November 26 2010 US President, Barack Obama received 12 stitches after being inadvertently hit in the lip with an opposing player’s elbow while playing basketball with friends and family. Obama received the stitches under local anesthesia in the doctor’s office on the ground floor of the White House after returning home. Doctors used a smaller filament than typically used, which increases the number of stitches but makes a tighter stitch and leaves a smaller scar. But, faced with a-million-and-one challenges, and the puzzle of re-election, Obama will have to cope with bigger scars as he moves into 2011

BEAT FM

They are barely three years and all other radio stations across Lagos are already playing second fiddle to them. Taking off from where they started in 2009, they continue to redefine radio broadcast through their lively OAPs such as Olisa Adibua, Oreka, Toolz, Gbemi, Vanessa, Fade, Chris, Jimmie and a host of others.

BELLA ADENUGA

Mike Adenuga’s favourite daughter, Bella got Nigerians talking in April 2010 when it was rumoured that American singer Beyonce Knowles was billed to perform at her wedding to Jameel Disu. Bella’s wedding ceremony held in Lagos was expectedly a talk of the town as it was the gathering of the rich and famous from Nigeria and beyond.

BEN MURRAY BRUCE

If at any point in time you heard of a financial injection of $200,000,000 by President Goodluck Jonathan into the entertainment industry, Ben Murray-Bruce is the man behind it. The 54-year-old Silverbird Chairman has pulled a lot of unprecedented feats; and he plans to take it all to a new level, with his intention to build the tallest building in Africa in Abuja come 2011.

Best Of Nollywood Awards (BON)

BON awards made an impressive second coming this year with its world longest red carpet record it set.

BEYONCE

She was awarded Best Music Video of 2010 by iTunes for Why Don’t You Love Me. In February 2010, the RIAA listed her as the top certifiedartist of the decade. In 2010, VH1 listed Knowles at number 52 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. Want more?

BET

Gone are the days when Nigerian artistes were relegated to the background, these days they are out there doing us proud, standing tall and strong. Such is the case of the good news that filtered into the music industry as our very own M.I Abaga and Psquare both scored nominations at this year’s BET Awards in America.

BEZ

The young alternative soul singer got a lot of attention and recognition this year. He was busy performing at top concerts all year round not mentioning regular private gigs…

BIG BROTHER AFRICA 5

In a bid not to make the biggest reality show in Africa appear repetitive and boring, its organizers came up with an all-star edition featuring evictees from previous editions. This time around it was livelier and less nude scenes were recorded. It eventually produced Uti Nwachukwu as the winner making him the second consecutive Nigerian winner in a row.

BLACKBERRY

Although the blackberry popularly referred to as BB had been in existence long before 2010, it became more popular especially among youths this year. The mobile phone device which was somewhat an identity for the high class individual in time past was all over the place this year with even high school students boasting of owning the device. All day, all night ping never stopped for Nigerian youths in 2010.

BELLA NAIJA (www.bellanaija.com)

BellaNaija has finally settled down into its position as Nigeria’s leading lifestyle blog. With a community of readers and commentators dedicated to a fault, and a content management system second to none, it’s not surprising that BN is already on the list of top 100 sites in Nigeria!

BRT

Transportation problems across Nigeria’s commercial capital were further minimized with the introduction of more Bus Rapid Transit all through the year.

BOBBY BOULDER

Tola Odunsi (aka Bobby Boulders) is a Nigerian New York Film Academy-trained director. Some of his works this year includes: ‘Champion’ for General Pype, ‘Making Money’ by Sasha and Naeto C’s ‘Successful’.

BRACKET

With the release of ‘Yori Yori’ remix featuring 2face, the buzz around the artistes resurged. They had a rewarding year as loads of Nigerian in the US showed them massive acceptance while on their US tour.

BRYMO

The new Chocolate City act made his debut cut on Iceprince’s ‘Oleku’. Brymo’s voice on the chorus is instrumental to making the song a hit.

CALARBAR FESTIVAL

The 32-day annual festival also stood out again as a show to reckon with in the year 2010. It paraded a collection of A-list artistes within and outside Nigeria with the likes of gospel singers Mary Mary and Shaggy lighting up the event.

CASEY

Warri-born Casey became the winner of Glo Naija Sings season 2 this year. He made a name for himself as he won the coveted price of $100,000 (N15m) grand prize and a Toyota Rav 4.

CECILIA IBRU

The former managing director of Oceanic Bank PLC was convicted in 2009 of bank and securities fraud but her woes were further compounded this year as she was sentenced to six months in jail and also be forfeited over N150 billion in assets and cash. Definitely not a year to be remembered by the light skinned lady.

CHINEZIE ANYAENE

She distinguished herself as the writer, producer and director of Ije - one the most successful Nollywood movies in 2010.

CELEBRITY TAKES 2

Just like it’s usually a tradition to bring together music industry and Nollywood stars to battle it out on the dance stage. This years edition was more interesting and competitive as Yemi Blaq emerged winner.

CHRISTIAN

Christian who was one of the most likely contenders for this year’s MTN Project Fame West Africa had to leave the Academy ‘on medical grounds’.

Classic FM

The radio station started at the same time with Beat FM (both stations are run by the Chris Ubosi-owned Megalectrics) but was initially overshadowed by the successes attained by beat FM since inception despite its unique and distinctive style of broadcast. This year a different approach to their programming paved the way for their success with their classic style of presentation (News, Music and Sports).

CHANNEL O AWARDS

It has now become an annual Nigerian dominance at the Channel O music video awards. This year an impressive six awards were scooped by our Nigerian contingents which further justifies our musical strength in Africa.

CHOCOLATE CITY

The Audu Maikori-led record label can indeed boast of a successful year with the release of Jesse Jagz’s debut album ‘Jag of all tradez’, M.I’s sophomore album ‘MI2’, Iceprince’s monster hit ‘Oleku’ blessed with new signing Brymo and Mr. Maikori’s selection as a Nigerian Idol judge.

CHARLY BOY

The Ninja bike man made his way into the bad books of the media this year when a romantic picture of him kissing Denrele leaked on the internet which made many castigate and label them homosexuals.

CHIDINMA EKILE

She became the first female winner of the MTN Project Fame in the season 3 edition held earlier this year, warming up to be the next big thing in the Nigerian music scene.

CHILE MINERS

33 trapped miners were freed in Chile last October after spending more than two months underground – attracting global attention as their rescue mission was televised live…

CHRIS BROWN

He may still be remembered for his assault on Rihanna but this year he did not relent in trying to restore his image. He also did a couple of singles in which he still threw jabs at ex, Rihanna.

CLARENCE PETERS

Despite his previous success and fame gotten through video directing, the skillful video director did not relent in any way as he had a hand in a large chunk of quality videos this year. His recent awards bagged at the Nigerian Music Video Awards (NMVA) crowned his efforts in the year.

COSON

The decision to set up COSON is a result of a broad based agreement between the owners of musical works, the users of the works and the statutory regulators on the need of the industry to close ranks and have one formidable national collective management organization to promote and protect the copyright of practitioners in the Nigerian music industry. COSON also ensures that the rights of persons from other lands who have interest in music used in Nigeria are protected.

COMPACT DISC

The Compact disc remains one of the most important tools for storing and circulating music; although it’s now becoming more and more endangered, because of the proliferation of digital containers like the iPod, iPad etc…

CHAZ B

Inspiration FM presenter is starting to gain more female fans/listeners on radio than any other presenter as he skillfully masters his art in discussing real life /relationship issues on radio.

Cool FM

Its two years since they lost their key OAPs to Beat FM and other stations. And after suffering the loss for a while, the radio station is now bouncing back steadily, attracting listeners again, and adding young and seasoned radio presenters to the platform; some of which include N6 – of the 4th republic fame and Kheila.

COBHAMS ASUQUO

The visually-impaired song-writer, producer and singer continued to show us that he is indeed not handicapped. He continued producing hit songs and even surpassed the standards he set for himself in the past year. He ended the year taking his long time girlfriend to the altar.

CRACK YA RIBS

The yearly comedy show by Julius Agwu clocked ten years in 2010 and raised the bar with its 2010 edition.

CYNTHIA OKPALA

The first and only Nigeria VeeJay on MTV Base got married this year. We’re still shocked!

DAGRIN

Nigerian entertainment circle was thrown into morning when the shocking news of the death of talented rapper Dagrin broke on Thursday April 22, 2010 after being hospitalized for injuries sustained in a ghastly car accident. Youths, adults and teenagers did not get over the shock for weeks.

DELE MOMODU

Dele Momodu is the publisher of Ovation international magazine. Bob Dee as fondly celebrated his 50th birthday anniversary and also announced his intention to run for the presidency in 2011.

Denrele EDUN
The weird looking VeeJay got in the news this year with different headlines but the most remarkable of them all is the widely circulated picture of him and the former PMAN President, Charley Boy kissing each other in a picture that was splashed all over the internet and on pages of newspapers. And then he went missing at the SMVAs…

DNMT

The consistency of the Dance group ‘Dance Na the Main thing’ which was established in 2003 paved a way for its success this year as it did not relent in giving choreography lessons to young individuals and celebrities while keeping a hectic schedule, performing across the length and breadth of Nigeria…

DIMEJI BANKOLE

The Speaker of Nigeria House of Representative started the year with the delivery of his second baby on January 6, 2010 and also got himself engaged in a physical combat with the Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel at the official opening of Sango Ota Bridge.

DIEGO FORLAN

Atletico Madrid striker Forlan proved to be one of the star performers in South Africa, beating off competition from the likes of Wesley Sneijder and Spain hitman David Villa to be crowned the tournament’s best player – as voted for by the media winning himself the Golden Ball award

DINO MELAYE

The honourable member of the Nigeria’s House of Representative with his colleagues engaged in a dis-honourable  free-for-all-in June 2010 on the floor of the house, which led to their suspension.

DJ JIMMY JATT

Foremost Nigeria jockey, Jimmy Jatt celebrated his 4-th birthday this year and he’s still waxing strong as the Numero Uno disk Jockey master in the whole of Africa.

D’Prince
The Mo’hits artiste upped his game this year when he celebrated his birthday with the release of three news singles, Omoba, Ooze and I Like What I See. D’Prince has also performed in major show around and outside the shores of Nigeria. He became more pronounced in the industry this year – shocking all those who had earlier predicted his career would never go anywhere…

DJ HUMILITY

DJ Humility is one of Nigeria’s long standing DJs and is still on point. He co-owned D’Hac, a new night club in Lagos which was opened for use this year

DYNAMIX

It’s been five years since the Dynamix All Youth Award was launched, with the lofty goal of being at the fore of celebrating Nigerian youths through a star-studded awards ceremony.

DR FRABS AND OMAWUMI

Former love birds, Dr Frabs and his girlfriend Omawumi set the industry buzzing in March 2010 when they announced that they have agreed to go their separate ways.

Dr Sid
Sydney Onoriode Esiri released his debut album ‘Turning point’ earlier this year being the only album released by Mo’hits in 2010 and his ‘something about you’ and Pop Champagne tracks put the artiste on the  list of show headliners this year.

DRAKE
Aubrey Drake Graham is a Canadian artiste who released his first album titled ‘Thank Me Later’ this year, debuting at number one on the Billboard charts and the album had since gone platinum. He won several awards this year and also performed at the 2010 Grammy awards

DSTV
The satellite television won the bid to air the English premiership right and slashed its installment fee to N9000 as against the previous price of about thirty thousand.

DJ CAISE

Beat 99.9 FM DJ, DJ Caise introduced Funky House to the Nigerian mass audience and this year he teamed up with rising rapper Lynxxx to create an official funky tune

DON JAZZY

Work didn’t slow down one bit for Don Jazzy. His hook on Dbanj’s Mr. Endowed, his production prowess in D’prince’s singles and Dr SID’s album kept the hit maker as relevant as possible this year.

DAREY

Just when we thought he had gone into hibernation, the Abuja-based R&B giant released back-to-back singles and a video that got the whole music community buzzing!

DUNCAN MIGHTY

Duncan Wene-Mighty is one of the genuine stars of Nigeria’s Niger Delta region… Unfortunately, to the rest of the country its Duncan Mighty’s songs, rather than the man himself, that have been visible (or audible) in recent times. He also dropped his album – ‘Legacy’ this year.

STANDUP COMEDY

For those who have been disheartened by the continuous decline of the Nigerian theater tradition, the advent of an avant-garde alternative in the emergent stand-up comedy culture has hugely compensated for a truly sad loss.

EDET UMOH

The fourth realm of the estate lost another colleague Mr. Edet Umoh, a TVC news broadcaster who died after a brief illness.

EDI LAWANI

He’s the number one event manager in Nigeria and has been able to keep the flag flying year after year… Mr. Lawani has been around for decades – so don’t be surprised if you find him on the list again in 2011…

ETISALAT

Etisalat may be the last entrant into the fiercely competitive telecoms market, but it’s fastly establishing itself as a major contender in that sector. Attractive to young people and heavily involved within the youth segment, the brand is already a household name and one of telecoms’ fastest-growing brands. Its decision to be a major sponsor of the first Nigerian Idol further testified to the multinational’s commitment to the development of arts and entertainment

ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP LEAGUE

For soccer fans, English premiership has been one of the most prestigious leagues worldwide. It’s the reason some people have a job and survive today as viewing centers keep manifesting at any available space around many suburbs and cities across the country.

ENDURANCE IDAHO

Endurance Idahor died in March this year in a league match between his team El-Merriekh and Al-Amal. He slumped inside the box after only 15 minutes of action and was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. He joined El-Merreikh from Nigerian outfits Dolphin in 2006 and was loaned to Al-Nasser of UAE for one season. He made his fourth start of the season for El-Merriekh on the day he died. In 176 appearances for his Sudanese club he scored 118 times.

ELDEE
Much anticipated eLDee’s new album ‘Is It Your Money’ Vol. 1 was dropped in 2010. The multi-talented Nigerian Hip-hop pioneer, who is popular for his work as a singer, songwriter, rapper, and music producer toured Six UK Cities.

ELITE MODEL SEARCH

Franchise owners of Elite model Management in Nigeria held the third annual Elite Model Search in Nigeria. Elite Model Management is a forefront modeling agency that has launched the careers of celebrities like Oluchi Orlandi, Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Cindy Crawford and others.

EMEKA IKE

Emeka Ike emerged winner of the debut edition of the Nigerian Breweries sponsored ‘Gulder Ultimate Search Celebrity Showdown’. He won the N7.5M ultimate prize.

EMINEM

Rap star Eminem topped the Grammy Awards nominees. His seventh studio album ‘Recovery’ debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 741,000 copies in its first week and sold over three million copies subsequently in the US; while it sold 5.6 million copies worldwide and was named iTunes bestselling album of 2010.

EUCHARIA ANUNOBI

Sultry Actress Eucharia Anunobi got separated from her husband ‘Charles Ekwu’ last year but officially divorced this year.

FEMI KUTI

Son of Legendary Afro beat Pacesetter- Fela was very busy this year, a few months after the release of his album ‘Day by Day’, he toured the US with his band – ‘The Positive force band ’. He got his second Grammy awards nominations in category of the ‘Best Contemporary World Music’ which he lost.

FRUITY LOOPS

The number of music producers is on geometric increase, thanks to production software like Fruity loops…

FUNKE AKINDELE

The lady who broke into the hearts of many with her award winning movie ‘Jenifa’, now raised eyebrows this year as she announced to showcase the concluding part of the movie ‘The Return of Jenifa’ which features an array of stars such as eLDee, Denrele, Kaffy, CD John, Helen Paul, Rukky Sanda, Banky W and a host of others.

FLAVOUR

The Eastern singer got the needed break when he delivered osondi owendi remix, and then moved over to Lagos to promote his album. He also got to work with popular rappers ‘MI’ and ‘Ruggedman’ with excellently delivered hooks.

FRANCIS DURU

Nollywood actor, Francis Duru recently made headlines after he led scores of entertainers to champion the campaign for President Goodluck Jonathan’s ambition in the forthcoming 2011 elections.

FIONA AMUZIE AFORA

She was crowned Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (MBGN) World 2010 and will represent Nigeria in the 60th Miss World pageant in Vietnam competing against over 120 nations.

FUTURE AWARDS

In less than 5 years, Nigeria’s ‘most influential’ youth event, The Future Awards has built a strong reputation as a credible and relevant honours event. Beyond that, ‘The Future’ has become a movement aimed at promoting youth development in all segments of Nigerian society.

Facebook (www.facebook.com)

With over 500 million users worldwide, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his team are not lagging behind in making sure many do not get over their addiction for Facebook. Year-in-year out the social network site has continued to affect our daily lives and activities.

FELA ON BROADWAY

FELA! was awarded with three Tony Awards on June 6, 2010 after receiving a total of 11 nominations. Backed by Jay-Z and power couple Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, FELA! is an innovative musical based on events in the life of the late Afro-beat legend Fela Anikulapo Kuti.

FELABRATION

This year’s Felabration took a new dimension. International and local acts trooped out to honour the late Afro beat Legend, Fela at the New African Shrine, Lagos.

FourSquare

The social networking site reported it has 4.5 million registered users as of November 2010. On September 1, 2010, the World Economic Forum announced the company as a Technology Pioneer for 2011.

FUNMI IYANDA

Funmi Iyanda is a multi award winning broadcaster, journalist, columnist and blogger. In 2010, she rebranded – adding flavor and rich content to Television programming with her new talk show ‘Talk with Funmi’.

FLYTIME PROMOTIONS

It has become the leading Nigerian Marketing communications Company with its hands in many big-budget events, especially the annual Rhythm Unplugged. Flytime pulled off the ambitious  2face Idibia Live concert this year, and teamed up with many others to deliver wonderful concerts all year round. But, what is still getting many talking, is the amazingly successful 2010 edition of Rhythm Unplugged which will easily win the prize for ‘Show of the year’…

GBENGA SALU

Gbenga Adedoyin Salu is one of Nigeria’s enterprising young music video directors. He graduated from being a departmental cartoonist at a National daily.  Gbenga has moved on to directing music videos, especially animated ones that won awards this year.

GLOBACOM

The much awaited Glo submarine cable system Glo 1, in July 2010, made a historic landing in Alfa Beach, Lagos, Nigeria. The landing marked the beginning of cheap bandwidth which in itself would translate into many possibilities in the Information and Communications sector of the Nigerian economy. The telecommunication giant also signed Psquare for a four year deal reportedly worth N240 million.

GENENRAL PYPE

It was a good year for dancehall artiste, General Pype. His massive hit song ‘Champion’ is now an official theme song for ‘channel of champions’ Super Sports; just as the song developed wings and soared all round the country and beyond.

GENEVIEVE NNAJI

Nigerian actress Genevieve Nnaji was featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show in an episode ‘Meet the Most Famous People in the World‘. Gene who was referred to as the ‘Julia Roberts of Africa’ on the show was chosen due to her wide appeal across the African continent and all over the world. Towards the end of the year, Ms Nnaji also raised the bar when she was featured on a CNN programme ‘connect the world’ and of course her alleged romance with Dbanj kept her in the news all year

GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN

Early this year the former Vice President rose to become the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria after the eventual demise of Umar Musa Yar’Adua. Upon declaring his intention to run for the presidency come 2011, he wooed scores of entertainers to his side; staging a carnival-like declaration party, and hob-knobbing with pop star Dbanj.

GURU

The American hip hop legend, aged 43, one-half of the iconic group, Gangstarr, passed away due to complications from cancer on April 19 this year

GULDER ULTIMATE SEARCH

This year the Gulder ultimate search went to Omo forest and twenty three year old Oluremi Oyekunle became the seventh winner of the reality show.

GRAMMY AWARDS

The 52nd Grammy Awards was super with big winners like Beyonce and Taylor swift bagging the highest number of awards.

GT THE GUITAR MAN

After the release of his poorly-promoted album, GT left Storm Records to form his own record label called Ember records.

HENRY OKAH

Leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) fingered by Nigeria’s Presidency to have been responsible for the Abuja Bomb Blast that killed 16 people was re-arrested in South Africa by the police and has since been standing trial for terrorism.

HiTV

They lost the bid for the English Premiership for 2010/2011 season and also parted ways with long time partner – Nigezie but they have been able to move on with new channels added to their bouquet.

Hip Hop World Awards
Hip Hop World Award staged its fifth edition in May this year after the last one at Abuja.

Holy Mallam
The pioneer of gospel comedy celebrated his 10th year on stage this year at the Federal palace Hotel, Lagos

HHP

Jabulani Tsambo, better known as Hip Hop Pantsula (HHP) or Jabba is a South African rap artist who performs in multiple languages, although primarily Setswana. He was listed as the best MC in Africa by MNET this year, ahead of Nigeria’s MI and Naeto C.

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL

The globally-acclaimed kiddies musical made its debut in Nigeria this year, as a wholly Nigerian cast of 32 young men and women staged a beautiful premiere in Lagos and Abuja.

IBRAHIM BADAMOSI BABANGIDA

IBB entered the popularity contest again, when he declared his intention to run for the Presidency in the forthcoming elections. And, as he would have since discovered, Nigerians no longer forget that easily. June 12? Dele Giwa? Gulf Oil Windfall? The many IBB sings showed up all year; reminding us that we should only anoint the ‘evil genius’ at our own peril…

ICEPRINCE ZAMANI

We predicted back in 2009 that Chocolate city artiste Iceprince would break out in 2010. And he did! With the release of his debut single Oleku, Mr Zamani joined the hit makers’ club, claiming his long-deserved spot on the star list.

IJE
As if pairing perceived Nollywood rivals Omotola and Genevieve as sisters was not enough, Ije also put Nollywood back on the international map and got the cinemas across the Nigeria busy for months.

IKECHUKWU

The rapper released his first mixtape titled ‘Ok Hello’, re-united with his old girlfriend – Sarah Ofili, moved out of the Mo’hits camp and released his new album ‘Alliance Recontstructed’. And reported altercations with Dbanj, and a club bouncer did little to enhance his public image…

INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATIONS

Nigerian music which has been on the cusp of an international breakthrough for a long time now saw Eldee teaming up with Yung joc while J martins teamed with Fally Ipupa in 2010, as Dbanj scored a major with Snoop Dogg on the yet-to-be-released Mr Endowed remix.

INDEPENDENCE DAY BOMB BLAST

The 50th Independence Day celebration on October 1, 2010 was marred by two car bomb explosions in Abuja where eight people were confirmed dead.

iPAD

The face of mobile computing changed in April 2010 when Apple introduced the iPad.  The iPad is a stylish tablet computer that can be used for a variety of purposes, such as Internet browsing, viewing videos, gaming and even creating content. The Pad runs a modified version of the iOS and is controlled by a multi-touch LCD sensitive to fingertips, instead of a stylus as with earlier tablet computers.

iTUNES (www.itunes.com)

If you don’t have i-Tunes installed on your laptops or computers right now, then you run the risk of being thoroughly outdated before the year runs out. More than just a media player and a tool for sharing music, iTunes has become the World’s number one online music retailer.

IK

We stopped referring to him as Wild Child lain 2008, but the name still finds a way to crop up somehow. The OAP was host at this year’s BBA not only showed us courage and professionalism but also brought humor on board.

IYANYA

The MTN Project Fame West Africa Season 1 winner had it rough this year as he lost his mother and his only brother. But Iyanya came back later in the year with two new singles ‘I’m The One’ and ‘In Love, after inking a management deal with Buzz Avenue.

JAY JAY OKOCHA

The former Super Eagles captain re-opened his night club – Club 10 and was also appointed an NFF caretaker committee member after the sack of Lars Lagerback.

JOSEPH YOBO AND ADAEZE IGWE

2010 had barely kicked off when we got news that Nigerian beauty Adaeze and soccer darling Joseph had exchanged wedding vows, months after announcing they were dating. Now blessed with their first child, they’re one of our favourite couples of 2010.

JESSE JAGZ

MI’s younger brother, Jesse released his debut album this year. Jargo is armed with tons of beats and responsible for numbers of hit songs.

JAMES IBORI

James Onanefe Ibori was the governor of Delta State from 1999 to 2007. After his tenure as the governor he’s accused of stealing funds worth $290 million by the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He’s also wanted by Police in UK. Presently in custody in Dubai awaiting extradition to UK. It was a not so good year for the ex governor.

JOKE JAYESIMI

After breaking up with video director Dj Tee, the former HipTV  producer then moved over to music station Soundcity.

JAYWON

The Kennis Music prized act released his debut album titled ‘Meet Jaywon’ this year and soon became the most prominent male artiste on the leading label.

JEREMIAH GYANG

The Jos-based producer cum singer failed to find his tune this year, but wowed many when he married his long time heartthrob in a very low key ceremony in Jos.

JOHN TERRY
This year is definitely a bad year for the former England captain, especially because of the scandal that trailed his affair with another Premiership star’s wife. With all this, the Chelsea Fc captain had no option than to drop the country’s captain armband.

JOSE MOURINHO

Jose Mario Dos Santos Felix Mourinho is a Real Madrid FC Manager and Portuguese International. He won the UEFA Champions League and the Italian league this year.

J SLEEK

He is a gifted producer and the brain behind most of the award winning pop stars’ songs – 2face Idibia, Sound Sultan amongst others.

JADEN SMITH

The 12 year old son of Will Smith made his mark in the movie industry this year as he was the star act  in the award winning movie ‘Karate Kid’ alongside veteran Hong Kong actor ‘Jackie Chan’.

JARULE

All through the year, Murder Inc rap star had a quiet time musically but found his way back into the news as he was sentenced to two years imprisonment on gun charges.

J MARTINS

The producer inked a partnership deal with Storm 360, recruited more fans across the continent, recorded amazing collaborations, and got to perform at the 2010 MTV Africa Music Awards.

JUSTIN BIEBER

Canadian Pop-R&B singer. Bieber was discovered in 2008 by Scooter Braun. His debut single, ‘One Time’, was released worldwide during 2009, and charted within the top 30 in over ten countries. It was followed by his debut release, ‘My World’, on November 17, 2009, which was certified platinum in the United States, making him the first artist to have seven songs from a debut album chart on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2010.

KAFFY
Kafayat Shafau, the celebrated dancer kicked off a career as a recording artiste this year with the release of her debut song, ‘Omo Gidi’. She also secured a position as a Project Fame West Africa choreographer/Academy member.

K’NAAN

The Somalian singer’s song ‘Waving Flag’, was the official song for the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa.

KANYE WEST
Kanye West’s eye-popping 102-second ‘Power’ video in a way, seems to prove that 10-minute epics aren’t exactly necessary to get tongues wagging. With the indescribable video which looked somewhat scary, Mr West left many with a big question mark. He made history producing the world shortest video anyway.

KAS

Sometime at the beginning of the year little-known Kas’ single ‘Fi Mi Le’ did not cross many as a song that would pull any weight, but as the months rolled by – the banging track was already settling in our blood streams and in a blink of an eye it became resident in our hearts. ‘Fi Mi Le’ qualified Kas as a hitmaker in 2010.

KEL

The femcee released her debut album ‘Investment’ in 2009, but failed to find her tune all through 2010. But she enjoyed a robust endorsement deal with Soulmate hair product while also working hard to conquer her weight problems… She parted ways with Clarence Peters and Capital Hill too!

KELLY HANSOME
Former Kennis Music artiste made more foes than friends this year. He dissed a host of artistes; creating more enemies for himself than any of his counterparts. He ‘listed the names of noise makers’ in his song ‘Igwe Komkom’ and served them diss portions accordingly – the list includes Mo’hits, Terry G, MI, 2Shot and his erstwhile boss – Kenny Ogungbe. Though, he apologized to Kennis music eventually their label-artiste relationship did not make it past the apology.

KEMI ADETIBA

She rose from being an OAP to a music video director, directing dozens of videos all year and establishing herself as a creator to court…

KENNIS MUSIC

The critically-acclaimed largest record label in Nigeria continued to rule the airwaves with new crops of artistes like Jaywon, Goldie, KSB, Femi, Essence, The Pulse and the return of Eedris Adulkareem on their platform.

KFC

Kentucky Fried Chicken is one of the global leaders in the fast food service. It made its debut into Nigeria late last year and expanded to major parts of Lagos this year. Its first outlet was opened at the popular City Mall, Onikan and the most recent outlet at Allen avenue, Ikeja , Lagos.

KUNLE AFOLAYAN

Kunle Afolayan sure knows his onions when it comes to movie making. He showed his colleagues in Nollywood they are not on the same page when he produced ‘Figurine’. The movie which gathered both local and international acclaim has packed several awards since it was premiered.

KIDNAPPING

The year started with the abduction of three British oil workers and a Colombia contractor in Niger Delta, as if the abduction wasn’t shocking enough, primary school pupils were also kidnapped and released a day to the independence anniversary and so many other kidnap cases trailed 2010.

K SQUARE SECURITY

weddings. Private Gigs. Concerts. Tours. Road Trips. Raves. No matter what event you attended this year, there are very high chances you’d have come across K Square. 2010 was the year the security label took over that industry, becoming the indispensable provider of security support services for major players across all industries…

Kiss FM

Not many people gave them a chance to succeed in the murky waters of broadcasting. But they did; adopting the best variety of R ‘n’B, Soft Rock, Hip Hop and Classic Soul. The radio station has not only set new standards, they have got the Abuja audience locked down.

KWAME

Femi Aderibigbe popularly known as Kwame conceptualized one of Nigeria’s brightest music channels – Nigezie. Though he may have had it rough this year with the yanking of Nigezie off HiTV; but the music channel has continued to exhibit its dominance since it began airing on terrestrial stations.

KORA AWARDS

2010 marked the first time the show was hosted outside of South Africa. The twin brother duo P-Square won the best African act at the highly controversial event.

KSA AND EBENEZER OBEY

Their once-in-a-lifetime concert which was billed to take place on Sunday November 7 this year, was suddenly postponed indefinitely. But the pair grabbed our attention again, after years of being away from the centrestage.

KWAM 1

The king of Fuji music revamps his musical career after surviving a lung surgery. He bounced back to the music scene late 2010 with new vibes and slang, ‘Sempe’. His year-end album ‘Instinct’ is already moving alarming units across the country…

LADY GAGA

Lady Gaga makes most of the headlines – sorry – all the headlines this year, winning several awards; headlining the biggest gigs, and becoming one of the most popular woman on the surface of planet earth!

LAGOS JAZZ SERIES

The first ever Lagos jazz series was held from November 5-7, 2010 across three primary stages in Africa’s most populous city. Over three days, renowned Jazz artistes from the Americas, Europe and Africa delivered exciting performances for select audiences in the most important event for lovers of fine music and the good life.

LAGBAJA

It was not really a good year for the masked one – but he worked hard to revamp his career, reissuing his double album, dropping fresh videos and resuming performances at The Motherlan’.

LA LIGA

The Spanish football team won the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

GOLDIE

Long eyelashes plus outlandish wigs and hairdos plus matching accessories equals to Goldie. She joined Kennis music, bagged several awards and found her song ‘You know it’ rocking the airwaves in 2010

LIL WAYNE

The American rapper held 2009 down like his personal property releasing hits after hits and winning more fans to his side than any other rapper in the world. But like other American rappers, his success in 2010 was plagued with controversies after finding himself on the wrong side of the law for illegal gun possession charges and was sentenced to serve eight months in jail. He was released in November.

LIONEL MESSI

The skillful winger sparkled up 2010 with extra-ordinary skills that left defenders scratching their heads and fans on the edge of their seats. He was pivotal to Barcelona winning a record several titles within a year. The only flaw in his near impeccable soccer year was perhaps his less than spectacular form with the Argentine national team at the FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Linda Ikeji (www.lindaikeji.blogspot.com)

One of the most read bloggers in Nigeria. Her blog was one of the relevant blogs in 2010, growing from being a child’s-play into a profit making business, ranking high on Alexa.com and giving bonafide leader bellanaija a run for their money

LEBRON JAMES

The American professional basketball player still maintained his selection in the NBA all star team and his position as Most valuable player this year despite making a controversial move from Cleveland cavaliers to Miami Heat

M.I

2010 was sure a good year for Mr Incredible; he released his pending second album MI2 The Movie, two years after his debut ‘Talk About It’.

MATSE

Matse Uwatse ‘the queen of the air-waves’ at Wazobia FM has grown an enviable fanbase over the tears and even more in 2010. After years of listening to heavily accented English or American wannabes, Nigerians have found a home voice they can connect with.

MAI ATAFO

If you are a celebrity, there’s only one destination for that befitting apparel to grace red carpet events. Ohimai Atafo fondly called MAI by his friends is one of Nigeria’s leading designers. He runs the Mai Atafo Inspired clothing outfit reputed to have designed most of the clothes worn by female Nigerian celebrities in 2010.

MAMAs

The third edition of MTV Africa music awards held at the Expo Hall of the Eko Hotel and Suites In Lagos on December 11 and a had a host of world class acts on parade – such as Rick Ross, Tpain, Eve, Chuk D among others.

MARIJUANA

The dry, shredded mix of flowers called cannabis became more popular this year with some of Nigerian acts involved in smoking the substance otherwise known as ‘ganja’ before, during and after performances. Still the preferred herb, many of them would tell you!

MAYE HUNTA

He’s a South African-based Nigerian artiste and actor mostly known for the banned hit song ‘Ekaette’. He teamed up with other Nigeria acts to perform the theme song for this year‘s Big brother Africa All Star in South Africa.

MERCY AKHIGBE

The Nollywood actress gave birth to his first child this year and she’s still consistent in her artistry.

MIKE EZEURONYE

Actor Mike Ezeruonye continued to rise from a seemingly unknown actor to one of the A list actors of 2010. He signed an endorsement deal with Globacom and ended the year walking down the aisle with his partner.

MBGN

On Saturday, May 22 2010 at the New Eko Hotel Event Centre, 18 year old student – Fiona Aforma Amuzie was crowned as the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria.

MALTINA DANCEHALL

The third edition of the family dance hall show continued this year in its usual form by bringing together various families to battle it out on the dance stage. This year’s edition was hosted by popular OAP/video director Kemi Adetiba.

MOBO

Since 2face Idibia brought home the best African act award in 2007, homeboys have made it a hat-trick: 9ice 2008 and Nneka 2009. But Banky W, JJC and Psquare failed to bring the award back home this year.

MO’CHEDDAH

Mo’cheddah became the first MTV Base Brand: New act in Nigeria for the month of August 2010. Modupe won several awards including the Channel O Music Video Award, MTV Africa Music Awards… To think that she only released her debut album ‘Franchise Celebrity’ few months back!

MO’HITS

Mo hits still occupied the front seat this year; Dbanj’s collaboration with US rapper Snoop Dogg, Dr Sid’s hit-filled album, executing Wande Coal’s American tour and many more hits songs coming from the stable of the Don Jazzy led team.

MO ABUDU

The popular TV host of ‘Moments with MO’ upped her game this year with a much improved programme. But she continues to be under heavy criticism for her interview style and choice of Q and As.  She’s also the producer of the intellectual TV show THE DebaterS.

MTN

The telecommunication giant remains one of the best in Africa, and across the continent, they spent the year ‘enriching lives’ through various initiatives like the  FIFA World Cup in South Africa, MTN Project fame, HipHop World awards, Who Wants to be a Millionaire and others.

Media Take Out (www.mediatakeout.com)

a blog-style gossip website catering to African Americans. MTO continued to up its Alexa ranking, breaking many exclusives and giving majors like TMZ a run for their money. They even got a recognition and official White House invite from Barack Obama!

MIKE AREMU

The widely-travelled saxophonist staged the second edition of his Sax Appeal, billing MOBO Award winner Yolanda Brown, Kunle Ayo, Judith Sephuma, Bez amongst others for an outstanding event of world-class performances.

MERCY JOHNSON

The sexy actress was one of the most talked about celebrities of 2010. Apart from scooping home awards like it was running out of fashion, the actress got engaged, clashed with older colleague Patience Ozokwor, and embarked on an image cleansing project with publicists Bigsam Media.

MR SKILLZ

Now you see him, now you don’t! JJC is more elusive than an okada in the centre of Abuja on a rainy December day. Anyway, JJC (or Skillz) has shed the weight of his 419 posse and is making a strong solo return with his high energy, multiple-remixed anthem ‘We are Africans’.

MTN Project Fame West Africa

The talent hunt academy staged its successful third edition this year and diminutive Chidinma Okhile won as the first female contestant to win the grand prize since inception in 2007.

MUMA GEE
The singer was part of the celebrities to feature on the first  Gulder Ultimate Search Celebrity Showdown this year; exploiting the platform to push her name in the news media. Then we all woke up to hear she’s gotten married – yes, secretly!

MUD COSMETICS

International make-up company Make-Up Designory (MUD) has been creating genuine make-up products and providing quality education for over the past decade but this year it found its way into the Nigerian Cosmetic Market by teaming up with super star actress Genevieve Nnaji as the face of the brand to boost its sales and popularity.

MUSA YAR’ADUA

Former Nigerian President Umar Musa Yar’Adua on Thursday May 6, 2010 after several months of drama surrounding his illness passed away at a Saudi Hospital.

NAIJA SINGS

The season 2 of the music talent hunt show Naija Sings got better and richer as Globacom became a major sponsor of the show; rebranding as Glo Naija Sings.

NOTJUSTOK (www.notjustok.com)

If notjustok.com is adjudged Nigeria’s number 1 music cartel in 2010, it definitely deserves it. The music site has not relented in any way as far as Nigerian music is concerned whether good or bad. It also created a platform through which Nigerian music lovers outside the country could be reached by placing Nigerian Albums on Sale.

Naija FM
Just like Wazobia FM, the 100 percent Nigeria content radio station is caring for an often neglected segment of the audience. The Magelectrics-owned Naija FM was launched this year.

NEW EXPO HALL
The New Expo Hall of the Eko Hotel and Suites became a pilgrimage ground in 2010 as major events that took place this year were held at the venue, including several award shows.

NNEKA

The 2009 MOBO winner was nominated for the 2010 MTV Africa Music Awards in the Best Female category also nominated for MAMA 2010 as Best female, took part in this year’s Hennessy Artistry concert and staged an outstanding performance at the Felabration 2010. Nneka stayed more in Nigeria this year.

NICKI MINAJ

She rose to fame in 2010 with several collaborations and mixtapes. She eventually released her highly anticipated album Pink Friday towards the end of the year.

NIGERIAN IDOL

It was another achievement for Nigeria this year when the debut edition of the famous ‘Idol’ was staged in Nigeria with the ‘Idol’ international team moving into the country to ensure the production is as great as the ‘American Idol’.

NIGEZIE

Nigezie parted ways with the cable station, Hitv and they are currently building their corporate office and a major production studio around Ogba, in Lagos

NMVA

NMVA successfully staged the fourth edition of the award at the prestigious Eko Hotel and Suites. The event also marked the 15th anniversary of Livebeats.

NN24
NN24 created an International network consisting of seasoned professional reporters bringing local news from all regions of Nigeria and Africa to an heterogeneous audience. It’s one of the few news stations by a Nigerian outfit on DSTV Platform.

NOKIA

The leading mobile phone supplier had a hand in a number of sophisticated mobile phones this year. Some of which includes N8, X6, X7, C3, C6, N-gaged among others.

NOTTINGHILL CARNIVAL

The official Nigerian corner at the Nottinghill carnival, put together by Sodium Brand Solutions, Reve Entertainment and Primetime recorded another impressive outing in 2010 as Nigerian artistes rocked the naija corner to its foundation – DJ Jimmy Jatt, 9ice, Banky W, Tee A, Funke Akindele and Gbenga Adeyinka all added colour to the carnival this year.

OBESERE
The lewd Fuji act and King of the back street was part of the celebrities in this year’s Gulder Ultimate Search Celebrity Showdown. The Fuji artiste also released his first hiphop album into the Nigeria market, as he continued to reshape and remodel his career to appeal to a pop-loving mainstream audience.

OCTOPUS PAUL

Paul the psychic octopus, who crawled to fame predicting winners in this year’s World Cup in South Africa, died at an aquarium in Germany. He died in the Oberhausen aquarium tank in which he shot to stardom, correctly predicting the winners of all of Germany’s World Cup clashes.

ODUNLADE ADEKOLA

He was the biggest Yoruba Nollywood artist this year. The 6 foot plus actor featured in over 20 movies, bagging the City people awards amongst many other honours.

ONYEKA ONWENU

After a long break from music, Onwenu released a brand new album in 2010, jumped on the Goodluck for President bandwagon, and rose in public defense of 9ice’s estranged wife Toni Payne.

OSAGIE OSARENKHOE

The CEO of METAL joined EME honchos to take Banky W, Skales and Wizkid to dizzying levels; even as she mentored many wannabe managers and established herself as one of the most promising talent managers around.

OMOTOLA JALADE-EKEINDE

The mother of four commanded an outstanding attention this year with an impressive performance in the movie ‘IJE’. She also launched of her second album and joined advocacy groups to march in protest during the ‘Enough is Enough’ rally.

OMONI OBOLI

Oboli won our hearts with her staggering performance in ‘Figurine’ and yet again her role in the Nigerian-Canadian movie ‘Anchor Baby’ placed her on a conspicuous podium in Nollywood.

OPRAH WINFREY

The TV host expanded her media empire by developing the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) in partnership with Discovery Communications.

OUCH

Nigeria’s newest style sensation, OUCH Clothing clocked four years in the market. OUCH Clothing is a stockist of men’s globally recognized fashion and style brands with OUCH Branded suits, blazers, ties and the newest entrant, cufflinks. The fashion house continued to clothe some of Nigeria celebrities this year.

OSCARS

The 82nd annual Academy Awards held on March 2010 in the United States. Known for glitz and glamour, the awards continued to set new values and will be remembered for the celebration of first-class movies…..

PEAK TALENT SHOW

After a successful first season that discovered the multi-talented Yemi Alade, Peak Talent Show returned for a second season this year, on a more intensified mission to provide millions of young talented Nigerians with the ultimate platform to showcase a variety of entertaining performances to viewers across the African continent, for a chance to reach the peak of their dreams.

PHILIP EMEAGWALI

The father of the internet, and inventor of the supercomputer, Dr. Philip Emeagwali has been called the ‘Bill Gates of Africa’. He won the Gordon Bell Prize – the Nobel Prize for computation. His computers are currently being used to forecast the weather and to predict the likelihood and effects of future global warming. Okay, what if we told you all these were false? Fraud?

PIERS MORGAN

Morgan is a famous British TV presenter and former editor of the tabloid newspapers the News of the World . On 8 September 2010, CNNannounced Morgan would replace Larry King in the network’s evening line-up; with his own show Piers Morgan Tonight, beginning in January 2011.

P-SQUARE

The Year 2010 was definitely the twin brothers’ year. They moved in to their multi-million naira Mansion in Omole, drove new Automobiles into their garage, got Glo endorsement deal and won the 2010 Kora awards and the MTV Africa Music Awards.

PIRACY

It has been the order of the day in the Nigeria music Industry. The ultimate Alaba pirate who’s popularly known as ‘King of Pirates’ was nabbed this year and faces currently facing corruption charges.

PASUMA

After 26 years of building a fulfilling career, which actually started on the streets of Mushin, Lagos, Fuji Star Wasiu Alabi Odetola popularly known as Pasuma Wonder rolled out the drums in October to celebrate and launch his foundation.

RANGE ROVER

This wonder on wheel became Nigeria celebrities’ favourite. Ikechukwu, Timaya, 2face, Dare Art Alade and many more stylish Nigerians favour different models of the automobile…

REHAB

The top Lagos lounge was the preferred hangout for entertainers all year. You want to run into Naeto C, Sasha, YQ, MI or Banky W on a night out? Head to Rehab.

REVERBNATION

It’s a Music 2.0 company that provides marketing solutions for over 750,000 bands/musicians and their managers/labels, music streaming and exploration for fans, and help managing venues and clubs, in order to build a greater community for existing artists and their supporters. They did a good job again in 2010

RICK ROSS

William Leonard Roberts II better known by his stage name Rick Ross, is an American rapper. He derived his stage name from the drug trafficker ‘Freeway’ Ricky Ross. Ross founded the record label Maybach Music Group, on which he released his studio albums ‘Deeper Than Rap’ and ‘Teflon Don’ in 2009 and 2010 respectively. He was the major headliner at the MAMA 2010 in Lagos.

RIHANNA

After her scuffle with boy-friend, Chris Brown last year, the Bahamas born singer continued to gain more prominence all over the world in 2010.

ROOFTOP MCS

The rap duo who many are still confused as to whether they’re taking gospel music into the world, or taking the world into gospel music, made a remarkable feat this year that will not be forgotten so soon as they freely distributed 500,000 copies of their new album BACK AT ONE. Could it be that..?

RUGGEDMAN

The Lagos-based rapper’s career was nearly cut shot after his dissing game with colleague Mode 9; but got himself in another brawl with 9ice and later released his third album ‘Untouchable’- a great body of work that should soon begin getting the love and respect it deserves.

ROSE, HENNESSEY, CHAMPAIGN AND VODKA

Most Nigerian lyrics are incomplete without them, videos can’t be shot without at least one of these wine/liquor bottles conspicuously displayed. 2010 was definitely a good year for our corked friends but more so, for the men and women that made a living trading them. Nigerians’ penchant for the good life is legendary and whether there were fuel queues the length of the Niger in our cities or we had darkness as permanent visitors in our living rooms, whether we were mourning the death of national icons or wondering whether our beloved President would join them soon, one thing is for sure – all is forgotten when a toast is raised and we drink away our collective sorrows, as we wave our problems a very drowsy goodbye.

SAMMIE OKPOSO

Okposo got in trouble with the Scottish authority this year over an alleged racist statement he made to an attendant while eating out with his wife during their honeymoon in Aberdeen. And, to think that 2010 was the year he finally got married!

SAMSON SIASIA

Bayelsa-born, Samson Siasia became Nigeria 37th coach, employed to take over coaching of Nigeria’s national team for four years at N5m monthly.

SAMUEL PETERS

The Nigerian former world heavy weight was beaten by Klitschko brothers this year.

SANI KEITA

The  man Super Eagles will not forget soon having cost Nigeria a place in the quarter finals at the World cup 2010.

SAUCE KID

The American returnee released his debut album ‘African America’ on the stable of Storm record this year.

SEVEN UP CONCERT

Seven-Up bottling company Plc is one of the largest manufacturing companies in Nigeria. The company staged the ‘Future is green concert’ to mark its 50th anniversary celebration on October 1st- same day as Nigeria’s independence. It is one of the biggest and first of its kind indoor concert ever in Nigeria history; it featured Akon and some of the biggest Nigerian Stars.

SILVERBIRD

The multi-national entertainment company celebrated its 30 years of existence amidst fun and fanfare this year, with the President promising the entertainment industry a $200 million funding. Silverbird Entertainment comprises of Silverbird TV, Silverbird Stores, Silverbird Cinemas, Silverbird Galleria, MBGN pageant and Rhythm FM.

SUNGLASSES

From Rayban to Gucci, Prada, Police and YSL, designer sunglasses occupied a major place in pop culture and youth communities. And, just like wristwatches and belts, they have taken up secondary roles as fashion items, rather than their original roles as sun shades….

SIR SHINA PETERS

The exiled Afro Juju exponent came out of his shell this year to feature in Hennessey Artistry track ‘In a bottle’ alongside Ice Prince, Nneka, and MI. But he received several harsh comments from many Nigerians on social media networks, radio stations and different online journals when he mentioned in a NET interview that ‘2face Idibia is empty’.

SKUKI
The Skuki brothers won the ‘Next Rated’ artiste at the 2010 Hip Hop World Awards, parted ways with their managers KISS Music and also released their debut album.

SMVA

One of the most recognized Pan African Award in recent times staged its third edition without a major sponsor at the Eko Hotel and Suites.

SOSSICK

Sossick is one of the hottest producers and artists emerging from Nigeria. This young beat maker is instrumental to loads of hits songs we enjoyed in 2010, including most of Dagrin’s songs.

SUPER FALCONS

Nigeria female football team did the nation proud by winning the African Women Championship for the sixth time this year.

SAZZY

26-year old Abuja based MC/producer Osaze Omonbude popularly known as Sazzy passed after a brief illness on Saturday, October 23 2010.

SLANGS

the slangs that circulate round the country never get recycled for long and the distinct slangs used this year include  ‘joor’, ‘fimile’, ’oshe’, ‘mogbe’.

SUPRA SNEAKERS

2010 experienced the dominance of this footwear among hip individuals and artistes. It is unlikely that the footwear will fade off anytime soon.

SIKIRU AYINDE  BARRISTER

The Fuji icon was rumoured dead at different times this year, stemming from a crack in the ribs ailment he suffered at the time. And he finally passed in the early hours of Thursday December 17.

SILVERBIRD GALLERIA

The Lagos facility retained its position as the centre of convergence for teenagers, young adults and family groups all year. And some of the biggest movies of the year were premiered at the Galleria, giving Lagosians an opportunity to enjoy the cinema experience that was lacking in the city for years.

STEVE AYORINDE

Horrible revelations trailed the departure of Editor Steve Ayorinde from Punch Newspaper, after a private petition to the newspaper’s board leaked online. The biggest victim? Azubuike Ishiekwene – a Punch veteran and Director who was the centre of most of Ayorinde’s corruption allegations.

STELLA DIMOKO-KORKUS

She has become a thorn in the flesh of celebrities emerging from a gossip writer into a gossip god. The Encomium columnist remains Nigeria’s most ‘popular’ gossip writer; retaining her relevance despite being resident in Germany

STAR MEGA JAM

The annual musical concert sponsored by Nigerian Breweries executed its 11thedition, inviting R. Kelly and other Nigeria artist’s to party with consumers.

STAR QUEST

This year’s edition of star quest was hosted by veteran rapper Ruggedman and the winner – Jukebox won the sum of 7.5 million recording contract and N600, 000 for each member of the band plus an SUV.

SHUGA BAND

Akin Tofowomo led Shuga band in recent times has become the most talked about band in Nigeria. Their presence at parties is not just for the entertainment value that the band brings, it is also the class the band brings to an event. Shuga Band played at the heavy ceremonies that took place in 2010.

SMOOTH FM

It remains the only English Speaking radio station that does not subscribe to contemporary / up tempo style of music. Just like the name suggests, it only plays music that smoothens the soul…

STUDIO 53

It’s a weekly half-hour lifestyle show that showcases cultural events, historical places, music, art, design, fashion and celebrity personalities from across the African continent. It originally aired in South Africa on M-Net. It currently airs in South Africa on M-Net Series, and in the rest of Africa on DStv’s M-Net Africa. The show lived up to its billing all through this year.

SWEBAR

If you are a party animal and you didn’t rock Swebar this year, then you need to do that before the year runs out. The club is a point convergence for the socialites year-in-year-out; celebrity or not.

TAYLOR SWIFT

Long before she clocked 20, last year, Miss Swift had attained full maturity – beating Beyonce to win the best female video at the MTV VMAs; hitting the headlines worldwide and amassing global sympathy after Kanye West infamously interrupted her acceptance speech; and going ahead to secure eight nominations for the 2010 Grammy awards, eventually packed several Grammy plaques home.

TEJU BABYFACE

Comedian Teju Babyface has taken the next step in his career with the introduction of his TV show, ‘The Teju Babyface Show’. The show which is forged after the Ellen DeGeneres’, Arsenio Hall, Benny Hill…was launched on Tuesday, May 4, 2010 on Silverbird Television (STV).

TEDDY PENDERGRASS

The soul singer, who died on Wednesday, January 10 2010 at age 59 was a sex symbol in the 1970s and 1980s with his explosive performance of passionate love ballads. Later he became an inspirational figure after suffering a car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down.

T.I

The Grammy-winning rapper was sent to jail on March 27, 2009 for ‘illegally possessing’ machine guns and silencers. He only got a year and a day, after prosecutors were impressed with his post-arrest behaviour. Otherwise, he faced almost 20 years. He was released late December and later got back for drug possession this year.

THE BEAT FM GIRLS

Since the FM station went live in May 2009, many music fans immediately dropped their loyalty to other radio stations and became ardent listeners of The Beat 99.9 FM, and with female OAPs like Oreka, Toolz and Gbemi, the addiction became incurable.

TOUN ONI

Toun Oni was one of Nigeria’s most successful cross-over actresses. She was also a recipient of the prestigious Order of Niger (OON), conferred in 2006. She Died in June this year. The versatile actress will be remembered for her many remarkable movie roles.

TONTO DIKE

After her impressive performance at the Next movie star years back, Tonto became a bonafide Nollywood star. And following the seductive scene she acted with 2face at his concert this year and the movie where she played a lesbian scene, Ms Dike became a subject of many discussions on the pages of newspaper and online entertainment journals.

TERRY G

Terry G is trying to make ‘wild life’ fashionable. But while we’re yet to know if it’s working or not, Mr. Amanyi is getting crowned by the streets, emerging as one of the biggest surprises of 2010. He ended the year signing management deal with Now Muzik and disbanding his House Of Ginjah crew. He also survived a fatal car accident which kept him in the hospital for several days.

TIMAYA

At least the media scape goat of last year has more than enough reasons to smile as the year 2010 turned out to be a brand new year in his life. He got engaged to his new partner and released a successful new album titled ‘THE REBIRTH’ getting to feature rap icon M.I and Nigeria’s biggest export 2face.

TYRA

The former supermodel and Hollywood mogul Tyra Banks waxed stronger with her Tyra Banks Show.

TOYIN SUBAIR

After the CEO of the indigenous satellite television, HiTV lost the premiership right to DSTV and his faceoff with Nigezie this year, Mr Subair held the leadership of the station intact, adding more juicy contents the bouquet of programmes. Now, it looks like he has sailed the ship back to safety – let’s hope there are no more storms around the corner

T.W.O

Showbiz Couple, Tunde and Wunmi Obe launched their umpteenth album ‘T.W.O Legit’, months after speculations became rife that they were quitting music.

TERRY THA RAP MAN

The Jos-born rapper released his sophomore album titled ‘B.A.N.S – Boys Are Not Smiling’ and a clothing line also with the slogan ‘B.A.N.S – Boys Are Not Smiling’. After over a decade languishing in the underground, 2010 was the year Terry grabbed his fair share of fame.

THE DEBATERS

‘The Debaters’ is a first-of-its-kind television reality show in Nigeria, by Nigerians, for Africans that wholly focused on the art and intrinsic power as well as potential of DEBATE to inspire positive change and transformation. It is a show that will keep you mesmerized with eyes glued to your TV set, week after week as the drama unfolds. It is the first reality show that not only encourages, but actually enables freedom of speech. It is also the first TV show that is specifically provided and designed for both the local and international market (audiences).

THE EXPERIENCE

The Experience is an Interdenominational Gospel concert that features some of the best-known musical talents of our time. The Event, which debuted in December 2006 with over 70,000 persons in attendance rapidly gained momentum at its second outing with a quantum leap in attendance of well over 250,000 people! With last year’s unprecedented crowd estimated at 500,000. The Experience 2010 did the crowd pulling again as ‘Mary Mary’ and many other international and local singers were headlined for this years’ edition.

TIWA SAVAGE

Singer and songwriter, Tiwa Savage began her music career in the UK, touring as a background singer for artistes like Mary J.Blige, STING, George Michael, Kelly Clarkson and Spice Girls. She also participated in the X-Factor – the British competition that spawned American Idol and made it to the top 24. Tiwa debuted with Keke Kele Love months back and it received an impressive review and airplay.

TMZ (www.tmz.com)

The ‘third mile zone’ maintained its position as the most popular and foremost online entertainment journal, with uncountable exclusives and many firsts only a major can score.

TOGOLESE NATIONAL TEAM

They pulled out of the African Nation’s Cup early this year after a bus carrying the National team was attacked by gunmen at DR Congo border leaving four people dead.

TONI PAYNE

Toni made the newspaper headlines a couple of time this year, but for wrong reasons. From  the unfortunate separation from 9ice, to when her ex hubby refused to clear the air on whom he was referring to in his controversial song ‘Once bitten, Twice shy’. Then the drama that played in the aftermath of the release of Ruggedman’s phone conversation with 9ice caused more than a headache for Ms Payne and her supporters.

TOSYN BUCKNOR

Miss Bucknor revived her music career early this year. But what made her rock our world in 2010 was her daily breakfast show on Top radio 90.9 . The multi-talented lady made razz cool again. And she went straight up – on our favourite OAPs list.

TOLU MAINTAIN

Shortly after the former ‘Maintain’ group member had just re-launched his music career, Tolu lost his 25-year-old wife on March 25 2010.

TP MAZAMBE

The DR Congo Football club became the CAF champions League winner for two consecutive years.

TRIBECA

The new night club became the after party spot for major events in 2010, and the to-go joint, for the nocturnal ones among us, looking for where to rock the weekend, night after night.

Twitter (www.twitter.com)

Twitter offers a social networking and micro-blogging service, enabling its users to send and read short messages in just 140 characters. Who ever thought a time would come when a micro-blogging service would change our lives and reduce communication to 140 characters? Twitter lived up to its billing this year.

VINCENT ENYEMA

He was at his peak at the world cup and became the first Nigerian goal keeper in the UEFA Champion League.

VICTOR IKPEBA

The former super eagles player now got a regular spot as a guest football analysis as he plays the role of a comic football analyst on Super Sport 3; he never fails to unleash grammatical blunders, and incomplete sentences thereby drawing more viewers when football analysis on TV seems to be boring.

WAJE

The soul singer released two singles ‘For a minute’ and ‘So inspired’ in preparation for her self- titled debut album. The runner up in 2008 Zain advance warning also got to feature on some notable songs this year; some of which include One naira with M.I and Jazz me with Dj zeez. For years, she paid her dues as back-up singer for Psquare. Now, payback time is around the corner for the lavishly-talented singer.

WYCLEF JEAN

Haiti born musician and record producer officially declared his political ambitions this year as he filed for candidacy in the 2010 Haitian presidential election. He was later ruled out by the Electoral Commission as he had not met the requirement to have been resident in Haiti for five years.

WIKILEAKS

Wikileaks and its founder, Julian Assange, have been all over the news since the release of previously confidential US embassy cables. While it also portrayed Nigeria as a ‘banana republic’ with tons of revelations that’s still driving sweat beads to foreheads…

WOLE OGUNTOKUN

The blogger, journalist and playwright is emerging as one of the saviours of live theatre in Nigeria. His partnership with Terra Kulture is causing lovers of stage plays to heave a sigh of relief.

YAKUBU AIYEGBENI

For a goal many thought even a pregnant woman would have netted, Super Eagles striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni’s amazing miss at the 2010 World Cup begged the question of whether it was one of the most glaring misses in World Cup history. Trailing 2-1 to South Korea in Durban, Yakubu was set up with an absolutely glorious opportunity right in front of the goal. With the keeper sprawled out beside him and a wide open net waiting to be fed the ball, the unmarked striker tried to flick the pass in for the astonishingly easy score and he put it wide off the post.

YAW

The beloved OAP found fame with his daily show on the popular station, Wazobia FM but rumour broke out sometime in the year that he might dump Wazobia  for start-up Naija FM.

WILLOW SMITH

Daughter of Highly talented actor/rapper Will Smith made her debut in the music industry with monster hit single ‘Whip my hair’. The 10 year-old bunch of talent made many compare her to songstress Rihana .

Youtube (www.youtube.com)

And you thought TV was the most powerful audio-visual medium in the world? Youtube remained useful to loads of people this and instrumental to their successes, especially entertainers.

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