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Industry Night Brings Out Lagos’ Rising Stars
Wednesday night is just another moment to shine in the eyes of up and comers in Nigeria’s Billion dollar music industry. At 11:00pm, Spice Route (pictured below via afritickets.com), a pan-asian eatery in the heart of Victoria Island has a growing crowd outside of its doors and the buzzing glow of cameras and interviews let’s you feel the energy before you even make it inside.
The entrance to Spice Route is not unlike that of Tao in NYC (which coincidentally doubles as a nightlife spot). The huge stone buddha anchors the venue and red lighting at the bar, and throughout the multi-level space spice up the ambiance. This is clearly the in-crowd, much different than a massive club night at nearby places in the area. A running list of people in the entertainment industry and visiting socialites make up the crowd. The cocktails, especially the lychee martini, are delicious and the overall vibe is young African fabulous.
The beginning of the evening is built for letting your hair down with a DJ spinning both the latest Nigerian tunes and global pop and hip-hop hits. The night shifts to the real treat, performances by buzz worthy artists on the scene, with most people anticipating a special treat from Praiz, a rising R & B star whose new album “Rich and Famous” is dropping December 14th. While the warmup acts were energetic, Praiz does not disappoint electrifying the crowd with his John Legend-like falsetto and getting them moving with some crowd participation during his mega-hit Oshe. My favorite moment was the hilarious booty bumping battle between two volunteers, the girls were such good sports as they danced along to the music and gushed at Praiz while they were at it.
This night is typical of a night where artists are looking for that chance to grab the attention of local and international labels by showing their connection to the fans. For observers, it’s a fantastic way to meet people, have a great time, and increase the bandwidth on your iTunes because you will surely want to add a Naija catalog after attending an industry night event. Spice Route // 36 Adeola Odeku St // Victoria Island // Lagos // Tel: +234 808 020 8080
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