Nigerian crude oil has been used by the rest of the globe for more than 50 years. Now, a group of artists from the Niger Delta, the area responsible for the majority of Nigeria’s oil export and the source of more than 80% of the nation’s GDP, are exporting music. They’re set to carry out a mind-blowing excursion in New York while bringing their tales, music, suffering, fashion, food, and everything else with them.
Today Buckwyld Media Network and BHM announced a historic cooperation to create and implement a variety of international showcases examining the creativity and culture of Nigeria, the country that gave rise to Nollywood, Afrobeat, Jollof Rice, and other cultural icons.
Efe Omorogbe
The project is intended to offer an alternative narrative to “the stories out there about Nigeria and Nigerians,” according to a statement signed by Efe Omorogbe, Chief Executive Officer of Buckwyld Media Network, and Ayeni Adekunle, founder of BHM. It also aims to provide a platform for other aspects of Nigerian lore, culture, and experiences to travel and thrive, as Nigerian music and film continue to become more popular.
On September 16, 2023, the exhibition, dubbed Naija To The World, will make its debut at New York City’s famed Apollo Theatre after travelling through many Nigerian towns, including Lagos, Port Harcourt, Benin, Abuja, and Jos.
In the first event, cultural narratives, music, and related experiences from the Nigerian Niger Delta region, where at least 10 out of 20 creative sector talents have arisen during the previous 25 years, will be the main focus. The region was chosen because it contributes more than 80% of Nigeria’s GDP and has a rich cultural past, but it also struggles to attain creative and economic success and stability.
Ayeni Adekunle
Ayeni says: ‘We’re beyond excited for the opportunity to co-host this new series of cultural showcases around the US and later other parts of the world. The plan is to tell original African stories through live concerts, exhibitions, films, documentaries, and so on. And the first instalment will focus on the Niger Delta region of Nigeria where most of Nigeria’s crude oil comes from but which continues to be troubled, abandoned, and impoverished. The world already knows this and many have had cause to use the oil directly or indirectly. But what many do not know is that most of the African pop music dominating the world right now also comes from there (Burna Boy For example). So we want to showcase the music, the food, the fashion, and the literature from a place many only previously associated with oil and violence…’
A documentary and pop-up events in other regions of New York City and Nigeria, according to the organisers, are in the works. The Apollo Theatre Concert will provide audiences the chance to hear hitherto unrecorded tales from the south-south region of Nigeria. It will also give them the chance to put names, faces, and connections to some of the most significant works of art to have come out of Nigeria over the past 100 years, including poetry, music, film, dance, and comedy, on display.
Omorogbe adds: ‘Against a backdrop of multi-billion dollar operations and squalid communities, confounding extremes that seem to leave the polity constantly tethering on the brink of crisis, the Niger Delta region remains the premiere incubator for talent in Nigeria. Talent who have continually shaped the course of creative enterprise in Nigeria; talent who are driving the redefinition of Nigeria’s national identity and burgeoning soft power; talent who are primed for world domination and seem unwilling to let anything deter them from reaching their goal.’’
The star-studded iconic concert exhibition Naija To The World – the Niger Delta Experience, which will take place at New York’s famed Apollo Theatre, promises to celebrate the music and culture of the residents of Nigeria’s oil-rich cities, including those of Burna Boy, Don Jazzy, Timaya, Rema, and Ken Saro-Wiwa.
The live concert exhibition at the Apollo Theatre on September 16 will feature a carefully chosen entourage of up-and-coming and established actors, comedians, designers, chefs, musicians, and performers from Nigeria’s Niger Delta. It is anticipated that at least 10 million fans will participate through pop-up events, talent shows, and a series of community events in historic African American communities.
At least 10 million more people will listen and watch via broadcast partners throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, while 1,500 admirers will witness history firsthand and watch it live at the Apollo.
The first installment of the yearly African exhibition concert series, N2TW, has the biggest and brightest talents from Nigeria and other regions of Africa performing at some of the most renowned music venues in the globe.
Along with live selected concerts, the series will work with a few platforms to produce thematic biopics, documentaries, and biographies.
