Progress Chukwuyem has won the 7th edition of the Nigerian Idol after weeks of competition. Host, IK Osakioduwa, announced at the finale on Sunday, May 22, 2022.
The 21-year-old singer won after polling more fans’ votes to beat fellow finalist Zadok in a record-breaking voting season. The top-2 secured 45 million votes in the finale week alone and over 220 million votes all season long. IK Osakioduwa revealed this in a celebratory finale episode on Sunday.
He won a cash prize of ₦30 million, a brand-new SUV, a Bigi branded refrigerator and a year’s supply of Bigi drinks. He will also get to record an EP and six music videos, a weekend getaway from TravelBeta, and a DStv Explora fully installed with a 12 months premium subscription.
Speaking after his big win that night, Progress shared what would be his next steps. He said, “Music is my life, it’s everything, and it comes from a place of passion. So definitely from here, I’m making music – great music. I’m going to express myself in the best way that I can. Out here, I do not compete with anybody, so I’m going to take it one step at a time”.
On the finale night, Zadok, who has been a fan favourite from the beginning of the show, performed Whitney Houston’s ‘Dance with Somebody’. In contrast, Progress sang Ariana Grande, Jessie J and Nicki Minaj’s ‘Bang Bang’ and Ruben Studdard’s ‘I Need an Angel’ at the live show, which had hundreds of audience members at the studio and was watched by millions of fans across Africa on DStv and GOtv, and across Europe via the Showmax app.
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Simi took a minute to address the top 12, telling them, “And for you all who took part in this experience, it takes a ton of bravery to do what you have done. I’m proud to have experienced this with you. You’re so amazing, and I wish you so much goodness in your future, present, and everything you do.”
Simi took on the stage at the finale singing her hit song, Duduke. Fellow judge D’banj also performed a medley of his biggest songs, including Oliver Twist, Emergency and Your Face Show. Other performers at the highly-charged live show included Nigerian Idol season 6 winner Kingdom, the Nigerian Idol season 7 top 10, and popular musician Pheelz.
D’banj, who performed with Zadok and Progress, said a few words about his unreleased track, I Got My Answer, with the top two finalists. He said, “my family and I went through a traumatic time when I lost my son. It was so devastating, and I felt like the world caved in. All we could do was pray to God for restoration. The song was done and written in Los Angeles two weeks before I had my new son”.
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