Henley Business School and Afrinolly Creative Hub to turn MTN Y’ello Star Artists into Entrepreneurs

Henley Business School will take part in Y’ello Star, the latest music reality project by MTN Nigeria, with Afrinolly as Technical Partner. Members of the Henley Business community will provide entrepreneurial training and coaching to contestants on the debut season of MTN Y’ello Star, a capacity-building initiative by MTN Nigeria to discover, nurture, and launch music talents in young Nigerians.

“Henley is proud to be an international Business School, with 80,000 alumni from over 150 countries. We have a special relationship with Africa - over 6,000 alumni are from Africa, and we are proud to have 5 Alumni Chapters in Africa.” Says Professor John Board, Dean of Henley Business School, “Not only is Henley one of the top business schools graduating nearly 1,000 students per year, we have run programmes in 15 other countries in the continent. The partnership with Afrinolly Creative Hub in Nigeria is a very important step to our ambition to build the people, who build the businesses, that build Africa.”

Over 10,000 contestants submitted entries for the show. However, only 16 contestants who have made it through a series of auditions will make it into the MTN Y’ello Star hub where their skills and talents will be sharpened with the business acumen and skills needed to sustain a successful career on a global stage. Henley Business School, Afrinolly Creative Hub and the Stephen Budd Music Management, through the ‘Nigeria Creative Industry Catalyst’ project will provide a creative talent incubator which includes a series of entrepreneurship masterclasses and six months of extensive coaching to contestants on MTN Y’ello Star.

Speaking on the project, Richard Iweanoge, General Manager, Brand and Communications, MTN Nigeria said: “The Y’ello Star project is unique. It is different from what the audience is used to from previous music talent programmes. It is a project initiated by MTN to empower the youths and launch their talents to the world. The show is designed to groom musical talents by providing a lifetime opportunity to turn their dreams and aspirations into reality. The partnership with Henley Business School, UK, will ensure adequate music training, creative entrepreneurship and incubation of all the contestants.”

"It is time for Nigerian Music to take its rightful place in the global community,” says Chike Maduegbuna, CEO of Afrinolly. “With partners like Henley Business school, Afrinolly Creative Hub is excited to bring our technical expertise into the discovery of emerging music talents, cultivating and helping them grow. I am excited that Henley Business School is here to help us launch them on to a global stage.”

The live shows will start early November and run through December 2020. Three judges, popular Nigerian musicians and six-time Grammy award winner, actor and producer will bring on board their years of experience to bear on the show.

About Henley Business School

Henley Business School is a triple-accredited business school and part of the University of Reading. With campuses, offices and partnerships around the world, over 7,000 students from more than 100 countries and over 80,000 alumni from 160 countries, we are a truly international institution. Our courses are enriched by up to date knowledge, research and commercial experience, and aimed at students and professionals at every stage of their career – from undergraduate through to postgraduate, PhD, MBA, DBA and executive education. www.henley.ac.uk

About MTN Nigeria

MTN Nigeria is one of Africa’s largest providers of communications services, connecting over 75 million people in communities across the country with each other and the world. Guided by a vision to lead the delivery of a bold new digital world, MTN Nigeria’s leadership position in coverage, capacity and innovation has remained constant, since its launch in 2001.

MTN Nigeria is part of the MTN Group – a leading emerging market operator, connecting more than 250 million subscribers in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East. To learn more about MTN Nigeria and its various initiatives, visit www.mtnonline.com

About Afrinolly

Afrinolly Creative Hub serves as the first Creator’s Space for filmmakers, screenwriters, mobile technology developers, animators, musicians, artists and other creatives in Nigeria. The Hub seeks to institutionalize global best practices and integrate the next generation of Nollywood and Music artists.

Afrinolly Creative Hub seeks to facilitate exchange opportunities and network development between Africa’s entertainment practitioners in the first instance and between Africans and international entertainment practitioners in the area of live content production and distribution.

About Stephen Budd Music Management

Stephen Budd Music Management is an artist and producer management company and events management company. It represents some of the most successful and influential music producers, songwriters, mixers, engineers, remixers and programmers from UK, Europe, and USA. For over 20 years, Stephen Budd Music has worked with the most successful and creative artists and have won numerous Grammy and Brit Awards. It has created several long running music festivals and events in Africa, India, Korea and the UK.

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