Soundcity MVP Awards 2018 delivers a ceremony of lights, glamour and spectacles

On Saturday, January 5, 2019, the Soundcity MVP Awards went down glamorously at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos.

The hosts of this year's edition were SoundCity Veejays Adams, Moet Abebe and Pearl who complemented each other in exchanges and light-hearted dialogue.

The event which is in its third edition is consistently building its way as one of the music industry's most prestigious award ceremonies and this was highlighted yet again on the night.

From solid performances to well deserved honors and quality production, it was an event that turned out to be resounding success.

ALSO READ: See complete winners list at SoundCity MVP Awards 2018

Here are the major highlights of this year's Awards

Positives of SoundCity MVP Awards 2018

South African rapper, AKA, at the SMVA 2019 [Pulse] Pulse Nigeria

From the stellar lightning and stage sets, seamless blaze of opening performances, and well timed visual presentations.

This year's edition moved a gear higher in terms of production and commitment to making every performance a worthy moment with the dancers provided for every artist's set.

It also covered a range of new and old hit makers from younger talents like Victor AD, while showcasing the more established names like South Africa's AKA and International star, Jidenna.

Performances

Then there were the performances, quite a truckload of them actually, a number of which left not just memorable moments but turned the entire hall into one big house party with the crowd singing and dancing as some of their favorites took to the stage.

Mostly supported by DJ Neptune who was the main disc jockey on the night with the exception of Patoranking, who deployed a live band for his performance, the performances were a mix of the really good ones and some that were average and fall short of the standard of an award like this.

A blaze of non-stop opening performances from Idowest, Slimcase, Ms Kizz, Chinko Ekun, Naira Marley, Kida Kudz, Skibbi, Mystro and Victor AD got the festival officially on its way.

There were interludes in-between that allowed for the first set of awards to be presented.

More top artists from across the continent were to later grace the stage at several points during the awards. From Teni whose hit singles was chorused round the entire venue, to Busiswa who raised the roof, Niniola was also able to up the energy levels with Ill Bliss, Phyno, AKA and Jidenna who closed the curtains on the festival also providing worthy sets on the night.

But the most entertaining performance on the night would have to go to Patoranking, who proved to be in a class of his own. From standing out with the use of a live band to well choreographed performances and stage command, his electrifying set was the liveliest on the night.

The Biggest winners

2018 is undoubtedly Burna Boy's best year yet and the night truly belonged to him as he went home with four awards at the festival.

The singer won the awards for 'Song of the year', Best Male MVP of the year, 'Listeners Choice' and the prestigious award for the 'African artist of the year.'

South Africa's Busiswa won the 'Best Female MVP' award while Davido bagged the award for the 'Best Pop' Artist with Wizkid's Starboy family winning the award for 'Best Collaboration' with Soco.

Teni's victory as the 'Best New Artist' was another moment that defined the night as the crowd screamed her name the loudest as the nominees were announced

Best speech

Outside Burna Boy's mum who provided comical moments with her speeches, the night's best acceptance speech has to go to Patoranking who got the plaque for 'Best Video of the year' for his song, 'Heal The World.'

While receiving his award, Patoranking reminded Nigerians of the state of the nation ahead of the 2019 elections, ''Yeah, na the first time I dey win this thing be this... I wan tell una one thing, na 2019 we dey, anybody wey suffer suppose get sense,'' he said.

On the downside

On the night, a number of artists were not present to pick up their plaque, which dampened the spectacle and the mood of the audience in the hall. This was the biggest downside as even Burna Boy who was crowned with multiple honors was absent and had to be represented by his mother.

The awards also started well after its advertised time with the festival officially kicking off a few minutes past 11pm.

For the special honors where individuals were recognized for their outstanding feats in different fields from Sports, Business, Politics and more, there were no citations or profiles read to enlighten the audience of the actual works that got the winners noticed.

All in all, the SoundCity MVP Awards festival provided a night of fun, deserved winners and worthy highlights.