Zadok vs. Progress: Who will win Nigerian Idol Season 7?

On May 15, 2022, Faith was eliminated from Nigerian Idol Season 7, leaving the two earliest favorites. While Zadok is the baritone vocalist, more similar to Darey Art Alade, with the swagger of a Hip-Hop artist, as he never hesitates to say, “Zady dey for you,” Progress is the incredible soprano, who started off as slightly conservative.

Every week, except week 8, when Progress absolutely came into his own with a performance of Jessie J’s ‘Bang Bang,’ Zadok, who performed a Whitney Houston classic in a choir robe that day, has been incredible.

Earliest postulations indicated a Zadok domination. With his masculine good looks, clean cuts, vocals and his ability to pick a member of the audience to serenade, he caught people's attention. But this writer also thought he was a little obnoxious show pony, who hugs the spotlight.

As the show has progressed, this writer has slowly turned his perception of the singer into appreciation for his place as a well-rounded artist, not just a vocalist. Of the men on this season’s edition, he seems the likeliest to get a record deal.

On the other hand, Progress has slowly broken the conservative mold. While he’s a slightly better vocalist than Zadok, with a more expansive vocal range, his social media supporting cast from the South-South is astounding. You are more likely to get 100 retweets if you tweet something about Progress, than you are, if you tweet something positive about Zadok.

He also has the boy-ish good looks going for him.

All in all, this looks like it will be a close one.