#THE #FUTURE #LOOKS #BETTER FOR #NIGERIA #SKITS AS #GOVERNOR #BABAJIDE #SANWOOLU #ENDORSES #NIGERIA #SKITS #INDUSTRY #AWARDS -



ONE GOAL TICKED.
Life is about goals.

Progress is measured sometimes in trickles but when intention is pure and the efforts are ordered by God, His hands will be evident.
When I committed myself to undertake the journey to ensure that Skit makers are accorded the #RECOGNITION they have earned, leading to commensurate #REWARD and to sustain #INSPIRATION I was clear in my mind what I wanted to do.
Some lousy people even read political meanings to it and all sorts of mundane rationalisations by those who cannot see beyond crass opportunism. I just soldiered along based on my conviction.

First and foremost I have so much of soft mushy spot for young people, but my MUMU button is when I see any young person giving life a fighting chance, I try to do all within my ability to see how I could help, that has defined my life till date and that‘s who I am in or out of politics, a few examples abound, in my discount card NSIJA GREEN CARD, JAMB Q&A, or the new entrepreneurship matrix we worked hard to institute, not leaving the continental effort to reconcile young persons with their history as Africans.

Some of my friends would say Bimbo where is the money in all these?

And I am quick to tell anybody who cares to listen that money does not define me, I am enamoured by higher goals and nobility than cheap craze for money.

I like money no doubts and what it can do, but I ll rather give myself to nobler goals, to me you can be rich monetarily or materially but if your human account reads low in good works which is typified by what you do to lift or encourage others up, to me you are a poor man!
Anyway, like millions of Nigerians, I watch Skits a lot, and it has therapeutic effect on me as I deal with the grinding realities of life. So I am a die hard Skit lover.
This love made me realise a few things:

1. The average ages of Skit makers / Artistes in Nigeria is between 18-40.
2. I have seen all kinds of characterisations, just when I would say it’s finished, I’ll just see another one pop up with a character and a peculiar message.
3. I have also discovered that all Skits are not for humour, but sometimes serious issues delivered in a humorous manner to engage people’s attention.
4. I realised that Skit presentations are usually, snazzy, sharp and could be witty and the messages delivered would resonate long after its finished playing.
5. Some have social mobilisation content that are aimed to correct ills in the society or at the minimum draw attention to them, using satires, parodies or mimicking.
6. So to me I see a bunch of young people who have reached into their Talents, brought out what is hidden there, developed it, got creative and started from little beginings, most of them from their hand held devices , that‘s why the quality of production varies sometimes. Life has beaten and bashed a lot of them but with perseverance they have broken through.
7. Today a couple of them have shattered the glass ceiling, and now have production crews and equipment, and from the one man show of clutching a mobile phone to shoot, God has helped some to shoot on good cameras and other equipment, and some now employing SIX PERSONS (creating jobs by hitherto jobless persons) at the minimum for the Skits that we sit back at home, or in the office, or at airport lounge to watch.

Now one fact that must be emphasised , whether you are making Skit from your handheld device or having a complete ensemble of production team, a lot of work goes into what you eventually see on your social media platforms, be it Instagram, tiktok, Facebook and YouTube or any other, a lot goes into it more than we know!

So for me, I am always infuriated when I hear people #DEROGATORILY refer to them #CASUALLY as #INFLUENCERS or #INTERNET #SENSATIONS! FOR GOD SAKE.

True the platform where we see all these skit productions mostly is the social media, partly deepened by COVID-19, but that does not remove or vitiate the fact that what we watch most times are products of #talents, #creativity, #mixed with #passion, #determination, guts and grit.

By sheer hardwork, today some of the Skit makers/Artistes have as many as 7.2million followers and some skit productions having one million views by real people, yet we refer to them as Internet sensation?
The last time I checked, sensation is a fleeting feeling, but these guys have justified their worth by providing value and impact that has enduringly held millions of people down, stuck to their presentations, yet we would rather call them Internet sensation!

Some will even just call these bundle of talents and creativity disdainful influencers, and I ask you must have a demonstrated capacity, potential, identity, ability to be able to influence sustainably, if you lack any of these you cannot influence anyone, if you doubt me, try and get 100 likes for your post or comments on social media if it‘s not raw nudity or destructive items like pornography.

I do not even know how being an influencer can be a profession or a vocation!! My opinion.

In the course of my efforts on this project over the past 2 months working a team of young self-motivated young guys and gals who I sold the dream to and they believe me, I owe them a lot of gratitude, #Tobi #Olatunya, #Kolade #Oyediran to start with, I once asked them, is Professor Wole Soyinka an influencer? They sat for a while and then said Yes, so I asked why is Professor Wole Soyinka not called an influencer?

The simple answer is that the referred Prof is first and foremost a distinguished Poet who went on to bag the Nobel Prize.
So these guys who toil day and night digging into their Talents and creativity must be seen as artistes and entertainers first and foremost, and their influencing capability is a distillate of their abilities to use their talents remarkably and constructively.

This is the story behind NIGERIA SKITS INDUSTRY AWARDS! NOTHING MORE.

I believe we are not giving them the credits that they have earned by themselves, starting from scratch, bootstraps and shoestrings as it were, without direct generic platform to rise from, Yes bits and pieces of and from acting and comedy, but virtually all of them are not professional artistes, their amateurish expedition has paid off so well in SKITS that nobody can deny their existence on the Nigerian Entertainment landscape, they are so popular almost more that movies now, not unexpected, because how many Nigerians today can regularly go watch full length 120minutes movie steadily? But Skits have slipped in innocuously.

And because they have created something out of nothing, we have decided to accord them the industry status because of the size, impact, growth, input and output that has become sustainable at least for years now, and today both musicians and film actors leverage on them sometimes to push their works, yet their nomenclature has remained Internet sensation or influencers, regrettably this is so strong narrative that some of the Skit makers are losing their self-esteem, collecting peanuts for their sweats and looking for validation in composite sectors!!!

So we took up this challenge to right this wrong and see how our effort can deepen the value, worth and essence of the Skit industry both to the practitioners, the industry and Nigerians by the content and quality of what they churn out.

That is why we said NIGERIA SKITS INDUSTRY AWARDS is more than another event or just another show!
To us this is a CRUSADE to change the growing trend AND NARRATIVE that derides those who are doing well, working so hard to add value in their own areas and walk of life, yet we must realise that the totality of our national essence will be the sum of our integral components therein rests the beauty of our real diversity. No one skill or talent is more superior to the other particularly when impact is being made.
This is the we crusade have started.
The theme of the crusade is RECOGNITION: REWARD: INSPIRE, all these will be at the base of our activities going forward starting with this maiden awards this year, and dovetails into the establishment of SKITS INDUSTRY ENDOWMENT SUPPORT SCHEME, which will be in form of financial, technical and other forms of support for young Nigerians who are trying to find their feet in this genre of the creative arts.

Next year ahead of the second edition, we would have successfully concluded institutional system like NETFLIX where Nigerian Skits can also be warehoused like movies, with channels dedicated to every Skit artiste and their works and this becomes additional source of organic and residual income for them just like the movies.
Ultimately our efforts fall within the broadly defined scope as indicated above, but first and foremost we are poised to clearly change the demeaning narrative, heighten the value attached to this young men and women doing us proud in the genre of the Nigerian Entertainment space.
So when Governor Babajide Sanwoolu graciously received me and fully endorsed this effort, it was a great accomplishment coming from a Governor who understands the need for an inclusive society where everyone will be enabled to give expression to their talents creatively, and put themselves in positions to contribute to the society .
With this endorsement among others earlier received from Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, to Oniru of Iruland, Oba Omogbolahan Lawal, Senator Dino Melaye, Honourable Shina Peller and now the Governor, we have raised the bar of a new consciousness and appreciation of Skit Artistes and the entire industry.
It is gratifying to note that Lagos, the Entertainment Capital of Nigeria, will host the maiden edition, with the Governor promising to attend, now the narrative is changing, the Governor is continuing his commitment to developing creative arts that his administration and Lagos is known for.
Lagos supports music fiestas, Marathon festivals, Nollywood shows, art exhibitions, indeed Lagos State has earmarked funds for the creative arts sector, with this endorsement from the Governor, Skit Makers have joined the rank of "professionals" and vocations that will be accorded same status, opportunity to benefit and ultimately get support too like the others before it.
So we believe the journey is far, but we have taken our first steps and by the endorsement by His Excellency Governor Babajide Sanwoolu we can say we are on track, we have a renewed dedication and have the renewed impetus to push on until more young person’s get recognised appropriately for who they are, their talents and the impact they are making not derided.

It‘s a new day for Skit Makers /Artistes and by extension the industry in Nigeria.

We express our profound gratitude to Governor Sanwoolu and the entire cabinet, we are convinced that the best is just round the corner for this industry which is the biggest Skits Industry in the world, the Nigeria Skits Industry Awards is another first out of Nigeria , from the city of Lagos, where peopke come from across the country with only one thing, their dreams, and the dreams come true and hopes are realised through focus, with resilience and determination that Lagos inspires like no other, as the Skits genre of Nigerian entertainment has unambiguously showed.

It’s a Welcome to a brave new world. Join us today...
It is getting bigger and better each day.
This is not just another event or show, it is a crusade.

Watchout!

For more information on this project, kindly visit our website -

www.nigeriaskitsindustryawards.com

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