MTV CELEBRATES NIGERIAN INDEPENDENCE WITH ‘I LOVE NAIJA’ WEEKEND

Lagos, 27 September 2010: To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Nigerian independence on 1 October, MTV base (DStv Channel 322, AIT, STV and DBN) is celebrating Nigerian contemporary music with a special I Love Naija themed long weekend running from 1-3 October.

I Love Naija will see MTV base paying tribute to Naija’s finest contemporary musicians with a schedule packed top-to-toe with Nigerian music, artists, interviews and more.

Highlights of the I love Naija weekend will include:

- A special Naija-themed edition of DJ Takeover, hosted by Naija legend DJ Snypes, official DJ to 2Face. Premiering on Friday 1 October at 22:00 CAT, DJ Takeover Nigeria sees DJ Snypes deliver his own mash-up of the finest Naija music videos from the last 5 years.

- Story of Sean Kuti – an intimate portrait of one of Nigeria’s most intriguing music stars (15:45 CAT on Sunday 3 October)

- Leaders of the Nigerian Nu Skool - an MTV base special focusing on the Nigerian hip hop scene at 21:00 CAT on Sunday 3 October

- A rundown of Naija’s Top 20 Best Videos – 18:00 CAT, Saturday 2 October

- A look back at the 2007 MTV/MTN VJ search which launched Cynthia Okpala to TV fame

- A retrospective on BNC Fashionably Loud, the fashion-and-music spectacular on Sunday at 22:00 CAT

- Classic episodes of MTV base Spotlight featuring Styl Plus /Positive Black Soul and 2FACE/Lebo Mathosa.



For MAMA fans anticipating the 2010 awards in Lagos, there will also be a screening of the 2008 MTV Africa Music Awards with Zain from Abuja, Nigeria on Saturday 2 September at 20:00 CAT, and a glance back at the Road To Mama - Lagos on Sunday 3 September at 19:00 CAT.

Later in the month, Naija music fans can look forward to the premiere of a mammoth new music collaboration featuring Dbanj, Eldee, Naeto C, MI, Wande Coal and Banky W on an as-yet un-named track commissioned specially by MTV base and produced by Eldee. The music video of the track, directed by Clarence Peters, will air exclusively on MTV base for a month starting mid-October.

Last but not least, from mid-October, MTV base will also debut Base Select, a hot new interactive weekly request show hosted by MTV VJ Cynthia C-VON Okpala.