Broadcasting
Progress Chukwuyem Wins Nigerian Idol Season 7
Progress Chukwuyem has won the 7th edition of the Nigerian Idol after weeks of competition. Host, IK Osakioduwa, announced at the finale on Sunday, May 22, 2022.
The 21-year-old singer won after polling more fans’ votes to beat fellow finalist Zadok in a record-breaking voting season. The top-2 secured 45 million votes in the finale week alone and over 220 million votes all season long. IK Osakioduwa revealed this in a celebratory finale episode on Sunday.
He won a cash prize of ₦30 million, a brand-new SUV, a Bigi branded refrigerator and a year’s supply of Bigi drinks. He will also get to record an EP and six music videos, a weekend getaway from TravelBeta, and a DStv Explora fully installed with a 12 months premium subscription.
Speaking after his big win that night, Progress shared what would be his next steps. He said, “Music is my life, it’s everything, and it comes from a place of passion. So definitely from here, I’m making music – great music. I’m going to express myself in the best way that I can. Out here, I’m in no competition with anybody, so I’m going to take it one step at a time”.
On the finale night, Zadok, who has been a fan favourite from the beginning of the show, performed Whitney Houston’s ‘Dance with Somebody’. In contrast, Progress sang Ariana Grande, Jessie J and Nicki Minaj’s ‘Bang Bang’ and Ruben Studdard’s ‘I Need an Angel’ at the live show, which had hundreds of audience members at the studio and was watched by millions of fans across Africa on DStv and GOtv, and across Europe via the Showmax app.
Simi took a minute to address the top 12, telling them, “And for you all who took part in this experience, it takes a ton of bravery to do what you have done. I’m proud to have experienced this with you. You’re so amazing, and I wish you so much goodness in your future, present, and everything you do.”
Simi took on the stage at the finale singing her hit song, Duduke. Fellow judge D’banj also performed a medley of his biggest songs, including Oliver Twist, Emergency and Your Face Show. Other performers at the highly-charged live show included Nigerian Idol season 6 winner Kingdom, the Nigerian Idol season 7 top 10, and popular musician Pheelz.
D’banj, who performed with Zadok and Progress, said a few words about his unreleased track, I Got My Answer, with the top two finalists. He said, “myself and my family went through a traumatic time when I lost my son. It was so devastating, and I felt like the world caved in. All we could do was pray to God for restoration. The song was done, written in Los Angeles two weeks before I had my new son”.
Journey to finale
Getting to the final was not an easy feat, as they had to join thousands of applicants to jostle for a place on the show. In all, the judges gave out 75 golden tickets. After another round of screening, 50 contestants qualified for the theatre week, where they paired them with other contestants. They went through another round of screening before 12 contestants made it to the live performance stage.
From the beginning of the live performances, both Zadok and Progress gave their best and raised their games, making their presence in the final well deserved.
The Delta-state born singer and season 7 winner captured the hearts of many globally when he took over the ‘Showstopper’ week with his fantastic performance of Ariana Grande, Jessie J, and Nicki Minaj’s ‘Bang Bang’.
Nigerian Idol Season 7 premiered Sunday, 6 February with the weekly shows covering the auditions leading to theatre week before the live shows started in March. The show was sponsored by Bigi Drinks and Binance.
Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has announced the postponement of its maiden annual Public Relations, Reputation, Ideas, Concepts and Excellence (PRICE) Awards and Prizes to January 25, 2026.
NIPR
The event, earlier scheduled for December 7, 2025, was deferred to accommodate stakeholders whose observance of Christmas festivities had commenced earlier than expected.
Chairman of the Organising Committee, Mr. Israel Opayemi, urged stakeholders to note the new date and prepare to participate in the ceremony.
He said the awards would motivate professionals, practitioners and scholars, while enhancing Nigeria’s global competitiveness in the public relations ecosystem and strengthening brand equity for all stakeholders.
Opayemi reaffirmed the Committee’s commitment to delivering a best-in-class award administration and ceremony, describing the PRICE Awards as a credible and enduring platform to identify, celebrate and elevate outstanding individuals, campaigns and organisations shaping the public relations landscape across sectors.
The development of the PRICE Awards peaked in September 2025 when the NIPR President and Chairman, Council, Dr. Ike Neliaku, inaugurated a 12-man committee to organise the maiden edition. The inauguration followed the Council’s adoption of the report of a technical team tasked with establishing the awards.
Netflix has announced a landmark agreement to acquire Warner Bros. and HBO Max in a transaction valued at $82.7 billion, a move analysts say will reshape the global entertainment industry.
Netflix
The deal, which includes Warner Bros.’ film and television studios, HBO, HBO Max, and Warner Bros. Games, was unanimously approved by the boards of both companies. Under the terms, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shareholders will receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in Netflix shares for each WBD share.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos described the acquisition as “a defining moment” for the streaming giant, noting that the company intends to maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations while expanding its production capacity.
“By combining Warner Bros.’ incredible library of shows and movies with Netflix’s culture-defining titles, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling,” Sarandos said.
The transaction is expected to close within 12 to 18 months, following the planned spin-off of WBD’s TV networks division, Discovery Global, in 2026. Netflix projects annual cost savings of $2–3 billion by the third year after completion and expects the deal to be accretive to earnings per share by year two.
Industry groups, including the Directors Guild of America and Cinema United, have raised concerns about the impact on movie theaters, while regulators are expected to scrutinize the deal over antitrust issues. Netflix has pledged to continue supporting theatrical releases, with Warner Bros.’ cinema commitments running through 2029.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav hailed the agreement, saying it “combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love.”
Observers note that the acquisition comes 15 years after former Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes dismissed Netflix as “the Albanian army,” underscoring the dramatic shift in the entertainment landscape.
A major shake‑up rocks viewers and subscribers of DSTV/GOTV as many channels are set to shut down and be removed on January 1, 2026.
The trigger for the upcoming shut‑down is a breakdown in negotiations between the owners of multiple global channels and the pay‑TV operator.
As of December 2025, the deal between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and DStv/GOtv has expired and the two parties have not reached a renewal agreement.
Without a new carriage/distribution agreement, the channels belonging to WBD risk being pulled off the DStv/GOtv line‑up.
This is the most significant content cutback the service has seen in years.
The affected channels are:
Discovery Channel
TLC
Cartoonito
Cartoon Network
CNN International
Food Network
The Travel Channel
TNT
Investigation Discovery
Real Time
HGTV
Discovery Family
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