Entertainment

Bolanle Austen-Peters Wins MIT’s Prestigious Foundry Fellowship

Published

2 years ago

October 22, 2022

Editor

Lawyer turned entertainment entrepreneur, film and theatre director, Bolanle Austen-Peters, has been selected for a prestigious fellowship programme of the Legatum Centre for Development and Entrepreneurship of the Massachussetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Boston, USA.

Mrs. Austen-Peters who is also the Founder & CEO of educational and recreational organisation, Terra Kulture, will join 11 other fellows for the Legatum Foundry Fellowship, which is a transformative experience for accomplished entrepreneurs.

She is one of the four women selected for this highly-competitive fellowship, a hybrid training that will take fellows across select African cities for study tours and coursework in Boston.

In its announcement on Thursday, October 20, 2022, the Legatum Centre said “the 2022-2023 Foundry Fellows are here. Join us as we welcome our incoming cohorts. From Egypt to South Africa to Botswana and Nigeria, our incoming fellows are working on enterprises to improve their communities in various sectors,”

Adding that they will “highlight each #foundryfellow over the next week as they get ready to begin an incredible year of networking, innovation and building community here at Legatum.”

The Foundry Fellowship is a transformative experience for accomplished entrepreneurs “who are at an inflection point between scaling an innovation-driven company and transitioning into a role as an entrepreneurial leader catalysing systems change and inclusive economic growth across the African continent.”

Mrs Bolanle Austen-Peters of BAP Productions

The statement from the Legatum Centre said that during the fellowship journey, Fellows will learn new frameworks in leadership development and acolytes building with expert faculty and practitioners, be exposed to ecosystems through visits with key stakeholders, and explore new ways to accelerate innovation-driven Entrepreneurship in Africa.”

In her response, Austen-Peters said: “I’m honoured to be selected as a fellow of the Legatum Centre for Development & Entrepreneurship at MIT. The recognition comes through over 20 years of creating pathways to global prosperity through innovation and entrepreneurship.

“It demonstrates that you should just keep at what you do without allowing distractions. It affirms that in spite of all, hardworking and diligence are recompensed. It encourages one to want to do more.”

Austen-Peters, 53, graduated with a BA in Law from the University of Lagos and earned a Masters from the London School of Economics.

After working as a lawyer in the 1990s, first in her father’s chambers, Afe Babalola & Co and later at the United Nations High Commissions for Refugees in Switzerland, she founded Terra Kulture.

According to her, since 2003, Terra Kulture has been at the forefront of promoting Nigeria’s art and culture through exhibitions, indigenous restaurant and storytelling through its award-winning plays and movies.

“Over these years, we have developed an in-depth understanding of arts, culture and languages to impact the next generation most effectively,” she added.

In recent times, the organisation, through the Terra Academy for the Arts, received funding support from both Mastercard Foundation’s Africa Works Initiative and Netflix.

Through Bolanle Austen-Peters (BAP) Productions, she has produced stage musicals like Saro, Waka, Fela & The Kalakuta Queens and Death and the King’s Horseman, among others.

She has also directed feature films such as The Bling Lagosians, Man Of God, Collision Course and Funmilayo: The lioness of Lisabi.

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Entertainment

Okoroji Promises Unforgettable COSON Week

Published

1 week ago

December 12, 2024

Admin

Former President of PMAN and now, Chairman of COSON, Chief Tony Okoroji, has declared that the COSON Week scheduled to take place between May 25 and May 31, 2025 will be truly unforgettable.

Chief Okoroji made the declaration in his address to the just concluded Annual General Meeting of Nigeria’s No 1 copyright collective management organization, Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON), at which the 2024 royalty distribution of a whopping =N=465.5 million was approved.

These are the very words of the well-known master planner and producer of remarkable events: “one of the many important decisions taken by the COSON Board at its meeting of November 6 was the approval for the hosting of a master-blaster edition of the iconic “COSON WEEK” in May 2025.

The Board also directed that every step should be taken immediately to begin the mobilization of all “mobilizables” to ensure that COSON WEEK 2025 is, in every way, unforgettable”.

Continuing, Chief Tony Okoroji, the creator of the famous Nigerian Music Awards that played host to Presidents, Governors, Ministers, Ambassadors and stars from around the world, said, “COSON Week is the flagship week of our great society, during which we roll out wall-to-wall high-profile events to entertain, to inform, to communicate, to educate and to project an unassailable brand.

COSON week 2025 will bring joy to many. We will deploy the events of COSON Week 2025 to tell Nigerians that despite the difficulties we face, all is not lost. We will use COSON Week 2025 to propagate the importance of creativity and entertainment to the economic and socio-political well-being of Nigeria”.

Chief Okoroji went on to say: “We are now at the planning stage of COSON Week 2025. We intend to mobilize all “mobilizables” as ordered by the Board. As we enter the new year, we will begin to unfold the different events, the venues and their specific attractions. One thing I can assure you is that COSON Week 2025 will be truly unforgettable. Please, fasten your seat belts!”.

Entertainment

Pop Singer Davido Congratulates Ghana’s President-elect, Mahama

Published

2 weeks ago

December 9, 2024

Eric

Famous musician, Davido, has congratulated John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), on winning the December 7 elections.

In a post shared with his millions of followers on X, Davido, whose real name is David Adedeji Adeleke, celebrated the news with a simple yet joyful post.

Mahama, who was president of Ghana between July 2012 and January 2017 has also been congratulated by his main opposition Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia

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In a concession speech delivered on Sunday, Mr Bawumia, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate, stated that internal data from his party indicates that the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has secured victory in both the presidential and parliamentary polls.

“Let me say that the data from our own internal collation of the election results indicate that former President John Dramani Mahama has won the presidential election decisively,” Bawumia said.

Entertainment

Jay-Z Tops Forbes’ Greatest Rappers of All Time List

Published

2 weeks ago

December 5, 2024

Eric

Forbes has named American rapper, Sean Carter aka Jay-Z, as the greatest rapper of all time.

The publication recently released its 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time list, celebrating the best in the hip-hop world.

Jay-Z topped the list, followed by Kendrick Lamar, Lil Wayne, J. Cole, and Tupac at numbers 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively.

Drake, Kanye West, Nicki Minaj, Nas, and Eminem complete the top 10.

Also on the list are Andre 300 (11), The Notorious B.I.G (12), Missy Elliott (13), Chuck D (14), A$AP Rocky (15), Lil’ Kim (16), Tyler, the Creator (17), Snoop Dogg (18), Ghostface Killah (19) and Common (20).

Popular names in hip-hop like 50 Cent, Ice Cube, Juice WRLD, Lauryn Hill, Dr. Dre, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes, Future, Childish Gambino, Bad Bunny, Pusha T, Cardi B and Young Thug, rank at number 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 34, 40, 46, 48 and 49, respectively.