I have however taken to "The Voice" Nigeria which recently started airing and to be sincere compared to other musical competitions in Nigeria it is more appealing to the eyes and maybe the ears. I did a little research and found out it was being hosted in South Africa, which I found a bit weird, I mean its called "The Voice" Nigeria what is it doing in South Africa....Another topic for another day
Although I was impressed by the show I was however taken back by their choice to make use of Patoranking as a coach. I mean I found that confusing for a show like "The voice" whose contestants are mostly vocalists and individuals with sound musical knowledge.
The kind of people that sing at churches, weddings, the ones that are sometimes part time thespians, the ones that understand sound and stage management, the ones that deliver just professional music and nothing mediocre. The ones that won't sing just for commercial purpose but would rather sing the right way even if it bores you.
The type of musicians that can probably read musical notes, score songs , and if blessed compose songs.
The type of musicians that would need people like Mozart to judge their skills and so to find Patoranking as a coach made me question the motives of the competition.
For starters I won't even compare him to the other coaches. I know the organisers have a reason for selecting Patoranking but I doubt if those reasons are rational enough.
If you ask me I would say Patoranking is on that show for the buzz and to attract more viewers. He's just like the queen beside the prime minister of England
The voice just like the name is meant to judge individuals with the VOICE I guess and who else can judge that if not someone who understands what it takes to have that voice and maintain the voice .
Patoranking is young, his popular, his music is rhythmic and good to the ears but that's really all his music is. In this part of the world music lovers have been conditioned to love that kind of music hence why it took them years to celebrate the likes of Asa and why a Dare , Omawunmi or Nneka is not the face of music in this country.
Below is what I expected from the voice
1. A coach with good knowledge of music
2. A coach with an understanding of vocals and control of vocals.
3. A coach who understands composition and scoring of music
4. A judge with a good background in music. People like Usher, Pharell Williams, Adam Levine, Alicia Keys who have all being a judge on the show were not chosen for ceremonial reasons but because of their background, knowledge and ability to pick a talented artiste out from a crowd without breaking a sweat..
5. A coach who knows what is at stake and not just there to make us love him the more or have fun on the show. The Voice America is serious business so why can't the Nigerian version be the same.
I know Patoranking's kind of music but how it qualifies him as a coach on a huge show like the voice is one thing I would like to know.
Does he fit this role?
Does creating popular music now qualify you for this show as a coach?
Does this mean Wizkid, Small doctor or Davido can also be a coach on the voice?
I know some people would disagree. Please feel free to share your opinion at the comment section.
Are you saying the audience is from South Africa too? so they flew in Nigerians to SA?
ReplyDeleteI think Patoraking is not as good as the other vocalists, but he does a genre of music that is unique and different from others, he is a new-school reggae artiste, and his vocals are quite impressive, have you heard ALUBARIKA?
For the sake of diversity, i think his choice is not a bad one really.
Wow, u perfectly raised an issue that has been on my mind. Apart from his lack of vocal skills, he also lacked the technical know-how. Please check all his comments and remarks. While Timi and Waje will be analyzing diction, breath control, pitch, falsetto etc.,at the end of each performance, all Pato Ranking typically says is "you try sha but the thing didn't just click for me or there is something I am expecting that I didn't get" and he's never been able to say what that something is.
ReplyDeleteLike you rightly observed, music has different genres and he's an entertainer in his own right but for God's sake, this is the voice and like its name, I expect the judges to be people with vocal abilities and not not mere entertainers.