By Joy Ude
Port Harcourt, July, 2, 2024
The Light Up Port Harcourt City, an entertainment platform aimed at showcasing potential talents,on Tuesday said that increase and support from government and cooperate bodies in the industry would reduce crime.
The Chief Executive Officer(CEO),Light Up Port Harcourt, Mr Happy Agi, disclosed during a media chat with Journalists in Port Harcourt.
Agi said that Light Up vision was birthed on December 27, 2023 to help nurture and showcase young talents in Nigeria.
He said that the platform had showcased a lot of talents from March, 9, 2024 till date.
The CEO said that Port Harcourt city would witness a special edition of such showcase of talented music artists coming up on September, 15.
Agi stated that the September mega music festival will hold at the biggest and most modern event centre in the South-South, the EUI Centre.
“This event will hold capacity for 5000 seated guests but if they stand, it will take far more and it aims to sell Port Harcourt to the world by projecting Garden City talents to the world.
“It is not restricted to indigenes of Port Harcourt but all of Rivers State and all those who had stints in Port Harcourt at one time or the other.
“This event will attract investors and boost businesses in this part of Nigeria, it will reduce crime drastically because if you ignore entertainment and youth programmes, you will hardly sleep, and If you remove or kill entertainment in Port Harcourt, you breed criminals.
“We have identified a gap in the music industry and we intend to close that gap, which is not about dearth of talents but about promoting the talents, and providing platforms to showcase those talents. That is the gap we want to close,”Agi said.
Similarly, Mr Tonye Ibiama, the Chief Executive Officer, Grafton Rcords who is a pioneer and a major backbone to the vision, said that the event would celebrate the Port Harcourt music artists.
Ibiama appealed to well meaning Nigerians, multinational companies and the general public to support and nurture the artists in Port Harcourt.
“Our company has always picked up talents from Port Harcourt, and Nigeria has always harvested and enjoyed musicians from Port Harcourt over the decades.
“What that is important is that the platform will bring out the next artists in the city and showcase them to the world.
“The platform called ‘Climax Night’ produced Burna Boy that is now the king of Africa. The truth is, no platform, no talent, the drive is not only for national artistes but for upcoming ones too,”he said.
Also, Mr K.O. Baba Jornsen, known as the Mayor of Pitakwa in entertainment industry,said that entertainment industry had proven overtimes that it had played more employment roles in the country than any other sector.
He said that Port Harcourt has talents but needs enabling environment, recourse and support.
“We are committed to promoting artists in Port Harcourt because the city is far from maximizing its potentials.
“When you look at the music sector, especially in Port Harcourt, you will see that there are few that bearly feed themselves, but for the actors or comedians it’s easier for them to sustain themselves because they support each other.
“This is because Port Harcourt talents lack structure, so they suffer setback because of platforms and sponsors to showcase themselves,”he said.
Jornsen said that the event is the 2nd edition and would majorly treat the city on their own, hoping that government and multinational companies support the vision.
He called on the public to come in mass to cheer the participants up to succeed.