Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo, known by his stage name D’banj, is a Nigerian musician, singer, songwriter, music executive and television personality. He co-founded Mo’ Hits Records with popular producer, Don Jazzy. He’s released several hit tracks since he came into the limelight in 2005 and won some of the major awards like MTV Europe Music Awards 2007, MTV Africa Music Awards 2009, BET Awards, The Headies, and World Music Awards.

With almost 20 years worth of experience as a musician, performer and style icon, D’banj is in the best position to lead a new generation of young talents into greatness on Nigerian Idol.

Simisola Bolatito Kosoko, popular known as Simi is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and actress. She started her career as a gospel singer, releasing her debut studio album in 2008, She gained prominence in 2014 after releasing “Tiff”, a song that was nominated for Best Alternative Song at The Headies 2015.

Simi has become one of Nigeria’s most respected musicians because of her wide range of music production skills. After three highly successful music albums and several contributions to some of the biggest Nigerian hits, she is more than ready to take on the responsibilities of being a Nigerian Idol judge.

Obi Asika is a Nigerian entrepreneur known for his involvement in the growth of Nigeria’s music industry. He was the founder and CEO of Storm 360 – an indigenous music label that spawned entertainers including Naeto C, Ikechukwu and Sasha P.

Obi Asika returns to the Judges panel of Nigerian Idol after his appearance on the last edition.

Unlike most contestants who could sing since they were born, Abagus Abraham Yinebon had to learn how to sing. The registered nurse, who hails from Bayelsa State, told Netng that he had previously been in church as an usher before he fell in love with the choir.

Soon he joined the choir and started learning how to sing – taking voice training and listening to mentors like Dettrick Harden. For Abraham, winning Nigerian Idol is everything.

Born October 15, 1994, Abraham is from a polygamous family with eight siblings from his mum and four siblings from his step-mum. Currently, he is the breadwinner and hopes that the cash prize can help him with some of his responsibilities.

Aside from that, he would also like to release an album, open a pharmacy, and further help his patients by doing charity work in the hospital.

Abraham is quite passionate. His passion for his job has led him to want to dedicate his life to giving hope and life to people through medicine, and his passion for music is leading him down this journey on Nigerian Idol as he hopes to get exposure and make sure his message is heard.

If you watched the seventh season of Nigerian Idol, you would definitely remember Chisom. He gave an outstanding performance of Adekunle Gold’s ‘Sinner’ at the theatre week with Precious. Unfortunately, he didn’t make it to the live shows.

He is back for Season 8. The 23-year-old Computer Science student of the National Open University started music because his senior brother had inspired him to. According to Chisom Obi Emmanuel, his brother had taken him to the choir, and soon he perfected the act of singing while attending choir practice.

The Anambra State indigene was born into a family with three other male siblings. For him, the Nigerian Idol is not only an opportunity to win the cash prize, but it makes the idea of not giving up real.

Aside from winning, he hopes to get opportunities that would lead to collaborations that will further his music career.

When 18-year-old Constance walked into the audition room, Simi immediately recognised her as she had previously given her accolades on social media for a cover she did on one of the singer’s songs. Constance has been doing this for years as she has amassed over 100,000 followers on Instagram due to her impeccable song covers.

Born on May 10, 2005, Constance Temitope Olatunde was born into a music-oriented family of three who are all musicians. The singer, who is from Ekiti State almost instinctively started her journey into music, but she did not start putting herself out there until her sister advised her to post covers of songs she did on social media.

Speaking on what winning Nigerian Idol would do for her, she said it would mean a lot to her and her family, and it would also help her gain the connections she needs to further her career. Despite her impending fear of making a mistake, she is confident that she can make it to the top three spots.

Goodness almost didn’t make it past the auditions. Her shy and reserved nature was one of the first things most people noticed about her during the audition process, but right now, she is ready to own the spotlight.

The 23-year-old graduate of Microbiology from Delta State University, who had previously applied to join the Show in Season 6 but did not make it, has always been in love with music. It also helped that her family was music oriented with Christian vocalists like Marvin Sapp, Kierra Sheard, Tasha Cobbs, and more, influencing her sound.

Aside from Microbiology, Goodness Urherigho also has a certification from the School of Aviation in Air ticketing and Reservation. She revealed during an interview with Netng that winning Nigerian Idol would not only be a proud moment for her but also a feat that would validate her talent.

Although the Delta State indigene still feels somewhat timid about performing on the show, she has a lot at stake considering the fact that she lost her job during the theatre week as her employer could not retain her because of her divided attention.

Two years after auditioning for Nigerian Idol, Oisamoje Reuben Daniel finally makes it to the live stage. The 24-year-old singer, born on January 21, 1999, is a native of Edo State who also started singing in the choir.

Ose, who is from a family of six, is an SSCE holder, who could not go to the university because his parents could not afford the tuition fees – his dad had passed during that period. But before all this, he was a singer. At the age of 12, Ose joined Winners Chapel as a choir member, where he honed his skills.

For Ose, winning Nigerian Idol is not only a way for him to finally afford to go the university but it would also help him validate his talent. Aside from music, Ose is also a barber.

The Mac sisters are famous for their vocals and Precious Mac has never fallen short of that pedestal since she auditioned for Nigerian Idol Season 8. However, for two years prior to this season, she had auditioned and had not been picked.

The 23-year-old singer, who hails from Bayelsa State, comes from a family of music lovers. Although she started singing at the age of eight and officially started competing at age 14, she still wanted to pursue her dream to become a nurse.

In between cooking, songwriting, and content creation, Precious has developed a unique tone and voice she believes can take her to the finals. For her, her win is a step further from where she is now.

As soon as Quest mounted the stage to perform Rihanna’s Lift Me Up there was almost a guaranteed spot for her on the live shows. Born into a family of five, Queen Esther Ibrahim is a native of Ogbomosho, Oyo State.

The graduate of Library Archival and Information Studies from the University of Ibadan grew up watching her mum sing in the choir. For her, that was the moment she fell in love with music as she usually followed her mum to choir rehearsals and used her tapes to imitate exactly what she had seen her mum do.

Years later, in 2016, during her time at NYSC, she became the music director for Nigeria Christian Corpers Fellowship (NCCF) Lagos. And now the 27-year-old singer is on one of Africa’s biggest talent shows.

For Quest, winning the show is not only a great achievement, but it is something tangible she can always point out that she has achieved. Even after trying to audition last year and not getting in, she’s still positive about making it far on the show.

Reigneth Osaye is born to a family of singers. Her interest in music was piqued when her dad used to take her for his studio rounds. The 30-year-old singer, who is an indigene of Delta State, like most of the contestants grew up in the church.

However, she had a bit of a blockade to pursuing her dreams as she had to give up schooling and everything else for her younger siblings so that they could be supported better by their mother after her parents divorced.

Winning Nigerian Idol is not only a boost to her confidence or certification to prove her abilities, but it would also mean that she can help her family. Although Reigny finally studied Theatre Arts at a college of education, there are other aspects of the entertainment space she would like to explore.

Saviour Henry Eyo has had the heart of many since he auditioned at Nigerian Idol Season 7. The singer and songwriter, born on February 3, 1996, was born into a family of four until he lost his dad years back.

The graduate of Computer Science from YabaTech started picking up singing in church as he started attending a singing class hosted by the church. There he was taught the basic rudiments of music.

From then on, he has been making music, and he even has a couple of recorded and viral songs to his discography, including The Best Part, This Is How I Feel, and more.

With hopes of getting exposure and experience to perform in front of a large crowd, Savy Henry is back to this season of Nigerian Idol, and he is ready to take the crown.

Victory Gbakara’s confidence is almost contagious. The judges love it, and it seems the fans also won’t be able to look away anytime soon as the Delta State indigene has wowed fans with his performance right from the auditions.

The 24-year-old graduate of Law at Benson Idahosa University is a pastor’s son born into a family of six. Unlike most of the singers on the show, Victory was forced by his parents to join the choir.

He said in an interview that his parents put him in the choir to monitor him because he was so stubborn, but at first, he was really bad at singing. Months and years of practice have led him to this stage of mastery, and he is confident in his abilities to deliver a show.

His aim in Nigerian Idol is simple, he wants to showcase his craft. He is not the biggest fan of competitions because he doesn’t need anyone to validate whether he is a good singer or not, but he is open to learning from the judges.