Thrills and frills of Lagos Countdown party

With a list that included Tuface, Tiwa Savage and Davido, the first Lagos Countdown party held at the Bar Beach on New Year’s Eve provided fun for residents, writes ADEOLA BALOGUN

 Lagosians had maximum fun at the first ever Lagos Crossover concert, organised on Monday night by the Lagos State Signage and Advertising Agency.

It was a question of which other artiste was not there and from 8pm till 3.30am the following day when the last artiste dropped the microphone, there was no dull moment.

The roll call of acts who entertained the crowd included Tuface, EME (featuring Banky W), Skales, Niyola, Tiwa Savage, D’Prince, Choc Boyz (featuring MI), Ice Prince, Jesse Jagz, Burna Boy, Inyanya, Omawumi, Kel, Durella, JJC, Darey, Davido, W4, Eva, Solid Star, Olamide, Ozzy Bosco aka Wonder Kid, Seyi Shay, Ajebutter, Ras, 2012 Star Quest winners, Crystals and a host of others.

No doubt, some of the artistes turned out to be very spectacular in their performances on the stage.

Omawunmi chose to be different as she came on stage with a band instead of miming to her CD.

She entertained the crowd with some of her popular numbers like If you ask me (Na who I go ask), Thank God and Bottom Belle. And the crowd cheered her and asked for more even when she dropped the microphone.

Other crowd pullers of the night included Olamide, Davido, Darey, Inyanya, Tiwa Savage and Ozzy Bosco.

But Tuface was the biggest of them all in the night. He serenaded the cheering crowd for almost one hour and capped his performance with the number, Implication, which sent the crowd into a frenzy.

The party, which took place on some portions of the newly-reclaimed Eko Atlantic City and Bar Beach, was put together by LASAA. According to the agency, the event was conceived to create an end of year crossover tradition that would engage citizens of the state and visitors throughout the end of year holiday season.

The event was in form of that witnessed in major cities of the world like Time Square, New York and Trafalgar Square, London. It was a night of lights music, fireworks, pyrotechnics and lighting effects to signify the commencement of the New Year.

The beautifully decorated Ahmadu Bello Way, down to the Marina, was a sight to behold and made nightlife very tempting once again.

The official venue of the night event started from the Bishop Oluwole junction, where a city gate was erected, up to the Eko Atlantic City office. The crowd huge that thronged the party was comfortably seated along the stretch with gigantic screens mounted at every corner of the venue.

The massive stage erected for performances was fitted with hi-tech lightings that turned the skyline into a very bright spectacle. The high-decibel speakers used for the night were earthshaking and reverberated throughout the island.

The scenic beauty of the Atlantic Ocean was so spectacular that night. Attention shifted to the seaside at the countdown to the New Year exactly at 12am as the whole place was lit up in fireworks. For about 45 minutes, the skyline was aglow as scores of fireworks were launched from the sandy beach and the sea.

Saturday PUNCH learnt that experts were flown in for the spectacular fireworks with laser beam and water projection display. And the excited crowd erupted in a ‘Happy New Year’ chorus as they ushered in 2013 with almost everyone using their smart phones to record the scene for posterity.

The security arrangement for the event venue was watertight. All participants who had tickets were thoroughly frisked with metal detectors before being allowed into the venue by security men.

Men of the Nigerian Police Force mounted a motorised armoured vehicle which patrolled the venue throughout the duration of the party. And among the crowd were armed policemen who monitored the goings on. And throughout, there was no incident of any kind despite the huge attendance at the venue.

Very significant was the presence of children at the party. Some families brought their children to share in the fun at the beach side.

A few years back, it was unthinkable to find kids at an elaborate open air show, but the countdown show was a different set up as children joined their parents to savour the colourful night of glamour and colour.

Not only children were present: Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos was not left out as he came to have fun. So, also were top government functionaries such as the Lagos State Head of Service, Mr. Adesegun Ogunlewe and the Executive Secretary, Lagos State Security Trust Fund, Mr. Fola Arthur-Worrey.

Some local government chiefs present included Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan and Mr. Abayomi Daramola of Ejigbo and Iru/Victoria Island local government areas respectively.

Both LG bosses attributed the peaceful atmosphere at the party to the huge investment of the state on security. Both men were not surprised at the presence of little children at such a big street party.

“We need a secure environment to hold an event like this,” says Bamigbetan. “The point is that Lagos State has made a huge investment in security and you can see how everybody is relaxed. For the past four years now, the state Security Trust Fund has invested a lot of resources on security. Nightlife has come back to Lagos as a result of this.

“I’m not surprised at what we are witnessing here tonight. Nowadays people are not afraid even to drive back to their homes as late as 2, 3am. People can afford to bring along their children because of a sense of security,” adds Daramola.

Punch Nigeria