9ice Shines at Zain’s Mandela 90th Birthday Concert in London

The Nelson Mandela 90th Birthday Concert sponsored by Zain Group was a great moment for Nigerian music, when Nigeria’s MUSIC latest sensation, 9ice, took the stage right after Amy Winehouse, to thrill the over 40,000 capacity audience at Hyde Park.

9ice got the largely European audience rocking with his hit tune Konga Aso. He later expressed huge appreciation to Celtel Nigeria, his sponsors to the Concert, for giving him the opportunity to play on such a big stage, with great stars and a massive audience.

The show was kicked off at 6:15 p.m. with a special appearance by Will Smith and wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, followed by a constellation of music stars including Eddy Grant, Amy Winehouse, Sugarbabes, Suzanna Owiyo, Sipho Mabuze, Johnny Clegg, The Children of Agape Choir, Loyiso, Leona Lewis, and Emmanuel Jal, a former child soldier turned Reggae musician. The wonderful Soweto Gospel Choir provided back up for most of the artistes, including 9ice.

The highpoint of the star-studded evening was the appearance of the celebrant, Dr. Nelson Mandela, accompanied by his wife, Graca. Mandela delivered an emotional message, in which he urged the world to unite against suffering and diseases especially HIV-Aids. He expressed appreciation to the audience for turning up in support of his 46664 Foundation.

Zain Group, the leading mobile telecommunications company in the Middle East and Africa, was the proud sponsor of the international musical celebration honouring Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday and raising funds for his charitable work.

In keeping with its drive to promote African arts and culture, Zain, through its African subsidiary Celtel, funded several of Africa’s most famous artists who performed at last night’s prestigious event.

Zain Group CEO Dr Saad Al Barrak said: “We are very proud to be part of this event honouring Mr. Mandela, a global icon whose sacrifices for the African people are well known to all.

“This international event viewed by an estimated one billion people across the world, proves Zain’s commitment to raising the profile of African artists and their music to the global stage. The sponsorship of this event falls in line with Zain’s global ambitions and corporate social responsibility philosophy. Our participation in the concert raising funds for the Mandela Foundation demonstrates our commitment to making a positive difference to people’s lives.”

Zain also funded a number of competition winners from across Africa to fly to London and witness the spectacular concert first hand. This unique opportunity has been extended to both employees and customers from across the continent, giving a number of people from 14 markets in Africa the trip of a lifetime.

Zain also offered its customers in Africa the chance to participate in this event by sending a text message wishing Nelson Mandela a happy birthday via its mobile phone networks. All the money raised from this will be given to the Nelson Mandela Foundation to be used in its charitable work.

Bookmark It

 Email This Post