Events  

NECLive Returns Loaded

By Chinonso Ihekire

13 February 2021   |   3:03 am

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ID Africa, owners of Netng and producers of Nigerian Entertainment Conference (NECLive), has confirmed that the eighth edition of the annual conference will hold on Sunday, April 25, 2021.

Ayeni Adekunle

Season 8 Holds April 25

ID Africa, owners of Netng and producers of Nigerian Entertainment Conference (NECLive), has confirmed that the eighth edition of the annual conference will hold on Sunday, April 25, 2021.

NECLive, the premier and largest gathering of entertainment industry professionals in Nigeria, will return as a hybrid media event combining a studio set-up of select speakers with live global broadcast across cable TV, radio and online platforms. 

On April 25, 2021, NECLive8 will explore the theme: Building The Future, through the exploration of actionable steps and solutions proffered by some of Nigeria’s most brilliant professionals and accomplished entertainment industry stakeholders.

The conference will focus on various ways of using entertainment as a vehicle, creativity as a tool and celebrity power as an agent of change to build a remarkable future for Nigeria’s youth.

NECLive8 will feature three main speakers who are leading the charge in rethinking the approach to consumer entertainment and creative enterprise across the world.

The event will be punctuated with live music by one of Nigeria’s most celebrated artistes, an enthralling live stage drama and comedy from one of the industry’s finest. NECLive8 will also include product unveilings, brand announcements and industry tributes. The studio audience will be made up of limited invited guests, while millions of viewers across the world will interact with the conference through the official digital channels.

NECLive Convener, Ayeni Adekunle said, “We set up NECLive eight years ago as an intervention towards building the industry of our dreams. Seven events, 450 speakers and panellists, 40 exhibitions and brands, and 12,000 attendees after, we are glad to be witnessing and facilitating the transformation of our home entertainment; or our music and media. And we are calling on the government, practitioners, fans and investors to come to the party.”

According to the organisers, this year will also mark the launch of a new programme called NECLive Go!, a platform created to support innovators that are solving growth problems for creatives and the wider entertainment industry in Nigeria. Through NECLive Go!, innovators and entrepreneurs will pitch their ideas to investors and get the support they need to start or scale their products.

During NECLive8, ID Africa will also premier the NECLive TV Special, a scripted 90-minute long production, featuring a 7-year chronicle of the most powerful speakers and memorable moments from the NECLive stage between 2013 and 2020. The documentary-style production, which will contain new, original recordings, archival materials and never-before-seen footage will broadcast live on TV and also stream online.

According to Femi Falodun, CEO, ID Africa, “Nigeria’s entertainment industry is full of energetic, enterprising and creative young people who are often the direct victims of poor governance, lack of opportunities and social injustice. They have also recently emerged as the leaders of a new national movement and drivers of an ongoing conversation about the future of our country.

“Our goal with NECLive8 is to provide the tools, resources and connections that will further drive the change and innovation that the industry is yearning for.”

Following a one-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the organisers expect that this hybrid edition will reach over 20 million people watching on TV, listening on radio and streaming live via Neusroom, Netng, as well as on NECLive’s Youtube, Facebook and other digital channels.

Nigerian Entertainment Conference (often stylised as NECLive), with the hashtag #NECLive, is an umbrella conference for the entertainment industry in Nigeria, which continually discusses the trajectory development of the sector and shapes the discourse and practices surrounding it.

#NECLive is the marketplace for innovative ideas, products, the unveiling of dynamic solutions that will connect, engage and encourage industry collaborations for sustainable socio-economic development while offering a brighter future in the continent.

Organised yearly since 2013, #NECLive brings together practitioners from all sectors of the entertainment industry for a full day of conversations, workshops, exhibitions and master classes. It serves as a platform for discussing challenges, exchanging ideas and finding a strengthened pathway for the entertainment industry in Nigeria to thrive.
The conference, which hosts respected guests, speakers and panelists from various sectors of the economy, attracts over 3,000 participants at the venue and millions of viewers and audiences on various platforms – cable TV, digital viewing and online streaming.