The second phase of the emPawa initiative is set to kick off on Friday, August 15. The initiative is a talent incubator fronted by Mr Eazi with support from YouTube.
The new phase will see around 30 artists get support from the platform to shoot their music videos. There will also be mentorship and guidance from well-established artists such as Diplo, Sarkodie, Kwesta, Diamond Platnumz and E. Kelly.
Mr Eazi, DJ Neptune, Guilty Beatz and Juls are also part of the mentors on the programme.
For artists to be eligible, they have to upload a short clip of themselves performing an original song, a cover or freestyle to Instagram with the #emPawa30 hashtag.
Artists based in Africa and the diaspora are all eligible to apply for the programme. A press release issued by the initiative confirmed that 10 artists from Nigeria will be picked.
“The #emPawa30 will include 10 artists from Nigeria,” the press release revealed.
“10 artists from other countries on the African continent, and five U.K.-based African artists, with the remaining five spots open to African-born artists in countries around the world, including the U.S. and Canada.”
Mr Eazi said in one interview with CNN that the initiative is established in his effort to give back to the music industry. He said it was in recognition of the support he’d received earlier in his career.
YouTube Music will be partnering with emPawa to provide support for the 10 Nigerian artists that are chosen. “It’s critical to develop the next generation of talent—and there is so much talent exploding out of Nigeria and the African continent right now,” says YouTube’s Global Head of Music, Lyor Cohen. “Africa is setting the tempo all around the globe.”
The program will close to submissions on September 15, after which each entry will each be evaluated by Mr Eazi and his team.