E-Wallet identifies 26 contestants

E-Wallet organisers on Sunday identified 26 contestants that will compete in the eviction shows slated for October 2012.

The judges comprised veteran producer Marvin Hanke, Dumisani Mfune and musician Angella ‘Tigris’ Mizinga, whose task was just to choose the best 25 ahead of the eviction shows.

It was a tough competition which gave judges a hard time to pick only 25 contestants as earlier announced by the organisers.

Judges could be seen sharing notes during the auditions, but the situation got harder when they spent more time on the final set of participants, which consisted of four members.

Each of the four proved exceptionally talented in the dancing arena, forcing the judges to pick them all.

Fans should rest assured that there will be more fireworks during the eviction shows starting on October 9. The shows start two weeks after the launch of eviction on September 29 in Blantyre.

Chairperson of E-Wallet Felix Njawala said the competition, which has dancing and singing categories, did not give room to judges to just pick at random.

“We thought our judges would pick only 25, but they discovered that the last set of contestants was outstanding. There was no way the judges could have left one of the four or discard the group; hence, the increased figure.

“With this, the first eviction show takes place in Lilongwe before coming to Blantyre. People will, after the launch, start voting through text messages to evict whom they don’t want,” he explained.

Njawala said almost each of the finalists displayed skills befitting the competition. 

“This shows that youngsters want to achieve something,” he said.

Organisers have this year rebranded the show from a purely musical talent show to include dancing and hip hop.

The judges

Angella ‘Tigris’ Mizinga

She is a product of E-Wallet. Tigris as a musician has featured in many songs done by Young K, Soldier Lucius Banda, Maskal, among others. Mizinga is also a broadcaster with specialised skills in current affairs and as a DJ from her stint with FM 101, Capital FM and Radio 2 FM. She has also performed at the previous Big Brother Africa shows.

Marvin Hanke

He is a veteran broadcaster, playwright and radio producer. He once worked as executive director of the Story Workshop Educational Trust. He is running his own firm, which specialises in various media productions. This is not the first time he has appeared on the panel. During the time of Pop Idols, he also led the panel of judges in choosing the best talent for honours.

Dumisani Mfune

Mfune works for Adventist World Radio in Cape Town South Africa. He also leads a local music group known as Harmony. He is also experienced in media production.