Three females and two males qualified over the weekend for the Celtel star search musical competition.
Daniel Strasser-Williams who did “I need an Angel” and ‘Nar only you’ had the highest score of 121 beating Jane Peters who got 120 to qualify for the grand final. Sia Yambasu, Adrian Lewis and Joselia Gbonndo also made it to the finals.
Ten participants actually competed in the semi-final stage but Solomon Flikinger, T Binta Kamara Daniella Grant, Ibrahim Bakarr and Alusine Bayoh dropped out.
As usual the three judges had 50 percent of the decision to push the contestants to the finals while the audience had 50 also.
Unlike the previous rounds in the semi final stage all the contestants performed two songs of their choice in two rounds before the voting started.
Strasser-Williams, who got the highest score to qualify for the finals, did an undisputable best performance and many now think he is the favourite to win the competition come April 12 when the grand finale will take place live at the Family Kingdom, Aberdeen in Freetown.
The winner of the competition will receive Le20 million and Celtel will help him or her record an album, whilst the second prize is Le10 million and record an album. The third will receive Le5 million and also record and produce a single; and the fourth and fifth will receive a million Leone each.
In the grand finals the five will not sing songs that have been done by other musicians but will compose theirs.
Ballanta Academy will continue to work with the five finalists to hone their skills and help them work on their own original songs for the competition.
Musical experts say it would be a wonderful display of amazing Sierra Leonean talents and the keenest competition ever in the history of Sierra Leone.
The stakes are very high but a winner will surely emerge come April 12 and Celtel the leaders in telecommunication would have fulfilled a dream not only for the individual but for the country as a whole –the star of Sierra Leone in the music industry.
ADVERTISEMENT