Category: 91Èȱ¬ WM; Africa
Date: 08.08.2005
Printable version
Wolverhampton soul-singer Diane Hazel has won the chance to woo the movers and shakers of Ghana's music and media world as part of an initiative promoting the Africa Lives on the 91Èȱ¬ season.
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91Èȱ¬ WM and Arts Council England launched an initiative to find an aspiring star in the West Midlands and trawled through examples of work sent in by local comedians, singers, dancers, actors and artists.
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After winning over the judges with her jazzy, sexy house track, the challenge facing Diane now is that she has less than two months to arrange her own performances in sub-Saharan Africa.
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She will fly to Ghana - where 91Èȱ¬ WM has forged links with a Ghanaian radio station - for one week in September with the opportunity to impress and charm audiences and TV and radio hosts with her soulful voice.
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33-year-old Diane says: "To be honest, I'm more at home performing in Birmingham's smoky night-clubs than Ghana's taverns, but I'm really excited and looking forward to the challenge!"
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91Èȱ¬ WM Roots co-ordinator Loyd Williams, who organised the search for West Midlands' best talent export, says: "We launched this initiative to explore and celebrate African life and culture on 91Èȱ¬ WM.
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"I'll be with Diane every step of the way so listeners will be kept across all the trials and tribulations of our aspiring African pop idol."
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Diane, currently living with her family in Wolverhampton, is a care assistant, volunteering at teenage counselling service Base-25 in her spare time.
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Over the last 15 years she's sung in many styles ranging from Motown to reggae and to jazz.
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Notes to Editors
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This search is part of Africa Lives On The 91Èȱ¬.
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Throughout 2005, the 91Èȱ¬ is offering a huge variety of programmes and initiatives across all its services - television, radio and online - to explore and celebrate African life and culture.
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By providing a broader representation of life across Africa, the 91Èȱ¬ offers a fresh look at the continent throughout a year dominated by the G8 conference, the Commission For Africa and the 20th anniversary of Live Aid.
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As part of Africa Lives On The 91Èȱ¬, 91Èȱ¬ WM - based in Birmingham - has forged a partnership with Kapital Radio in Kumasi, Ghana's second city.
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Roots is a joint project between Arts Council England and the 91Èȱ¬ to produce a new and higher profile for arts and culture from African, Asian, Caribbean and Chinese roots.
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Loyd Williams is the Roots co-ordinator based at 91Èȱ¬ WM at the Mailbox, Birmingham.
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The closing date for entrants to submit proof of their talent on VHS, DVD, CD or portfolio images to 91Èȱ¬ WM was Monday 1 August.
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Candidates had to be over 18 and live in the West Midlands region, though were not required to have been born in the West Midlands or the UK.
