AGBANI DAREGO FOR MANIA MAGAZINE AUTOGRAPH SESSION

By Niyi Tabiti
Former Miss World, Miss Agbani Darego would be the center of attraction at Silverbird Galleria on Sunday 17 July 2011 where she would be signing autograph on copies of Mania magazine.
Mania Magazine which debuted with Modupe Ozolua is now out with its second edition. The special travel issue which features Agbani Darego- the first black African miss world on the cover, celebrates the achievements of not just a supermodel, but a role model.

Mania magazine editors announced that this issue is 212 (Two Hundred and Twelve) pages of holiday fashion, travel destinations, trend and beauty reports, guides on packing right
and packing light, makeup to travel with, ageing antidotes, movies and
music reviews, events and many more for =N= 1000 only. There is also a
20% discount on all subscriptions.

TOP MODEL, AZIZ AMAR-AIGBE MAKES ZEN MAGAZINE COVER FOR THE SECOND TIME

On the cover of the July issue of Zen Magazine is none other than a face a whole lot of us have come to love, he is the 3rd sexiest man in Nigeria and he would become the first model to hit our cover for the 2nd time – it is no other than Aziza Amar-Aigbe.
This sultry model has been busy on and off set ever since his May feature last year, vicious behind the cameras and I must say he looks even hotter than ever.
With a host of top modeling jobs under his belt ever since his last feature, we just had to have him back on Zen to learn who he gives his attention to and what drives him to go even farther as a top model.
Packed in this issue is also an exclusive interview with the CEO of Uber Africa “Mr. Stanley Thomas” as he tells us more about what Uber Africa is all about, we have the lineup of designers that will be showcasing their latest trends at the African Fashion Week London in August, we caught up with Soul singer Bez as he plans to launch is debut album and we find out some of the newest faces rocking the music industry across Africa.
-Gistmaster.com

Photography by Kelechi Amadi-Obi

TONYE COLE, SAHARA GROUP MD INSPIRES YOUTH WITH NEHEMIAH PROJECT

[caption id="attachment_6327" align="alignleft" width="480" caption="Ibidun Ajayi Ighodalo of Elizabeth R and Mr. Tonye Cole,MD Sahara Energy"][/caption]

Nigerian-trained and certified Architect, Mr. Tonye Cole, the head of the young troyka who owns and directs the affairs of the wave making oil and gas multinational - Sahara Group, is now fully kitted and equipped with a masterplan to rebuild the world’s most populous black nation and its most promising market, Nigeria.
[caption id="attachment_6328" align="alignleft" width="480" caption="Niyi Tabiti,News Editor, gistmaster.com, Mr. Tonye Cole, MD Sahara Energy and Mr. Lanre Alfred, Society Editor,Thisday Newspapers"][/caption]Undaunted by the myriad problems bedeviling the nation’s unity and faith, and peace and progress, the well-built, handsome son of well-revered Ambassador Patrick Dele-Cole, is armed with a visionary blueprint that maps out a clear-cut, mass-embracing strategy which signposts a promising path into our desirable future as a nation. And he christens it, The Nehemiah Project, inspired quite possibly by the great works of the biblical Nehemiah, the nation rebuilder.

In an earlier statement, the Project Founder/ Convener, Tonye Cole, defined the The Nehemiah Project as “a group of well meaning individuals who are committed to rebuilding the society by empowering and inspiring the youths as the future leaders of our country: to discover, explore and realize their full potential.”
And to kick start the laudable civil responsibility project, Mr. Cole has packaged a world-class event to inaugurate the project whereby twenty (20) outstanding youth leaders from various walks of life who are constant sources of inspiration to other young people around the world especially in Nigeria can challenge youths between the ages of 18 and 30 to think outside of the norm and pursue careers utilizing their God giving skills and talents.
The event is scheduled to hold on Sunday, July 24, 2011 at the Harbour Point Event Center, Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island, Lagos. And it promises to be an exceptional night of inspiration and fun. Included in the programme are pep talks to be delivered by renowned motivational speakers including Nigeria’s king of contemporary comedy, Ali Baba, and the delighting queen of Nollywood, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal. Some of the other distinguished youth leaders, with exemplary records of success in their various callings, include ace footballer Austin J.J. Okocha, queens of makeover - Tara Fela-Durotoye and Banke Meshida-Lawal, wave making musician Dapo Oyebanji aka D’ banj, Olumide Ajayi of the Iconola fame, former Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria, Omowunmi Akinnifesi, the fashion making phenomenon – The Okunoren Twins, and the reputable fashion model hunter behind Beth Models, Elizabeth Isiohor. The side attractions include an exquisite fashion show, musical performances by rave artistes including MI.

Beyond the inaugural event, TNP will execute impact-making, sustainable projects addressing the various challenges facing the Nigerian youth in their quest for success. The brain behind it all, reputable builder of international note comes with a resume of past and ongoing successes of projects, some of which he had recorded as a practicing architect while in Brazil, and now back home in Nigeria.

ABOUT MR. TONYE COLE
Born in Port Harcourt, Rivers State to the highly respected Ambassador Patrick Dele-Cole, Tonye Cole attended Corona School, Victoria Island and later King's College, Lagos before proceeding to King's School, Ely, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom.
He is also an alumnus of the University of Lagos. A merit honours graduate of architecture, Tonye Cole worked as an architect for frontline Brazilian architectural firm Grupo Quartro SA in Goiania Brazil ('90-92) where he was involved in the design and implementation of the urban planning and city development of Palmas, the capital city of the newly created state of Tocantins. The city of Palmas was designed as a 'green fields' project and built up from scratch.

The Managing Director of Sahara Energy Resource Limited which he co-founded in 1996 with his friends Tope Shonubi and Ade Odunsi. Sahara Energy started out as an oil and gas company whose core business at the time was the trading of excess fuel oil from the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries.

With a combination of hard-work and dogged determination not to be middlemen in the transactions, Sahara Energy established itself as a credible trading house within three years followed by diversification into storage depot and vessel ownership, building depots in Lagos, Onne and Abuja with a combined capacity of 55,000 metric tonnes and a fleet of five vessels moving products across West Africa. Today, Sahara Energy is a major employer of labour with a staff strength of just over 400 people. The company also has a growing portfolio which includes upstream assets comprising of 9 blocks including one deep water block in Ghana and is deeply involved in developing the domestic gas infrastructure.

Sahara Energy remains very strong in the trading sector and has set up a trading office in Geneva, Switzerland which actively trades in crude oil, gas oil, Jet A1, mogas and bitumen in various markets globally. The company also maintains a strong physical presence in Ghana, Ivory Coast and Senegal and representative offices in Cameroun, France and Brazil.

YOUR VOTE COUNTS @ MALTA GUINNESS STREET DANCE IV

[caption id="attachment_6317" align="alignleft" width="480" caption="Frank, MaySeven and Wale Rubber, all judges at Malta Guinness Street Dance Africa"][/caption]

Yeah! It’s been six weeks of Top of the World street dance moves at the season IV of Malta Guinness Street Dance. If you can recall, a total of eight (8) street dance crews were selected by the judges from the nationwide auditions held in various regions across the country. They were Fly High, Sum’ry Crew (Abuja) Supreme Task, Shadows (Enugu) Genesis Plus, Soulja Guyz (Benin) Hephzibah (Lagos), and Dynasty (Lagos). Each crew partook in series of recreational activities and choreography sessions that aided in the delivery of their dance routines.

The first week had all eight crews displaying what they had in their kitty while the second week featured the first elimination stage of the competition, tagged “blast from the past” which made Dynasty crew the first crew to be evicted. Sum’ry crew lost out in the challenge which required crews to celebrate living “Legends” in the third week. Hephizibah crew and Fly High crew also bowed out in week four and five respectively when the challenges assigned were “Dance into the Future” and “Make or Break (Kitchen Dance)”

The final which was in the sixth week, dubbed the final showdown that featured two rounds of dance was to select the two crews that will go to the Pan African championship. To clear the air around what was to be expected at the final, the judges took turns to air their opinions on what the expectations should be. First to react amongst the judges was renowned African contemporary dance instructor Frank Konwea, said “They’ve built themselves already, it’s time to get the crew that will represent Nigeria at Pan African” followed by UK based singer and dancer May7ven who said “expect to see dynamic performances and astronomical display” while the chief judge Wale Rubber stated that “am expecting the very best, they (last four crews) should bring all their creativity and technicality to the stage. Hopefully we will have the best final ever in the annals of Malta Guinness Street Dance”.

The journey to the Pan African championship began as the four finalists keenly contested for the two slots to the African championship with the first round challenge tagged “Afro-vibe”. “Afro-vibe” challenged the last four crews to infuse African contemporary songs and steps into their dance routines for the round. The first round performances saw Supreme Task evicted as the other crews proved that they’ve got what it takes to move to the next round. The second round was the “freestyle” challenge which allowed competing crews to be more innovative with their dance routines. The last three crews Soulja Guyz, Shadows and Genesis Plus did put up a good show which further demonstrated to the judges and audience that they all had what it takes to be at the Pan African Championship.

The onus was on the trio of Wale Rubber, May7ven and Frank to be convinced of the crew that will better represents Nigeria at the African championship. Announcing the winner of the two spots with an emotional laden mood (name of judge) called out on Genesis Plus and Shadows as the African Championship spot winners while Souja Guyz emerged runners up. However, this where you and I can actually play the role of judges by voting for our favourite crew and that we think so far has fully shown that they are the crew that will best represent Nigeria at the Pan African Championship.

To vote for your favourite crew Genesis Plus or Shadows, simply SMS G (Genesis Plus) or S (Shadows) to 20120 from 2nd of 15th of July SMS cost only N10.00 or visit www.facebook.com/maltaguinness for voting details.

Let’s take a moment to recall the theme for this season “Back with Style, Back with Swagger” and your guess is as good as mine if you have experienced the new style used and the swag exhibited by all because its Malta Guinness Street Dance!

Jewel by Lisa Autumn/Winter 2012 Lookbook

Tanzanian model Millen Magese effortlessly flaunts the lookbook for Jewel by Lisa’s Autumn/Winter 2012 collection.

For the lookbook, the collection presents attention arresting pieces, parading the “fille en tournée" (girl on tour) The  sequined drainpipe pants and lots of prints paired with prints, this collection will definitely flaunt your chic stylista side.

Sunglasses - Choose Sunglasses that Look Fab and Protect Your Eyes

There's such a huge selection of sunglasses styles, prices and features that sometimes it's hard to decide which pair is the best. Finding a pair of sunglasses you love is easier if you start thinking about your possible choices now, before you go shopping.
What should you look for in a pair of sunglasses? Three big things: good eye protection, comfort and a fantastic style.

 Choose sunglasses that suit your style

Sunglass styles change every year, just like every other fashion, but the selections are so varied that no pair will ever really go "out" of style. And since sunglasses don't have to be expensive to be effective, you don't have to spend a fortune to develop a nice collection.Designer and specialty sunglasses, like the kinds used for sports, cost more than most sunglasses, but you'll find all kinds of fashion glasses for sale at affordable prices. Watch the UV ratings carefully and you'll be fine.
Unless you already know which frame shapes look good on you, go shopping and try on as many styles as possible. If you can get permission to walk outside with glasses on, do it, so that you can find out how they actually work in the sunlight.

Here are a few helpful tips

- Put UV protection on yourmust-have list

-Get familiar with the sunglasses lens materials

-Know your Sunglassframe components

-Watchout for Sunglasseslens tints and other coatings

-Watch for sunglasses with lensscratch resistance

- Buy sunglasses withanti-reflective coatings

-Go for Sunglasseswith extra eye protection

Mania Magazine takes Agbani Darego to Silverbird Lifestyle Store

Mania magazine cordially invites you to the autograph signing with former Miss World, Agbani Darego at the Silverbird Lifestyle bookstore on Sunday, 17th of July. The former Miss World will be signing copies of the magazine for everyone that purchases a copy of the Travel Issue between 3-6pm. For more enquiries please call 07058109821 or write to Editor@maniamag.org .