Andre Blaze Henshaw (born 14 August 1983) is a Nigerian

radio personality A radio personality (American English) or radio presenter (British English) is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host, and in India and Pakistan as a rad ...

, rapper,

television host A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garner ...

and executive producer. He first gained notice as a member of the hip hop group Tuck Tyght Allstars. His radio career began at

Rhythm 93.7 FM Port Harcourt Rhythm 93.7 FM is a commercial radio station located in the Old GRA neighborhood of Port Harcourt, Rivers State. The station broadcasts an urban contemporary radio format, playing a variety of music genres including R&B, hip hop, with occasio ...

, where he worked for over six years before joining Nigezie as a TV host. In May 2012, he quit his job at the cable TV channel after four years, later accepting an offer to host

Nigeria's Got Talent ''Nigeria's Got Talent'' is a Nigerian reality talent show which is part of the ''Got Talent'' franchise. It was launched in 2012 on television stations like AIT and NTA, and sponsored by thriving telecommunication company Airtel. Hosted by A ...

. Prior to this, he had hosted several other

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

talent shows including True Search, Battle of the Year and Peak Talent Show. He is also an anchor for the Google Digital Skills for Africa Training Programme.

Early life

Blaze was born to a mother from

Anambra State Anambra State is a Nigerian state, located in the southeastern region of the country. The state was created on August 27, 1991. Anambra state is bounded by Delta State to the west, Imo State to the south, Enugu State to the east and Kogi State ...

and a father from Cross River State. He grew up in both Port Harcourt and Calabar.

Education

Blaze pursued his undergraduate studies in Linguistics and Communication at the

University of Port Harcourt The University of Port Harcourt is located in Choba in Port Harcourt, Rivers state, Nigeria. It was established in 1975 as University College, Port Harcourt and was given university status in 1977. The University of Port Harcourt was rank ...

, completing a B.Sc. degree in 2006.

Career

Music

As a rapper, Blaze achieved early notoriety as a member of Port Harcourt based hip hop group Tuck Tyght.

Radio

He followed in the footsteps of his mentor Loknan Dombin and began his broadcasting career working for

. While there he held various positions such as head of the Presentation Department, continuity announcer, radio DJ and show host.

Television

Blaze moved on to television, becoming Nigezie's Top Ten music video countdown anchor. Between 2008 and 2012, he directed an array of successful TV programs in the country. In addition, he hosted shows like True Search, Battle of the Year and Peak Talent Show. In May 2012, Blaze officially quit his job at the cable TV channel. He would later accept an offer to host

, a

show based on the

Got Talent series ''Got Talent'' is a British talent show TV format conceived and owned by Simon Cowell's SYCOtv company. It has spawned spin-offs in over 69 countries, in what is now referred to as the 'Got Talent' format, similar to that described by Fremantle ...

format.

Personal life

Andre Blaze is a cousin of actress

Kate Henshaw-Nuttal Kate Henshaw, also known as Kate Henshaw-Nuttall (born 19 July 1971), is a Nigerian actress. In 2008 she won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in the movie ''Stronger than Pain''. Early lif ...

. He has two children, twin girls by his long-time girlfriend.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blaze, Andre 1983 births Living people Rappers from Port Harcourt Radio personalities from Port Harcourt Nigerian infotainers Nigerian radio presenters Nigerian television presenters People from Calabar Television personalities from Rivers State University of Port Harcourt alumni Silverbird Communications people