Impressive: Jeremy Yap (centre) was energetic and full of confidence.
BEFORE the final contestant surfaced, it was only an average show at the grand final of Nokia In Search of MC held as part of the finale to the fourth edition of the AND1 Streetball Challenge that concluded with the fifth and final leg at Berjaya Times Square in Kuala Lumpur recently.
But, the organisers of the prominent three-on-three basketball event had unintentionally saved the best act for the last.
After a mundane series of entertainment with a few hilarious amusement in between, budding talent Jeremy Yap of SMK Bukit Kemuning had the final say of the day when he exploded into action with commanding flair when he uttered his rhythmic rap lyrics.
“He (Jeremy) flaunted an astounding performance to claim the top prize. We are impressed with his self-initiative to develop his potential. He displayed confidence when he delivered his tune in a very composed fashion. As a re- ward, he will also feature in our Malaysian version of the AND1 theme song,” said rapper Dareyno from Junio Hustle, who served as the mediator for the first edition of the talent quest.
Yap edged seven other finalists and braved the nerve wrecking occasion to claim the top spot.
The 14-years-old SMK Bukit Ke-muning student walked away with RM1,000 and a Nokia Xpress-Music phone for his undisputable feat.
Meanwhile, V. Mogandas, 24 from Johor finished second and collected RM500 followed by Penangite Teh Chong Wei, 18 in third who pocketed RM300. Both also took home a mobile phone each.
Besides cash money, the top three winners also received AND1 products and Junio Hustle CD.
The challenge's organisers are planning to include more ap-pealing side events to get the budding cagers and streetball followers excited about the event next year.
For the past three years, the challenge was hosted with the staunch support from Nokia, Milo and StarMetro.
“We have a few more tricks up our sleeves to elevate the event to another level and share it with the youngsters who are passionate about streetball,” said Ossia World of Golf executive director Saw Swee Leong.
Besides the In Search of MC competition, the organisers are contemplating on conducting the beat box and break dance competitions to provide the avenue for budding performers to discover and showcase their hidden talent.
“Streetball is about hip-hop culture. We want to educate the youngsters with better understanding and awareness on the trendy image. That is the reason we are trying to incorporate each of the hip-hop element step by step as part of the challenge,” added Dareyno.
