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Last Sunday March 25th 2012 saw a large gathering of amateur rappers, arts and entertainment journalists and lovers of hip hop music at the Royal Lamerta Hotel in Kumasi for the much anticipated auditions for the Next Big Thing, the all new TV Reality show to produce the next biggest Ghanaian Hip hop star. The event started at 11AM with an identification and registration exercise conducted by officials of Media Edge GSM and the Gh-One Entertainment TV. With that done, the rappers were placed in groups for the audition to commence. Host for the Next Big Thing, ace radio and TV personality Kwame Farkye introduced the judges responsible for selection for the Kumasi auditions; producer extraordinaire Jay So and the rap doctor Okyeame Kwame. Kwame Farkye went on to brief the rappers on the procedure for the auditions, giving them a deeper insight of the Next Big Thing concept. One after the other, the rappers came in to exhibit their talent and also to justify themselves for a place in the competition. The first phase of the auditions saw the rappers going through a series of acapella freestyle in English and their preferred local languages. It followed with a segment of rap over general beats provided by Kumasi�s finest disc jockey, Andy Dosty. Some of the rappers were exceptionally great, dazzling the judges with their amazing talent; rap dexterity and enviable punch lines. Others proved to be very elementary, falling short of the standards set. However, they brought humour and excitement to the process. The auditions went into the night and saw thirty-two (32) rappers including a lady qualifying for the final auditions. The next stop for the audition train will be Takoradi. Aside the anxiety that awaits the Takoradi auditions, the Next Big Thing auditions will be a platform for the various rappers to take on one another. Next Big Thing is the search for Ghana�s next biggest star in the world of Hip Hop and opened to exceptionally talented amateur rappers who rap in English or any local language. To partake in the auditions, rappers must text their names to the short code 1765 on all networks. The ultimate winner walks away with a recording contract, cash amount and guaranteed shows. Also, the winner will enjoy overwhelming promotions on Gh-One Entertainment TV and other media platforms nationwide. After the auditions, the judges expressed their satisfaction with the Kumasi auditions and revealed their eagerness for the Takoradi auditions. The Next Big Thing is a GH-One Entertainment TV initiative and will be live only on the station.