EbonyLife TV debuts July 1 on DStv channel 165!

Ebony Life TV, the brainchild of dynamic African talk show star Mo Abudu, debuts on DStv on 1 July and promises to deliver a fresh new energy and perspective to audiences across East, West and Central Africa.

Fusing exclusive African original programming, featuring some of the continent’s biggest names, with relevant international urban movie and series programming, Ebony Life TV will be available on DStv channel 165 to DStv Premium, Compact Plus (where available) and Compact viewers.

With the tagline Live the Ebony Life, the channel is both inspirational and aspirational, celebrating style and success while simultaneously motivating audiences to dream and dream big. Glossy, polished and sophisticated, the EL experience puts African superstars such as Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, Uche Jombo Rita Dominic, Funke Akindele, Tiwa Savage and Banky W. on a line-up that also features Latoya Jackson, Taye Diggs, Damon Wayons and Sherri Shepherd.

Homegrown programming on the channel includes the glamorous flagship talk-show Moments with Mo. This time round, the always engaging Mo is joined by two brand new co-hosts, whose selection during an intense search is also chronicled on the dramatic, must-watch reality show Mo’s Search.

Viewers can also look out for the glitzy EL Now, the daily entertainment news show featuring the hottest global black news, the latest celebrity buzz, African success stories and all things “Africana cool” across music, movies, TV, fashion, beauty, design and the arts.

Other programs created specifically for Ebony Life audiences include Screen Divas, where Nollywood Queens Kate, Uche, Funke and Rita combine their star power to produce the short film New Horizon tackling the issue of domestic abuse. Then make a date to watch the fascinating Fattening Room in which six beautiful, feisty modern women from Ghana, Nigeria, Botswana and Kenya embark on a journey of self-discovery by revisiting the legacies of Efik tradition.

Meanwhile the cultures and traditions of Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and America intersect in the appealing Culture Connects, where each episode takes audiences on a cultural journey to explore the values that both continents hold dear.

And that’s not all…look out for the seasonal, fashion forward EL Runway, the hilarious sitcom Ojo’s in D’ House, the youthful ensemble talk show The Spot, the romance and relationship themed Love Lounge, the fun and “captured on camera” lives of the Sistaz and the talent-focused In My Shoes, which tracks a day in the life of Africa’s top personalities, providing an intimate look at the life of the real people behind the celebrity names.

From beyond Africa, Ebony Life TV has sourced some of the boldest content available including the sensational The Love Triangle, laugh out loud quiz show The Newlywed Game, hot and hip Ocean’s Models, the wedding fashion search Keasha’s Perfect Dress, Damon Wayans’ hit sitcom My Wife and Kids and the humorous British sketch comedy show Little Miss Jocelyn. Dramas on the channel include the Taye Diggs-led “legal eagle meets new dad” story of Kevin Hill and the emotional, evocative police drama Lincoln Heights.

Plus special highlights to look forward to are the sitcoms Mr. Box Office where a Hollywood A-lister heads to South Central LA to serve out his community service as a high school English teacher; The First Family that follows the story of William Johnson, the 45th President of the United States and the second African-American elected to the office and Life with LaToya where fans can enter the outrageous world of LaToya Jackson; the unpredictable wildcard from one of showbiz’s most famous families.

Commenting on the channel’s launch, Ebony Life founder and CEO Mo Abudu says, “On behalf of the entire Ebony Life TV team, I want to express the greatest delight that this dream has finally become an amazing reality. We have spent years and months putting some of the brightest minds together on an exciting mission to build Africa’s first Global Black Entertainment Network focused on the continent’s most important demographic, the youth, aged 18 to 34. We are even more excited that we have created a channel that stands on the same pedestal as any international brand. We urge African audiences to tune in and live the Ebony Life.”

Meanwhile offering his congratulations and encouragement to Ebony Life as it debuts on DStv was MultiChoice Africa CEO Nico Meyer who said, “As MultiChoice Africa we are very excited about the launch of Ebony Life TV – it signals the dawn of an era where Africans compete head and shoulders on the global stage. The kind of content we can expect to see on this channel celebrates Africa’s talent and its successes as well as shift paradigms on how the continent is viewed. An African channel pioneered by Africans is the kind of innovation we like to see. Congratulations to the Ebony Life team for its vision and forward thinking.”

So with July 1st just days away, make sure you tune in to the exciting Ebony Life TV, DStv channel 165, coming soon! And for information on Ebony Life TV and DStv, simply log on to either www.ebonylifetv.com or www.dstv.com.