Month: September 2012

Classic FM’s Maina Kageni whose Breakfast show is known for controversial topics has finally bowed to public pressure by announcing his entry to micro-blogging site, Twitter. Maina is the latest big media personality to join the online community.

After so much instigation from fans and friends alike,  Maina posted this a few hours ago;

Due to public pressure I have officially joined the Twitter Community… Feel free to follow me today on @ItsMainaKageni

 

The radio whizz already boasts of 157,154 likes on his Facebook page and I suspect the same will be replicated on Twitter. A quick check on his Twitter handle revealed Maina had already marshaled up 619 followers in just 2 hours!!!

This obviously dismisses the previous twitter handle, @MainaKageni, as a faux. You can follow Maina Kageni on Twitter @ItsMainaKageni. Just so you know, he is following back anyonne who follows him.

Welcome to Kenyans on Twitter (#KOT) Maina!!

Channel O will for the first time be paying a visit to the city in the sun. It will be taping its Channel O news right here for quite for time.

Channel O has a very wide fan base (covers the whole globe) and will now be putting Nairobi, Kenya on the spot light. You think that’s great news, wait till you hear this.

 

With all the excitement that this new arrangement has created, it would make sense if their arrival was made memorable and epic. What better way to do this than to bring in celebrities from all over Africa.

 

All the Channel O VJs will be brought down here over the weekend to mark this important event. The VJs include Nrele from Nigeria, Jokate from Tanzania, J Town from Ghana, Flavia from Uganda and our very own Joey Muthengi.

 

Some of Africa’s hugest artistes will also be joining this event. These are, Banky W and Wiz Kid from Nigeria and Khuli Channa from South Africa. I’m assuming a small concert is in order.

 

Keep it Ghafla for more on this.

Jennifer Aniston is set to marry her beaux Justin Theroux where? Yes you read right, in KENYA.

 

Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux already have plans underway to get hitched in December. Both want a private, intimate wedding, and it is being claimed that they have fallen in love with the idea of a destination wedding.

 

So rumour has been swirling around that they have settled on Kenya for their destination wedding. Sources close to the two of them are saying it will be a sort of informal blessing, with the more formal wedding to take place in LA immediately afterward.

 

The couple have planned a nine-night private safari to Kenya for the first week of December. They also plan to use the holiday as a romantic break from their daily lives/mini-honeymoon.

 

However things may be put on hold due to Jennifer’s mother’s health. Jennifer and her mother recently reconciled after years of feuding. Her mother suffered a stroke last year, and her health and recovery may not put her as being well enough to travel. After their reconciliation sources say Jennifer’s mother Nancy is desperate to be there for her daughter and see her get married. So Jen just might choose her mother over her destination wedding.

 

This seems to be an interesting choice of location for the two of them. Wasn’t it on the sands of a private beach on our lovely Kenyan coast that one Brad Pitt was spotted holidaying with one Angelina Jolie and her adopted kids? Back when he was still very married to Jennifer Aniston? Right after filming Mr & Mrs Smith?

 

I guess Hollywood and royalty really just loves debauchery holidaying in Kenya that much!

Apart from just tweeting away Kenyan twitterati Rama (@RamzZy_) also has a life. Not so many people actually know that @RamzZy_ is an artsy-fartsy artist. Speaking exclusively to Ghafla!, @RamzZy_ indeed confirmed that he is into fine art and he’s been doing it since he was only 7!

What stood out is that he has never been to any art school, rather it is just something he picked up, honed and perfected on his own. Until recently @RamzZy_ never used to share his art -quintessential brooding artist- but when he finally did he did it through ‘Birthmatic’.

Birthmatic is his website where he displays his artwork -which he mostly does in his spare time aka on Saturdays when he’s just chillin’ and not going out-. Also a poetry maestro, @RamzZy_ reveals that he sometimes gets deep, and writes down his thoughts as spoken word. Yes, and it sometimes includes all that lovey dovey stuff!

He was however quick to point out that his art and poetry is not a means to make him known. He was quick to quip that he doesn’t need to share it with anyone nor does he need to prove how deep he is. (Sidenote: Does it get any more typical brooding artiste than this?) “If you wanna find out who Ramzzy is, eventually you will,” said the twitter ‘celeb’.

 

Check out the interview below;

#MWANAUMENIEFFORT

 What an inspiring message. 

Mwanaume ni Effort is a clothing line that was started in June 2012 to inspire the young men in Kenya to step their game up. Not for the ladies, but for themselves. It was the initiative of good friends Moses Baraza, Richard Wainana Muthaka, Steven Olunga Orengo, Kibiru Muthaka and Andrew Siro (better known to you all as DJ Mista Dru).

 

The clothing line has since gone on to expand to a womens side too: Mwanamke ni Standard. They specialise in making custom tees -with the slogan on them- to inspire all young people out there. Reminding us to see ourselves in a certain esteem and hold ourselves accountable for where we go/what we do in our lives.

 

What a positive message for the youth. (Especially with all happening in our country, and with youth being majority of the Kenyan population.)

 

They recently partnered with the “Bring Zack Back Home” initiative and are making limited edition Mwanaume Ni Effort/Mwanamke Ni Standard – Bring Zack Back Home tees. All proceeds from the sales of that line are going towards the fundraiser for the construction of the spinal injuries hospital and Bringing Zack Home.

 

They are relaunching this Saturday at The Mingle (15th September 2012) with a brand new logo for their t-shirt line. Each T-Shirt goes for Ksh. 1000 (and on special request can be custom-made to your specifications.) Here is the new logo:

 

At Ghafla! we’ve got our tees. We support the cause.

Place your orders for custom tees with Moses Baraza at mwanaumenieffort@gmail.com

Check out their facebook page Mwanaume ni Effort, Mwanamke ni Standard and their twitter feed (handle @MWANAUME_NI_E) for more empowering messages. Join the movement: #MNE2012 #MNS2012

You all know that girl or guy that I’m talking about. Yes them, the one who thinks their life is full of ‘fabulosity’…. Or are you not sure what I mean? Wanna know how to spot one/if you are one? Check out the list after the jump.

 

 

1.You go to all the popular parties: Your face is always seen in the VIP section of various parties across town. No one knows who you are, or how you got there, except the club owner, who OF COURSE you are on a first name basis with.

 

2.You dress in lots and lots of real designer labels: Only problem is you can’t afford them. You spend your time perusing through mitumba to find that ‘vintage’ LV bag. Instead of buying good-quality clothing, you buy knockoffs. *serious face* Everyone knows your red bottoms are real Louboutins and your bag is real Hermes.

 

3.You have fabulous pictures of your life: Even if you only have two albums on facebook, your pictures are carefully shortlisted to make the cut. So what you’re not from a well off family? So what you don’t have a job(and if you do, your income is definitely not even middle class)? SO WHAT? You holiday all over the world, have pictures on beaches, in swanky hotels, in expensive cars. And the key is always to look nonchalant in your pictures, like “Oh, I’m just on a beach/a boat in my bikini” always with a blasé irrelevant caption like “OH NO! My hair is sticking to my lipgloss”.
-IMPORTANT SIDENOTE: Always make sure your sugar daddy/mommy is the one taking the picture/are not visible anywhere in said photo.-

 

4.You have a close group of ‘friends’: You might be wondering “What the h@%*? Everyone has a close group of friends!” No I’m not talking friends, I’m talking ‘friends’. To be fair, you actually like them and invite them to come with you everywhere, but mostly because you don’t want to be a loner! You have groomed your friends to also be expensive in their tastes/dressing/talk but in essence their purpose is just to follow you about.

 

5.You believe your new hairstyle is news: Curl your hair, put it in a sleek pony, straighten your hair, get a voluminous weave… PICTURE TIME!!! Cue the Kim Kardashian poses, with a face full of make up – ‘Loving my new hair’. (For the guys: tweeting your new fade with a razor cut five point star in it, all texturised and laid looking like you sprayed on your hair with a can of black spray paint.)

 

 

 

6.You have tried out for a reality show/radio/tv: How many of your friends keep telling you how PERFECT you would be for Big Brother? Newsflash: We don’t watch BBA to see upstanding citizens do community service. We watch it to see crazy, no-holds-barred tomfoolery, debauchery and generally watch how far people will debase themselves for money/fame. Blame it on the God-complex in all of us that loves to watch other’s humiliation. What’s that? There’s a word for it? Schadenfreude? (pronunciation: shaad-n-froi-d-ah) Google it. Use it.

 

7. You have a great personality: Let’s face it. You are a people’s person. You get along great with lots of different kind of people. You are always able to be the centre of attention life of the party when need arises.

 

8.Your facebook friends/twitter followers are one of your accomplishments: Your large number of tweets, your 5,000 followers/over the limit facebook friends is a source of pride for you. Why? The jury’s still out on this one. 

 

 

 

 9. You have no singular talent: Whether it’s cooking, acting, singing, writing, whatever… You have no singular talent. But you definitely want to come across like you do incase the chance for real fame plops on your doorstep hence…

 

10.You rap/sing/model: No, not well. But if anyone asks what you do, you proudly say one (or two, better yet ALL) of these three. And proceed to spit a few lines (to the disbelief of the people around you) or show a couple of your money shots you have on your phone, or sing this song you penned last week after your breakup. When your done everyone is obliged to say ‘cool’ as they think in their heads ‘grzzfyrvbjhwvfkwvnwvhwbrxp???’

 

11. You crave attention: This one is difficult to spot because a true wannabe celebrity craves attention so bad, but has perfected the art of acting like they dont. You just sit there wondering “Why are all these people looking at me?” Yet you spent two hours getting ready before they left the house. You wanna tell me you dressed up NOT to be looked at? Nice try. Nice try.

 

12.You have a lot of celebrity ‘friends’: Again note the use of ‘friends’. You are always spotted with various celebrities of the opposite sex, both local and international. Mostly rappers/singers. Whenever someone comes into town, you’ve got the inside scoop. And you’re at the private after party/backstage/in their entourage. And you expect us to believe it’s because you are ‘genuine friends’ with all these celebrities. Why? Because you are celebrity too! I mean DUH!!! Have we not seen your twitter/facebook/instagram already???

 

 

 

 13. You are self-righteous: You have a demands list and are snobbish about it being met. Dare anybody question that you only drink champagne. No, no, no, I NEVER drink that. I’m drinking beer, wow, this is such an adventure! Wait sorry, who are you? What gives you the right to step to me? Ugh, don’t touch me, talk to me or flirt with me. Can’t you see you are NOT on my level?

 

14. You are not afraid to cause some drama: Your mantra is “Keep it real”/”Keep it 100″/”I’m real and I don’t apologise for it” and anything/everything else along those lines. You are not afraid to say something to someone as long as it’s the truth. But your truth/reality is so skewed usually it’s mostly just bitterness, misplaced self-superiority or drama for drama’s sake. But hey! Causing drama is great to make yourself more known.

 Something kinda sorta like this? Do you know who she was involved in the beef with? Find out.

 

15. You have a cute catchphrase: You don’t say, “That’s hot!”, because it’s not hot, it’s so 2004. You try “Ah-mazing!” or “Yebo” or “Wahala” or something cute you heard on radio, or saw on E!. You get more points for it being in a foreign language (better yet, a foreign African language!), so you get the chance to explain it when people ask. Oh how worldly you must be! You aren’t above stealing someone else’s catchphrase though.

 

16. You drive phantom cars: You don’t have a car, and probably have debts with about ten unsuspecting cabbies out there. But you speak of ‘rolling’ in German cars with black-tinted windows, and there is picture proof of this. But no actual car. You have learnt your lesson though:you don’t leave your house unless someone is picking you up/paying your cab. What about matatu’s you say? MATATU? WHAT IS THAT? (yet we know you take matatus to get to tao to buy your sneaks/heels/your accesories -shades, shamballas-/your CDs and DVDs/your weave/your make-up etc)

 

17. You have dreams of being famous: Seriously, you have dreams of being famous!

 

18. You flaunt your relationships with certain people: You know you have no claim to fame. And you’re definitely above name-dropping – Thats so lame!- So you make your facebook profile picture you and Saitoti’s daughter*/you and Shappaman from Camp Mulla*. The caption for the picture is “BFFS!!!” Or you date so-and-sos daughter/son, and make sure you’re spotted everywhere. Or you tell us all how you two are cousins(of the African-type). Or you go waaaay back -No, your moms once had a play date when you were 11, this doesn’t mean you go way back-. People need to know you are legit, haven’t we seen your circle of friends?

*(Author’s disclaimer: These were just arbitrary examples and not representing actual situations.)

 

19. You have dreams of being famous: Wait, oh…. I already said this one?

 

20. You are delusional: This just wraps everything up. You have no idea what people think of you. You know you are fabulous, your life has all the perks of that rich-and-famous lifestyle without you even trying and you know that everyone else is envious. I have some great heart-felt advice for you. Never mind. YES. YES WE ARE DEFINITELY ALL ENVIOUS.

 

 

Haha! Shocked I have your personality down to-a-T? Of course I do. I know you! You’re famous remember!

Do you know anyone who fits into this group of people? Share this post with them. And if you’re not about that wannabe life this here just might be the right thing for you. Have a wannabe free weekend everyone!

Two more days to ‘Nairobi’s hottest social event’.

 

The Mingle, is a fortnightly event designed to facilitate young professionals and entrepreneurs to meet share interests and connect in an informal environment. 

 

You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. – Plato-

Relax, hang-out, and meet new people the easy and fun way at the Impala Grounds this Saturday. There will be lots of delicious barbecue and grill, drinks, music & a sheesha lounge. *Funfact/Sidenote: You are allowed to bring in your own bottles of liqour into the grounds.

 

But the point of this event is to socialise, so here’s where the mingling comes in. There is lots of activities going on all day – The Bills, The Match Game, Fast Charades, Alphabet Getting to Know, Foosball, Speed Mingling, Human Bingo, Shake, Lock and Key, StreetBall, Volleyball and lots more to do. No better way than to break the ice/bond than some friendly competition right? Perfect segway for meeting and mingling.

 

Also launching their new line at The Mingle this Saturday: Mwanaume Ni Effort. (Click to find out more and check out their Facebook page here.)

 

So get your advance tickets for The Mingle for Ksh. 600 and your gate tickets for Ksh. 1000. Find out how you can get them, and more on the Mingle here.

Wassup people!! Here is top of your morning;

#1 Have you been wondering how Octopizzo is so successful? Wonder no more because we have the answer HERE!!!

#2 Esther Arunga has taken her beef with Joseph Hellon to a whole new level. Find out how.

#3 You think you know sheng well? This website will disapprove you.

#4 He is Kenya’s unrivalled King of Facebook. Find out who it is.

#5 Check out this photo of Octopizzo entertaining Obama!!!

#6 The Star newspaper lands into a legal mess. Find out what happened.

#7 Check out Cartel’s 2 million music video.

 #8 Tina Kaggia and Holy Dave come out clean about allegations that they are dating.

#9 Ramzzy hits out at Robert Alai. Find out what he said.

 

#10 Do you want to mingle? Then don’t miss THIS!!!

 

Now you know. Keep it Ghafla! for more entertaining news.

Mbugus na kibandla ya mnyadhe. This is what greeted me first when I logged onto the official sheng website in Kenya. Unable to fathom ANY of the words (of course apart from “na” and “ya”), the rest sounded like Greek.

Anyway if you didn’t know, there is an official sheng website that covers all news IN SHENG!! Complete with a kamusi, names, idioms and similes the website is a social enterprise that rides on the sheng culture to celebrate Kenya and advance national unity.

 

Boasting of 2572 words, 6450 members, 38421 searches and 2260 mchongos, the site is not relenting in its quest. It even has a crossword, mchongoano and bonga (forum) sections just to make sure that visitors to the site familiarize themselves more with Sheng words.

 

I managed to pick a few words from the website to share with you. Take a look;

Achumbati- a girl

Afko- alcohol

Alutas- khat/miraa

 

You can click HERE to visit the website or follow them on Twitter @shengnation  to enrich your sheng reservoir.

Genius Entertainment presents Club 3:16. The event will take place on the 28th of September at Abondoz Restaurant at Lutheran Plaza on University Way.

This month’s event is titled Tribe-All and will feature Eko Dydda, Gloria Muliro with DJ Sadic, DJ Touch on the decks. The emcee for the night will be MC Kelly. Attendants will also get some spiritual nourishment thanks to Pastor Barrack Almondia.

Besides the music and ministering, there will be board games, pool and Playstation games. Past events have had performances from BMF, Kevoh Yout, Dice, Lonesome among other established and upcoming artistes.

The event was previously held at Charter Hall on City Hall Way. Not only has Club 3:16 changed the venue, it has also slashed its prices. The previously Kshs. 200 entry fee has been revised to Kshs. 150 for this edition.

Looks like The Star newspaper is in trouble again. A demand letter was sent to the daily concerning a defamatory article they published.

“Opinion Polls: Fooling Some of the People All of the Time” which was published on the 18th of August is the article in question. Infotrak Research & Consulting Limited and Angela Ambitho, through their lawyers, are accusing the paper of defamation.

According to the suit, the article was “defamatory, libelous, innacurate, false and malicious” which deliberately looked to subject the Infotrak and Ms. Ambitho to “public ridicule, abuse, hatred” and damage their reputation.

The said defamatory article was in reaction to an Infotrak Harris Poll that put Raila Odinga on top as the most preferred presidential candidate in the next election.

One of the sentences in the article reads: “There are messages and lessons in these great quotes for Kenya’s present-day, deeply flawed opinion-polling sector, particularly for the firm called Infotrak Harris.”

The part that implicated Ms. Ambitho reads: “For instance, Infotrak Harris should always disclose that it is chaired by Mr. Jerry Okingu, one of the most diehard Odingaists who has ever lived. The CEO Ms. Angela Ambitho, another great Odinga serial booster.”

Those are just a few snippets of the article which the claimant also describes as “sarcastic, innacurate, misleading, malicious and offending.” The Star is supposed to have issued a public apology by now besides picking an appropriate compensation method for damages caused  to the claimants reputation.

First off, I don’t pride myself in being an instigator, neither am I trying to rekindle past tweef but yesterday, one of the Kenyan twitterati, Rama (@RamzZy_), stopped by Ghafla!’s offices and boy! He didn’t have kind words for the tech blogger and fellow KOT -bonafide twitter celebrity-, Robert Alai (@RobertAlai). And just so know, he is not apologetic about what he said.

The two have had a tweef in the past. @RamzZy_ was quick to point out that the e-thugging twitter beef he engages in is purely for brains and not for brawn. He rubbished claims that twitter beef is pointless saying that for him it’s the only way he can make somebody respect his opinions if their ideologies part ways.

Anyhow, back to the @RobertAlai issue, @RamzZy_ thinks @RobertAlai has valid opinions to project, he just doesn’t know how to say them. He also felt that @RobertAlai fired the first salvo and the he simply returned the favour, of course in a more harsh way.

Watch the rest of the interview below;

It’s an election year (kind of) and seeing politically nuanced music is expected. One of the first ones comes from rapper KenRazy.

From his first tracks, all about clubbing and tich’ing girls, KenRazy was the last person I would have expected to get into political jingles. But here we are, and Kura Burndem has been out for a while now.

We have been anticipating the video for a while. The Ghipuka ambassador has been releasing teasers for a while now. The latest one features the rapper in what looks like the set of the video. Check out the “best lyricist” in Kenya do his thing on Kura Burndem below.
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Have you ever wanted to be in a music video as either a dancer or a video vixen?

Well, if the answer to the question i just asked is yes, then you have a chance at it. Dora is going to be shooting a video for her upcoming project and you can be part of it!

 

All you have to do is contact her on twitter where her handle is @Doramyousic for your shot to feature in one of Kenya’s fastest rising starlet’s video.

 

And if you need convincing on just how good she is, here is a sneak peak:

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We had gospel artiste Holy Dave drop in the Ghafla offices for a short interview about all that’s been going on in his life, concerning the media and controversies that have surfaced in the past couple of days.

Holy Dave was kind enough to drop some few bars off his latest track, ‘I’m sorry’ which has not yet been released. As he clearly states in the video, you have heard this first on Ghafla!Kenya. No one else has this so far. True story.

1FM mid-morning presenter also drops in some few bars of her own. You want to see this.

Check it out below.

Get ready for a treat on Friday, 21st September at theTribe Hotel between 6:00 and 9:00 p.m. Entry to the event is Kshs. 1,500.

The Action Foundation and Pamoja dance group will be showcasing Mkwezi, a contemporary dance show to raise money for an art and therapy program for children with special needs in Kibera.

Besides the dance show, there will be guest artistes such as Sheila Kwamboka, Victor Muthoka and more to be announced later. Tickets can be bought at The Village Market management desk or Tribe Hotel’s reception

The Action Foundation is a Kenya based NGO that aims at improving the lives of the physically and intellectually disadvantaged through awareness creation, skill building and the promotion of accessible tourism, art and recreation among the disabled.

Pamoja Dance Group, a mixed and inclusive group, is a program intended to provide real integration of dancers with and without disability into the arts community and most importantly, into society at large. Based in Nairobi, Pamoja Dance Group is a unique group working with a new form of integration through artistic creation, as dancers with and without physical disability come together to share creative work in an open and inclusive environment.

Forget about the Safaricom King and Queen of Facebook. There is a different type of “royalty” of Facebook in Kenya from much unexpected quarters: politics. Yes, you read it right. Politics.

Kilome’s legislator, John Harun Mwau, has cut himself a niche that so many people of his age and even younger may not be able to match up to. Boasting 453,149 Likes, the Kilome Member of Parliament has 4,099 people talking about him.

Mwau uses his Facebook page to communicate with youthful voters and at times take questions and suggestions. The page has in fact become a source of information for mainstream media who pick up statements made by the legislator to produce news.

Other people who have huge likes on their Facebook pages include comedian Churchill (307,537), Uhuru Kenyatta (228,615) Martha Karua (187,908) and Maina Kageni (155,185).

 

How many friends/likes does your favourite page have?