Month: February 2014

Anne Kiguta is one of the most popular Kenyan news anchors and with good reason: she is good at her job. And that is why she gets themost coveted time slot for any news anchor, prime time. But irrespective of how good you are at what you do, you must preparation for as was written in the Aenid, “Amat victoria curam“.

Anyone who plays their game at a professional level understands this truth and so it is no different with Anne Kiguta. Check out her prep tradition before she gets on set below:

A couple of months I posted a story about Linda Oguttuh being pregnant in the most insensitive of manners. Actually, to be honest, I wasn’t trying to be insensitive, I was just trying to be first with the story. Sadly, I ended up offending Linda Oguttuh. I have since apologiezed. But I find that this fact has made me become overly sensitive about writing stories about the KTN news anchor.

Yet not even SDE has this story so I guess i must man up and try to be as careful as possible. oh the pressure! And pressure bursts pipes.
Anyway, it is with joy that I want to announce the birth of Linda Oguttuh’s baby and for those eager to know the child’s gender, the baby is a girl. Aye lads and lasses, Linda gave birth to a bouncing baby girl.

The reason why I was being pummelled by females for the article that announced that Linda Oguttuh is pregnant is because she had previously unfortunately suffered a miscarriage and the article seemed as though I found glee in the fact. I did not and I do not and when Caroline Mutoko informed me, I apologized and profusely so.

But back to the story. My source who happens to be a nurse at the Hospital the delivery took place in tells me that the child weighed in at 4.2 Kgs and both mother and child are alright. And infact have already been discharged. I am happy that Linda Oguttuh gave birth to a healthy and beautiful baby girl and I wish the family nothing but the best.

So yesterday we wanted to find out who you think is the best female anchor on Kenyan TV is. Well, the results are out and it`s interesting! 

Ladies and gentlemen; boys and girls the best female anchor is………(drum rolls);

Victoria Rubadiri! 

I must say however it was a very tight race between Victoria and Citizen TV’s Janet Mbugua.

Statistics:

In August 2013, K24 sent home over 70 journalists in a move that shook the media industry. Among them was renowned K24 reporter, Caleb Karuga. Prior to his sacking, Karuga had been with the station for 6 years and that marked the end of his media career.

Defying all odds, today Karuga is the proud owner of Wendy Farms Ltd, an KSh800,000 agri-business empire that sustains him. Following his dismissal Karuga worked out a plan that saw him lease a plot of land and today he’s headed to be a millionaire!

Like many youths, Karuga’s family had a very small piece of land to its name – quarter an acre of land. With five beneficiaries to the land, he could not rely on it.

“I leased an acre of land in Kikuyu and started to build structures for kienyeji chicken. The lease costs me KSh8,000 a year!” he explains his humble beginnings to Mkulima Young adding, “I bought three kienyeji chicken and three pigs. One does not have to start big. That is the mistake most young people make.”

Karuga then bought 500 Day-Old KARI improved kienyeji chicken after losing most indigenous chicken he had bought from several farmers in order to increase his stock because most of them were not vaccinated.

Today, his Kikuyu farm has over 1,500 kienyeji chickens, while two other pieces of land in Nanyuki and Nyeri have 400 and 200 kienyeji chicken respectively.

Although the kienyeji chickens take longer to mature, Caleb chose them because they are cheaper to feed and are quite disease resistant.

“I sell a one day chick at KSh100 and a kienyeji egg at KSh 15 or KSh 20. A full grown kienyeji chicken goes for about KSh800 while the broilers/ ex layers go for KSh 270-Sh 300. When you do your math, you realize that the kienyeji chicken is more profitable,” reveals the former K24 reporter.

Karuga reveals that on a good month the kienyeji chicken can earn him a handsome figure in the neighborhood of KSh800,000 shillings or more. At times, he sells cocks at Sh 1,200 and above during holidays such as April, August and December.

“In most cases, I determine the cost of the chicken since the demand for kienyeji meat far outstrips supply. It’s a very good business.”

Karuga has since expanded to quails, guinea fowls, dairy goat and strawberry farming.

As a parting shot Karuga says;

“You can lose the job you have today. Don’t be obsessed with a formal job or get stuck at the plateau of success. Look for a way in which you can have a plan B business to cushion you during hard times. Learn to create employment, not look for it.”

Props: @mkulimayoung

Anne Kansiime is without a doubt one of the most entertaining comedians of our time and a personal favorite.

She is genuinely comical and focuses on putting humor in real life situations as opposed to the ethnic humor and ‘shrubbing’ that has for ages been passing off as comedy. I was pretty excited on hearing that the girl from Kabale would be premiering on Citizen TV in a show dubbed “Don’t Mess With Kansiime ”

“Dont mess with kansiime” premiered yesterday on Citizen TV and was well received, here are some of the reactions:

KQ Cabin Crew‏@KQcabincrewThis #DontMessWithKansiime is a real rib-cracker on @citizentvkenya. I hope this #Kansiime is that way in real life.

Hezron ‏@Hezron_kariuki#dontmesswithKansiime and you say teacher wanjiku is the best in east Africa …naaaaah

Byekwaso Stephen‏@byekwasostephen@Kansiime256 with this,,people are going to get younger and younger #Keeplaughing

hexzy wandi‏@mured2@kansiime256 you killing it girl hahahahahaha cnt move frm here

Comedian and TV show host, Phelix Odiwuor, better known as Jalang’o has just landed a new role that will see him look after youth affairs in Nairobi County.

Jalang’o will now sit in the Nairobi County Youth Oversight Board. He was named a board member following the unveiling of the Governor’s Youth Oversight Board by Dr. Kidero yesterday.

The board whose mandate shall include seeking partnerships that empower young people to access greater opportunity and boost their prospects will help create these ladders of opportunities for all the young people in our city and provide alternatives to gangs and drugs – safe places where young people can learn something and stay out of trouble.

An eleated Jalang’o took to Facebook to share the news with his fans the good news;

“I have been appointed to the Nairobi County Youth Oversight Board…..this means that the youth Agenda Nairobi county is now my priority….as a youth living in Nairobi,what would you want the county Goverment to do for you that will make you a happy Nairobi county youth?”

Youth finally getting recognized by the government.

Themed “Lions Rising” the award presentation ceremony will be held in Lagos, Nigeria on Saturday 22nd February, 2014. The invite only event to celebrate the Generation of Digital Film Makers in Africa would have the introduction of some individual awards, namely the Best Cinematography, Best Picture, Best Use of Animation, Best Performance and most notably the ‘KomlaDumor Award for Storytelling’ in memorial of one of the Competition judges.

With over 400 entries were received from African filmmakers from 16 countries by the deadline of November 30, 2013. After three months and a competitive process, which deployed top of the range technological platforms involving online master classes, an international panel of judges and voting procedures, winners were announced.Check out the winning videos at http://afrinollyshortfilmcompetition.com/winners/

Short Film:

First Prize ($25,000)                         Everything Happens for a Reason by Florian Schott

Second Prize ($10,000)                  Crimson – Your Cup of Tea by Daniel EtimEffiong

Third Prize ($5,000)                         10:10 by GbengaSalu

Documentary:

First Prize ($25,000)                         Creative Minds by Victor Okoye

Second Prize ($10,000)                  Awele’s Diary by RonkeOgunmakin

Third Prize ($5,000)                         Yellow Fever by Ng’endoMukii

Other finalists who would be attending the event would receive an honorable mention. “Lions Rising is a reminder to all that there is an emerging new generation of digital filmmakers across Africa. Like Lions they move in groups and collaborate in more ways than others.” Said Chike Maduegbuna, CEO of Fans Connect Online Limited, the company who developed the Afrinolly app across various operating systems.

Speaking on the initiative, the Chief Marketing Officer of MTN Nigeria, Larry Annetts, explained that the company will continue to empower Africans and give them the platform to unleash their talents. In his words: “we are happy to discover another set of talent across the continent. As part of our corporate social responsibility, we will continue to discover, develop and empower people with aptitude through our various programmes geared towards enriching the lives of Africans and the world at large.”

The Afrinolly Short Film Competition is an initiative of the developers of Afrinolly mobile app. The Competition was supported by MTN, Cote Ouest Audiovisuel, IREP, Goethe Institut. Media partners include Ebony Life TV, Beat 99.9FM and Bella Naija.

Anne Kansiime has arrived and she is currently the toast of the town. Her show has received some resounding accolades, applaudes and ovation with it’s premier yesterday. And if you do not believe me that everyone has been giving it a thumbs up, check out some of the Kenyan actors reactions below:

But after seeing the reaction the Ugandan comic has had on the Kenyan audience, I am convinced that humour cut across nationalities, creed and ethnicity. But what of Teacher Wanjiku? Well, Kenyans expressed their lack of faith in her ability to carry a show as shown by the poll that was carried out by my colleague Sue Watiri:

Aye, Kenyans seem to have put their faith in Kansiime and she didn’t disappoint. She came through for her supporters in outstanding fashion. What of Teacher Wanjiku? Does she feel threatened? Is she a-quivering in her boots? Well, I called her to ask and…

My calls and texts went unanswered. Shocking!

Personally, I hope she will use the feedback she received from the humble two million (more like a humble 3.5 million readers) and use it to improve on what she had and make me proud. Personally, I always root for Kenya except when it’s football. But on this matter, I am firmly team Teacher Wanjiku.

just wait till her show launches!

Expensive cars come with the territory of being a celebrity. The status, the spending and the brash tinted windows are all part of the package. Famous celebrities past and present own splendid wheels and Abel Mutua (Freddie in Tahidi High) is one of those.

After revealing that he owns a Mercedes Benz, we searched and searched the internet to satisfy our curiosity in what kind of Mercedes he but it was hard to find out what he owns and took forever to get the answer. But am glad we finally did!

The Hapa Kule News comedian’s ride is black and reflective. But it’s also a beast—it’s a Mercedes E200! Check out ‘Sheila’;

I must say it’s good looking and makes Abel look good too!

Catch Abel on Hapa Kule News every Friday evening on KTN.

It has been a minute since I last gave you a well thought out opinion piece and I figure I should make up for lost time.
Aye, ladies and gentlemen, my colleagues and friends had asked me whether I had caught a glimpse of the new entertainment slash magazine slash fashion slash whatever else they think of along the way show called “E-Curve“. I hadn’t so I looked it up on Youtube and trust that I was sorely disappointed. There was nothing new to be seen. Actually, it was a step down. You would think that “Str8 Up” would set a yardstick and they would be looking to improve on that model, not replicate then butcher it.

Think about it. When KTN pioneered the new format of interactive magazine show with “Str8 Up“, we all loved it. It was an improvement from the old format that was first brought to the fore by KBC’s “Mizizi“.
But it was fresh back in 2006. Str8 Up cannot be the only format that everyone is copying.

But all feelings of consternation cast aside, I strongly feel that the lack of creativity showcased in how corporates approach entertainment is best exemplified by the entertainment shows -and in Uncle Chim Tuna’s article, “E-Curve” is a fine example. When it was announced by Ghafla that KTN would no longer be showing Tujuane I was actually expecting them, to replace it with a well thought out show.

They didn’t. Instead, they gave us a show that is nothing more than a revamped version of KBC’s “Grapevine“. Whoever it is at KTN who screens shows is either out of touch with their demograph or simply doesn’t care. I spoke to a producer at KTN once and they informed me that Kenyans do not value well thought out shows and they are expensive. No sh… No! Just no! You don’t say!

Imagine my shock when I was informed that young, creative Kenyans who have come up with shows that are well thought out get turned away simply because KTN is not willing to cough up the money demanded as fair recompense. Really radical thinking that! The nerve of these punks.

Add to this the fact that KTN are being sued by Noni Gathoni who is alleging that KTN stole her idea for an upper echelon version of “. Instead of allegedly copying and stealing ideas, why not innovate? Come up with a funeral show or something. Or better yet, why not just hire someone who is ACTUALLY INTOUCH with the youth when you plan an entertainment show?

Think of it this way, at the rate at which we’re going, we’re going to have a bunch of mediocre (at best) shows claiming to fill the quota for local content. No wonder the DSTV subscription rate keeps rising with each passing year!

For now, I guess we’re stuck with this girl and her faker-than-Chinese-make-up accent and her sms eubonics in the name of entertainment news. Enjoy.

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And before anyone complains, remember, everyone has a right to an opinion, MINE!