Month: June 2014

Long before our celebrities begun this walk of fame and superstardom, they were ratchet and shady. As B.I.G himself stated, he went from ashy to classy and nasty! I came across a picture of P-Unit long before the fame in what can only be described as the shadiest pose in the history of Kenyan celebrities. What shocks me however is the reminder at the back of my head of my friend Ed’s assertion at that at some point in the not so distant past that this was actually cool.

 

I just cant!

And the way the lads are looking intense! An intense couple that is:

 

 

 

I am a sneaker head. Just this morning I was bragging nay, God’s Chosen Blogger doesn’t brag, I boast, that my entire shoe collection could put any of Kenya’s celebrities to shame and you can take that to the Central Bank of Kenya. But this isn’t about my shoes that shocked even Anthony Hamilton, this is about the only other person that I can say has a shoe game I rank…

 

Hold up, even that isn’t accurate. I rank some of Kenya’s celebrities but this isn’t about them. This is about Octopizzo and his 10,000$ relationship with Yeezus!
If you do not know to whom I refer to as Yeezus then you’re too old for this article. Anyway on the up and up, the when these shoes dropped, they sold out in 10 minutes flat!

And when that happened, the shoes that were originally retailing at 3,500 dollars begun to sell at obscene amounts. A second hand pair retails at pretty much 6,000$

 

So Octopizzo’s kicks are worth the chatter:

 

  My 88th pair You want a pair #HALA#SHOEICIDE #HALA_ATCHA_BOY#ItsNambaNaneVSeverybodY #RedSwagg!!

octopizzo

@ghaflakenya@safaricomltd@cokestudioafrica@buganyapunit

Your favourite boy band, Sauti Sol seems to have developed a knack for doing stuff extraordinarily well. After ‘Nishike’ which went into history books for a number of reasons, the boys are back with another record.

On Monday was the International Day of the African Child and the band was more than glad to join pupils of Nairobi’s Kilimani Primary School to “Read Aloud” with them just after landing back home;

This was made possible by the Start A Library initiative, that seeks to entrench the reading culture in the society, and the band gladly supported it as it is parallel to its Soma Soma Initiative that emphasizes on the importance of education to children.

The boys and the pupils hope to smash the record for world’s largest gathering reading aloud during the Day of African Child 2015. The current World Record is 223,363 children reading simultaneously from across 909 venues in the United States.

This made Sauti Sol whet its appetite about breaking the world record;

 

Other celebs who support the initiative and were present at the event are Brenda Wairimu and the silky voiced Kiu.

Here are some photos;

 

 

 

They call him the lyrical genius, the slayer of rhymes and a rap legend.

The rapper took a break from making hits to give his two cents on the whole bleaching issue that has taken Kenya and the world by storm thanks to socialite Vera Sidika.And by the looks of things,this storm is really escalation into a hurricane of sorts.

This is what he said ‘I just feel sorry for all deez peeps who on about bleaching and all that crazy eesh!…kuna watu watachomwa na jua na hawata “saidika”!’

 

 

Hmm Saidika rhymes a lot with Sidika? Was he taking shots at the bleached beauty?

This is one in the mould of honouring a man posthumously. Why? Because he brought up one of Kenya’s most prolific and talented artists. A rapper, an actor, an enterprenuer was born to Dr. Morris Makini who unfortunately passed on to glory. Dr. Makini along with “Malaika Mama” Bhoke Makini raised one of Kenya’s most celebrated rappers.

 

Check out the family below:

 

 

I love it when I see Kenyans advance themselves. And this is clearly a case that warms the heart of God’s Chosen Blogger. Rachel Marete a singer based in the United States Of America who beat Ghana simply because Ghanaian forwards aren’t worth a damn is now a fully fledged learned one. Check out the pictures below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just when you thought you’ve seen it all from artistes; their drama and endless controversies, the guys who make them what they are are also fed up with some of them.

Ace Gospel producer/ video director has opened up about what artistes take them through in their quest for stardom and when the same is achieved they bite the hands that fed them.

In a Facebook post, an unamused Young Wallace reveals that 90% of artistes will scatter once they’ve started becoming a huge deal.

He writes;

90% of Kenyan artists are so ungrateful especially to their producers once they make it big. So to all the producers out there, both audio and video, established and upcoming, you need to watch out before that selfish self-centered artist exploits you in the name of making your name and therefore getting rid of you immediately after success begins knocking at their doors.

Focus on doing your best and make sure that you eat what you deserve. Don’t fall for their sweet words coz at the end of the day they are the ones who will drag your name in the mad that day you will begin charging them the production fee. When it comes to matters of signing an artist, make sure
that it’s professional, well defined and signed in a contract that has been witnessed by a lawyer.

I am sharing with you, my fellow producers this advice based on my experience as a video producer and my intention is to help you grow and rip your fruits just like you deserve. Work
Hard, Pray Hard and believe in your dreams. And to all the artists out there, An ungrateful man is like a hog under a tree eating acorns, but never looking up to see where they come from.

Be blessed.

I wonder how many how producers share Wallace’s sentiments.

Jemedari is one of the most vocal rappers I have ever met. he is a man with a mission and the mind to eloquently articulate what he feels in an intelligent manner. I dare say this is the one artist I have enjoyed holding court with. I dare say he is the one artist I have had the most enlightening conversations with. And this time he is no different. While everyone has been screaming their lungs out about taking action against al Shabaab for the Mpeketoni massacre, he has a different take on the entire affair:

 

 

 

 Mpeketoni
Post independence:
Kenyatta 1 allocates land to some people, ferried from the inland. Each is given (Mpe) 1 carton (-ketoni) of essentials and a parcel of land

Moi regime:
More land allocation (wanaita grabbing in this era)

Present day
Kenyatta 2 swoops to the rescue (of the already illegal occupants) and legitimizes their stay by issuing title deeds. This further alienates the local communities.

Current assumptions:
Consider the following:
– Killings include destruction of infrastructure
– Male only victims
– Zero eyewitness accounts spotting any “Al-Shabaab” related calling cards
– Al- Shabaab distances itself from the attacks until it becomes a media frenzy, then they claim responsibility after. (perfect timing)

Is it political? Is it “Al-Shabaab”?
I’ll leave this right here

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/kenyaclub/conversations/topics/3612

 

 

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It has been a while since we celebrated a celebrity engagement but Xtatic has given us a reason to celebrate.

The gifted rapper recently revealed that she was engaged to music director and animator Mushking.

Mushking and Xtatic

She also divulged that they have been dating for quite a while and what started as a beautiful friendship grew into something deeper, a relationship.

Watch the rest of the interview below:

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After a week of intense debate on Vera Sidika’s bleaching, the discussion finally died down over the weekend, but not before Ciku Muiruri could add her two cents.

On Sunday, the ‘Busted’ queen was in full support of the video vixen as she penned for her column. She shared;

“Someone mentioned her to me a couple of months back and my eyes glazed over. I didn’t want to appear not ‘with it’ so I nodded and pretended I knew to whom they were referring. It finally hit me after she #trended last week. Ah, video vixen extraordinaire with some eh, assets. She appeared on The Trend with Larry Madowo and said that she had spent close to Sh 50 million lightening her skin. Two words for you Vera – Michael Jackson. Good luck with that.

Anyhow, her interview got a lot of people upset. They talked about being sickened by this girl that was setting a bad example for young girls. First of all Vera, awesome shoes. Christian Louboutin? Well, well. Secondly, I’m not going to bash you. You chase that paper! I have a young daughter and I don’t believe that you shaking your booty will influence her life decisions in any way. It’s my job to bring her up right, not yours. Don’t let the moral brigade force you to be anyone’s role model and here’s why:

We live in a society where women like you will never catch a break. Women will hate you because of your body. They will feel threatened when you are around their man. Men will objectify you. They will make lewd comments. Finding love will be tedious. No wonder you headed to Nigeria to find it. They are all throwing stones at you because you earn your money through your body part(s). Never mind that you probably have no other skill sets. What would they rather you were doing? A desk job? Honey, there is no organization you will work for where the boss or some important client does not hit on you. Sexual harassment is the order of the day for most girls so what about women who are built like you? Assuming you can actually hold the job down because no woman will allow her husband to hire someone with a booty like yours. Vera, do you and ignore the haters.”   

 

Sanaipei Tande’s video is currently the hottest thing from Kenya having already garnered 200,000+ hits and from the looks of thing everything should be copacetic but alas that mathematic -I really don’t want to add the “s” for the sake of rhyming- but that just isn’t automatic! Things seem to have gone awry.

 

According to a popular weekly pullout given for free once a week with every purchased copy of The Standard Newspaper, things are beginning to heat up as a law suit has now been instituted. According to the free weekly gossip rag, the song’s producer Wawesh  and co producer Elijah Girimani have moved to court seeking legal redress against Onfon Media for releasing the video without consent.

In a statement given to the weekly rag, Girimani said,

“We are furious about the unplanned release and are considering taking legal action. We put over .5million shilling investment and Onfon Media were not supposed to release it but us.”

 

Eh henn…

Last week I carried Caroline Mutoko’s opinion on bleaching after Vera Sidika’s bleaching took the country by storm. her opinion seemed to irk a multitude but as Frank Ocean sang on “No Church In The Wild” the lead track off Jay Z& Kanye’s collaborative album Watch The Throne; “Human beings in a mob/ what’s a mob to a QUEEN/ what’s a QUEEN to a god…”

Trust that your opinion will not faze Caroline Mutoko. She is back to point out to you and yours just how myopic, closed minded and hypocritaical we truly are as a people and what better way to highlight that than to show us the international superstars we idolize and blindly worship forgetting that they also underwent bleaching a.k.a toning:

 

“I remember this same brand of noise about Cess afew years ago.
Kelele, kelele, kisha mukalala.
Cess is still “lighter”
Let’s not be hypocrites. It’s annoying.
Budget reading is soon. Focus!!!“

 

 

Nikki Minaj

 

Rihanna

 

Beyonce

 

Imani

 

 

24 year old Yvonne Darcq is perhaps one of East Africa’s fastest rising recording artistes.And for a good reason, she not only has a magnificent voice but she is also creative, her fashion sense is out of this world and looking like a super model is definitely a plus.

The beautiful musician has released an E.P CALLED Reaction that is already causing quite the buzz.
Yvonne posted this on Facebook:

Re-Action is out! Re-Action is my latest work, it is an E.P which means a short form of an album or mixtape.

It has been in the works since end of November 2013. Re-Action is based on a phase I have gone through in my life & the music industry. The intro Pretty much describes the E.P.

Alot of people in and out of the industry judge artists all the time. We are not perfect nor are we not human, with that said it takes an indescribable amount of energy, creativity, time and emotions to put any form of a compilation together. It is ART and I would like to congratulate all my peers in this industry locally and internationally for all the hard work you put in to entertain us & the inspirations you give us all.

Re-Action is a project that contains a lot of emotion, diversity and transformation, most importantly we had lots of fun creating it. Re-Action is very dear to my heart & I am extremely excited to finally share it with you all.

I want to take this moment to thank my ‪#‎TeamYDQ‬ who are my fans for all the support you have given me.
My Back bone in the industry who has always supported me, motivated me, picked me up at times I thought I was done, my best friend & manager Jacqueline Klose.
My husband Sydney Armstrong Aka Dirty Damu for being the Harsh Judge and yet most of the time correct, for always having my back even when I’m wrong lol, for supporting me and for giving me the creative space to create and produce this album.
My Father & mentor for always making me fight to achieve & succeed in everything I believe in.
My sister, My family, My friends & peers for all the support love & comfort you have given me.
My amazing friends Nick Mutuma, Lon Jon, D rag & Sammy Lee for gracing my album with their presence.
My YDQ team, Head Bangaz Int, Bigsoul entertainment and to all who helped me get this album to where it is, I thank you all once again.

be sure to support and follow,
‪#‎ILoveKenyanMusic‬

Love YDQ,

Download Re-Action now at: http://mdundo.com/a/53 and check out what Mdundo had to say about YDQ’s new E.P: http://mdundo.com/news/1860

 

Boss MoG seems to be having a blessed year and he is now looking to acquire a brand new ride. Why? How else will he make it in time for all his gigs? Given that he is part of one of the most successful and prominent gospel musicians, I guarantee you that he has an endless stream of shows to attend and getting to the venues is hard.

 

And so I have to celebrate this accomplishment because in Kenya, when an artist gets themselves something, you know they have earned it. Check him out below basking in the glory his Lord has afforded him:

 

“Music is soul…an  expression of the things that cannot be spoken” says Singer-Songwriter YTHERA when asked about her music and the inspiration behind her writing. And the out-pouring of her soul is turning heads in the Kenyan music circuit.

Having recently had her debut performance at Blankets and Wine, this vocally skillful, soulful singer with a groovy sound has just released her second single “Ahadi Ahadi”(one of the first songs she ever wrote while in Sauti Academy).

“Ahadi Ahadi” is a song that talks about the double standards politicians keep and she advocates for change.

Ythera is surely set for stardom.

Have a listen HERE.

She took a break from the limelight a couple of years back to represent musicians in another capacity at the MCSK. But the sultry and vocally endowed singer, Debbie Asila, never lost her mojo for the screen.

For a couple of weeks, the cheery singer has been hosting the newest show on TV, Jaza Mistari.

The new KTN show is a music-based game show in which a single contestant is prompted to complete song lyrics for increasing points which equate to money. After each correct answer, the contestant has the option of continuing to play or quitting the game and take home all the money.

 

Contestants have an option of selecting Kenyan music from different genres to sing along before filling in the missing lyrics.

Of all the shrines and homages fans create for their favourite celebs, tattoos are definitely at the top of the dedication list. Even though this culture isn’t common in Kenya, it’s slowly developing roots.

We’ve heard about dedicated fans of some celebs they look up to constantly stalking them or exhibit obsessive behavior just to get the attention of their favourite stars.

One of Gospel star, Willy Paul, fans has taken her love for the singer a little too far. While the high school girl had a choice to cover herself with Willy Paul tattoos like a 58-matatu, she opted for a simple tat on her arm.

She got a Willy Paul-inspired tattoo inked on her upper arm just to get his attention.

Here’s that;

 

 

Willy Paul is without a doubt one of the most well-liked young musicians around. With hits such as ‘Sitolia’ and ‘Mpenzi’ under his belt, Willy has proven that rags to riches stories are not reserved only for  fairy tales.

So how did Willy Paul look like before he became a household name? Before he performed in front of thousands of people? Before he became a groove nominee? Before people cared whether him and  Pendo were an item or not and  before he was signed as movie star?

Willy Paul came from modest beginnings just like a large number of us.Here is Willy Paul before