Nurturing Talent

How many Kenyans in the entertainment fraternity can claim o support fledgling talent or upcoming artists?

Think about that for a second. How many established artists can claim that they help up&coming artists? Gospel artists seem to be getting the term mentorship right down to the science of it which is why the Kenyan gospel scene is robust with the emergence of new talent every day but what about the secular world? There is alot of talent on the “underground” waiting for the right resources to tap into to so they can get there chance to supernova. Off the top of my head i can name Coola Gang, Xtatic, Mic-Black Militia et al who are really talented but mainstream media outlets have turned a blind eye (or deaf ear) to them.

In comes F2 which hosts a jam session every Sunday (and has been hosting the same for years) that gives young talented acts the opportunity to cut their teeth. Usually the environment is harsh as the youngsters in attendance do not mince their words or hush their heckles! While many view this as a hostile environment, it prepares these artists for the real world& atleast the management of F2 are doing their bit to help the Kenyan scene grow and their formula is obviously worjking since they gave you Deux Vultures, Nonini, GidiGidi MajiMaji& Kenrazy but what are the rest of the entertainment fraternity and media houses doing?

Safaricom tried with Safaricom Live! &Penya Sauti Academy(Wawesh’s brain-child) is nurturing talent and getting them to perform in events such as the just passed B.O.G.O.F but other than that, it doesn’t seem like anyone is bothered.

That leaves me wondering what will happen to these talented individuals? They will burn-out due to frustration. While it’s good to support burgeoning acts such as Camp Mulla (which every corporation is rushing to do) we shouldn’t let the other acts get overshadowed. We need to bridge the gap between acts such as Camp Mulla and the talented acts such as Coola Gang. That’s the only way the Kenyan music industry will grow.

And that is my humble opinion.