Kenya Christian

• Video Hits Package:1.2.0 Erykah Badu

  Posted: March 31, 2010, 4:09 pm by KenyaChristian

  This is from her 1997 album(gosh, 13yrs already) Baduizm. Her latest video is causing a small stir on the net.I love it when artists(I like) provoke people, thats the real purpose of art in my opinion.Will be reviewing Baduizm later.
  
  
  
  

  "Most intellects do not believe in God/but they fear us just the same.."

  
  

• Video: Webi - "Never Let you Go" + "I Need Thee"

  Posted: March 30, 2010, 9:01 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  
  "I Need Thee" (Unplugged)
  

  
  

• Video: Kambua - "Tembea Na Yesu"

  Posted: March 29, 2010, 3:19 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• AfyaKenya presents: Art for Afya 4

  Posted: March 29, 2010, 3:18 pm by KenyaChristian

  Date: March 31st, 2010Venue: Mwenda's, Utalii House(Moktar Daddah St.)Time: 7: 30 - 11:00pmEntrance: Ksh 500
  Previously: AfyaKenya medical camp

  
  

• Video: Etana - "Free"

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 8:01 pm by KenyaChristian

  I've started liking reggae again the past two months or so. Is there a renaissance happening, or its just me? I have my music phases though, so maybe it's just me liking the genre again. Other genres these days are so commercialized and largely uninspiring...
  
  

  
  

• Video: Zippy Okoth - "Singedhani Ungenisamehe"

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 6:42 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Jeromarsh - "Twede!"

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 6:39 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Zaidi Ya Muziki - "Ni Wewe"

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 6:22 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Jackie Kotira - "Tutembelee"

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 6:21 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Mavuno Worship - "My God You Never Change"

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 6:20 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Who is Makmende? (KTN Feature)

  Posted: March 27, 2010, 4:53 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  
  

  What happens when you take a childhood hero in urban Kenya, a boy band, the internet and Kenyans in need of a superhero? You get Makmende. Most people who grew up in urban Kenya and spoke the slang of Shen'g know Makmende as a superhero of sorts. But boy group Just A Band has given it a whole new meaning in the video for its new single Ha He which has set social media alight and spilled over into the mainstream media KTN's Larry Madowo breaks down Makmende.

  
  

• Video: Headlines in History (NMG's 50 year journey)

  Posted: March 26, 2010, 1:47 pm by KenyaChristian

  This is a film directed by award-winning movie maker Judy Kibinge. Among other things, the documentary illustrates major headlines through NMG’s history to its transformation from production of black and white pictures to acquisition of hi-tech equipment, which enabled it to publish coloured photographs.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Previously: Coming of Age(short film)

  
  

• Video: Wanuri Kahiu interview with SVT

  Posted: March 24, 2010, 1:39 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  
  Kenyan filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu speaks about her groundbreaking Kenyan sci-fi film Pumzi.
  
  

  "In Africa, when you’re making a film, it has to be issue driven...you have write about AIDS or FGM...something the NGO is funding...thats how you get funds. Rarely do you get creative lease.."

  
  Via: A Bombastic Element
  
  Previously: Pumzi film review and trailer

  
  

• Video: Jackie hill poetry performance

  Posted: March 24, 2010, 1:18 pm by KenyaChristian

  P4CM poet performing "My Life As A Stud"
  
  

  
  

• Video: Sho Baraka - "We Can Be More"

  Posted: March 23, 2010, 6:54 pm by KenyaChristian

  featuring J.R
  
  

  
  

• Video: How Not to Write About Africa by Binyavanga Wainaina

  Posted: March 23, 2010, 5:23 pm by KenyaChristian

  Narrated by Djimon Hounsou
  
  
  
  

  When Bono edited the Africa issue of Vanity Fair, it included an essay written by Kenyan writer Binyavanga Wainaina. Through that, we became aware of another piece he'd written for Granta a number of years ago called "How (Not) to Write About Africa." Director Jesse Dylan and his company FreeForm worked with Binyavanga and the Beninois actor Djimon Hounsou to create this filmed performance of the essay. Read the entire essay here

  
  

• Kwani? and 2010 CDC Caine Prize Workshop Reading

  Posted: March 23, 2010, 5:09 pm by KenyaChristian

  Kwani Trust is pleased to announce a reading in collaboration with The CDC Caine Prize workshop. The event will include an award ceremony for the winner of the recent Kwani? Short Story Competition. The Caine Prize readings will feature Mamle Kabu and Stephen Kenai, both shortlisted for the Caine Prize in 2009 and 2008 respectively. Kwani? readings will feature 4 upcoming new titles to be released into bookshops on April 1 2010

  Date: Wednesday, March 24th 2010Venue: #3 Kifaru Gardens, Kanjata Rd.(off James Gichuru Rd.)Time: 7:30 pmEntry: Free

  
  

• Interview with Njoki Ngumi

  Posted: March 20, 2010, 2:04 pm by KenyaChristian

  You may have seen her featured on the Kuweni Serious! video titled “Blood Will Not Clean Bloodstains.” She says she likes music, friends, cooking and theatre but she also has a lot to say about Kenyan society. Her sometimes humorous, honest and always interesting blogs [Read here and here] have been doing the rounds on Kenyan blogs and getting positive feedback. Her words and way of expression seem to have resonated with those who have read them. So why did she decide to write these articles (she says they’re just Facebook notes), and why are they getting such a positive reaction?
  ::KenyaChristian:: decided to catch up with Njoki Ngumi, a recent graduate in medicine currently doing an internship in Naivasha. In Part 1 of this interview we discuss her “blogs,” Kenyan corruption, and why she would like to become the first black Swiss milkmaid.
  
  
  
  ::KenyaChristian:: Your blogs have been getting great feedback from people. When did you start writing your socio-political blogs and why?
  
  Njoki Ngumi: I'm just amazed that anyone would describe my random thoughts as a blog...I'm not nearly that organized and purposeful. The couple of articles being referred to are actually just Facebook notes, and still are. I've been the person I describe as the middle class, unconcerned Kenyan, who wants to be able to buy credit and milk even when the world is burning down. It's not an easy thing to confess. But I have a very socially conscious family and friends. They want to talk about these things. They want to care even when it's hurting them to and they'd be more profited (if that's a word) by giving their energies to something else. I think they've been contagious. So even if I sneer at newspaper headlines, for instance, it’s better a million times than not reading them at all, from losing every connection to what's happening. Let's be pissed about dead fish in Lake Naivasha. We may not be able to do something about it, but let's be pissed. It keeps us human enough to wish or hope for something better. And if you can hope, you can work towards something better, I guess.
  
  Why are they socio-political? I didn't know they were. I don't know. I think what matters, always, at the end of the day, is people. People are a mixture of clay and spirit that had the ability to build a tower up that threatened the heavens. That's how much power they have. So maybe the socio- is me trying to remind myself how much they and their thoughts and feelings matter, when all is said and done. Political...maybe because people go where their leaders are going. And I don't like how our leaders are screwing us with their selfish decisions.
  
  ::KC:: Is the problem really our so-called leaders, or is it us ordinary Kenyans?
  
  NN: It's all of us. Our leaders are bad for making selfish decisions and having immorally high salaries while the people who teach their constituents, the people who protect their constituents and keep their roads safe, the people who run public hospitals and schools and sweep their offices are earning peanuts and are told to survive on that as some disgusting proof of patriotism. While we still have internally displaced people 3 years after the madness. We as Kenyans enable them by asking for handouts from them, and by taking their crap when they come to our weddings and funerals and harambees to push personal agendas. We're all wrong for not looking out first for Kenya. We're all looking out for ourselves. So we can't blame anyone for what's happening here.
  
  ::KC:: Kenya is not the only corrupt country in the world. (There was the massive Enron scandal in U.S; Anglo-Leasing companies were based in U.K). Are we too hard on ourselves sometimes as Kenyans?
  
  NN: If two people cut themselves and were bleeding to death, one kind of oozing out slow and the other spurting out in jets, should the one who's oozing say they're better off? Aren't they both dying?
  
  ::KC:: In your blog “Your Country is NOT going to the Dogs” you talked in jest about moving to Switzerland to become the first black milkmaid with a Bachelor’s Degree. Did you have a period where you had given up on Kenya, and just wanted to escape it all?
  
  NN: I still do. I think people should be world citizens, in their minds. Misled patriotism and a sense of ownership over land and resources is the reason behind most wars today. I'm tired of tribalism, or the fact that if my boyfriend was from another tribe now people would get edgy about it instead of celebrate that someone cares enough to love someone else in this day and age when life is so hard. But the tribal/racist/segregationist thing is so deeply ingrained in the human condition that I don't think there's anywhere anyone can run to get away from it. I picked Switzerland because I think the only reason they don't get involved in wars is the very correct realization that they have too much to lose if they do. My heart gets that.
  However, we can't run from being who we are and having ties to where we come from. I'd ache for home, even if the cows were doing well and the owner of the farm gave me a raise and I had all the chocolate I could eat and all the shallow beautiful things I want. Or even the deep ones. If my home is burning won't I feel sad, even if I'm safe at that moment?
  
  So I'm working on caring enough to want to stay and starting to care for Africa as a whole. We are now, not even the future. And Kenya can't do this alone. And we can't rely on donor support. We have to work together from the ground up.
  
  Look out for Part 2 of our interview with Njoki Ngumi next week!
  
  Bonus: Noam Chomsky interview on Haiti & NGO's (must read)

  
  

• Interview with Njoki Ngumi

  Posted: March 19, 2010, 5:58 pm by KenyaChristian

  Kenyan TV so needs this right now. When is the last time we had something like this on our screens? Something different, original, cutting edge and with a healthy dose of Kenyan flavour. 
  
  Done right, this could be a hit.Kenyan TV stations are you listening?
  
  Makmende on twitter trending topics funny stuff

  
  

• Rift Valley Music Festival

  Posted: March 17, 2010, 4:16 pm by KenyaChristian

  The Rift Valley in Kenya will come alive with music during the first Rift Valley Festival (26th, 27th and 28th March) at Fisherman’s Camp on Lake Naivasha.
  This three-day musical celebration will bring together local and international musicians as well as arts, crafts and culture. Over 4,000 people are expected at the festival, which aims to secure a thriving future for the local communities in the Rift Valley region. All profit from the festival will go towards a local project run by Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP), highlighting the importance of securing clean water and sustainable sanitation services for people within the region.

  Date: 26th-28th March, 2010 Venue: Fisherman's Camp, Lake Naivasha
  Time: Friday - 6pm till late; Sat & Sun -Midday till late
  Tickets: Fri-Ksh500(door); Saturday & Sunday -Ksh800(day),Ksh1400(2day tckt holder)
  
  Artists include, Villagers Band, Sauti Sol, Makadem, Just A band, Thabani, DJ Seb, Nico Lupo
  
  Some places tickets can be found at Recordz(2nd Flr, Yaya Centre), Hiden Agenda Rest. (Sarit Centre), Wasanii Rest.(Harry Thuku Rd), Tapas Bar(Village Market)

  
  

• Video: Just A Band - "Ha-He"

  Posted: March 17, 2010, 3:08 pm by KenyaChristian

  This is the second single from their latest album 82. Creative stuff, other artists step your games up...starring Makmende & Patricia Kihoro.
  
  
  
  

  It was great fun creating our vapid spoof action-hero type based on things we remember watching like Tahamaki, Chuck Norris films and Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon – in which angry men walk around beating truth out of hapless people.
  The subtitled ‘dialogue’ consists of phrases lifted from various sources – particularly my favorite mind-bender: Waking Life. -Jim Chuchu

  
  Bonus: Two Reporters Missing in Hunt For Makmende
  

  
  

• Webi - "Outside My Window" (Free Album)

  Posted: March 16, 2010, 5:09 pm by KenyaChristian

  Musician Webi is offering his debut album "Outside My Window" as a free download. This is part of the C.T.A (Cleaning The Airwaves) campaign started by Astar. What a bold move by these artists, we do need a change on our airwaves. Support the movement!
  
  Click here to get Webi's full album
  
  Click here for Astars album

  
  

• Video: Soul Boy (Trailer) + Launch

  Posted: March 14, 2010, 5:22 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  Soulboy Trailer from One Fine Day Films on Vimeo.
  
  Kibera Launch + Behind the scenes video
  
  
  Previously: Movie Seen! Soul Boy Review

  
  

• Video: 1% Event Nairobi Recap

  Posted: March 14, 2010, 4:55 pm by KenyaChristian

  This and the iHub Launch have been the cool "underground" events of the year so far in my opinion. Geeks are the new cool, where have you been? lol Geeks have always been cool imo, its just people have been slow to catchup!
  
  
  
  

  1%CLUB is the online marketplace that connects people with smart ideas in developing countries with people, money and knowledge around the world.
  We are talking about sustainable projects that stimulate the self-reliance of individuals anywhere in the world and improve their standard of living.
  To achieve this, we need three things: a little bit of your knowledge, money or time. You choose how, when and how much you want to participate. The people that run the projects that you are involved in keep you informed on the progress. It is that simple.

  
  

  
  

• Video: Wernono Faimly - "Amen"

  Posted: March 14, 2010, 4:50 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Soul Boy (Trailer)

  Posted: March 14, 2010, 4:31 pm by KenyaChristian

  feat Shem & Austine
  
  

  
  

• Video: K'Naan - "Wavin' Flag" (Celebration Mix)

  Posted: March 14, 2010, 4:06 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  K'NAAN "Waving Flag" -Celebration mix- Dir: NABIL from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.
  
  This is the official anthem for the 2010 South Africa World Cup. *BIG SIGH* I wish I could go for this event! Life is soo fair, ain't it? What an amazing experience it will be, especially if you're African.

  
  

• Movie Seen! Soul Boy

  Posted: March 11, 2010, 1:43 am by KenyaChristian

  Soul Boy is a film by Ghanian-Kenyan director Hawa Essuman, shot in the famous Nairobi slum Kibera. This film by German production company One Fine Day Films and Goethe-Institut revolves around Abila (Samson Odhiambo), a fourteen year old boy growing up and experiencing life’s lessons in this poor environment. Kibera is a place that has just experienced post-election violence and Abila has to navigate his way through this environment, while at the same time just trying to be a normal teenager.
  
  Abila wakes up on what seems like just another day to find that his father is bed-ridden with illness; his soul has been stolen he tells his teenage son. Troubled and worried as there is no one to run their kiosk, Abila sets off to find out how he can help his father. Through the help of his friend Ciku (Leila Dayan Opou) he goes to see a witch who gives him seven tasks to complete if he wants to see his father recover. The film then progresses from here with Abila having various encounters in this modern day Nairobi adventure.
  Soul Boy immediately a present day tale, with the teenage protagonist encountering the various issues in the slums; including tribalism, violence, crime and superstition.  Soul Boy lays the issue of tribalism on the table and shows how tribes are distrustful of each other especially after the 2007/08 post-election violence. We all know that young Kenyans are being tribalized by politicians and elders, but it is still troubling to watch it portrayed on screen. You feel very angry when you watch Abila (a Luo) trying to balance his friendship with his boys, while still hanging out with his girl-friend Ciku(a Kikuyu).  It is sad that Kenyans have to make such choices in their everyday lives because of tribal myths and mistrust. Ciku in one scene asks Abila “why didn’t you want to be seen walking with me?” and it is heartbreaking.
  The aspect of spirituality (occult if you will) and myths is also potrayed in a refreshingly non-judgmental way. Abila hears of a witch called Nyawawa (Krysteen Savane) and bravely goes to see her to see if she can help him. If you thought traditional superstitions are dead in modern-day city life then Soul Boy does away with that notion as it defly makes the idea of consulting a witch just another aspect of slum life. The scene where Abila meets the witch and she is giving him the tasks is quite original if only for the camera work and lighting.
  Perhaps the theme of this movie that most hits you upside the head is that of poverty. Soul Boy has one the most vivid and troubling showing of the rich-poor divide that I have seen in a Kenyan made film so far. Abila, while following someone one day finds himself in a white-owned household (presumably settlers’ descendants) in the leafy suburb of Karen. I felt genuinely angry at the contrast between the slums of Kibera and the opulence of protected Karen life, and audibly sighed once or twice. While at this house he finds himself completing one of the tasks and this is the best scene of the film.
  Soul Boy is a movie that was completed in six weeks, and was written by local writer Billy Kahora who does a great job with a first-class and engaging script. There are some lovely performances by all the actors, but a favourite is Abila’s girlfriend Ciku, who potrays a fiercely independent and intelligent teenage girl, not afraid to speak her mind . In one scene, she laments on how all the boys in the neighbourhood are idiots during an argument with Abila. Hawa Essuman clearly did a great job with these two main characters. You really believe that they are best friends who would do anything for each other, and this shows Hawa’s good casting choices. The camera work in this film is also top-notch and the beauty of Nairobi, which many of us may miss in our daily hustle is tenderly captured here. Soul Boy manages to create a touching tale of slum life in Kenya and how people still find hope, adventure, love, friendship and family amid the squalor.
  
  
  A positive aspect of Soul Boy is that 80% of those involved with the film are Kenyans, but one still cannot ignore the fact that it is funded by a German company. It is a sad indictment of this country’s arts industry that we still have to rely on foreign funding to create our own stories. Maybe those involved in the Kenyan film-industry need to be more forceful and united in getting local funding and support for their projects. Soul Boy is a good film (it won audience award at Rotterdam Film Festival) but there is no reason this could not have been a 100% Kenyan-made film. All in all, Soul Boy a step in the right direction and announces the arrival of Hawa Essuman, a talented filmmaker who could become a force to be reckoned with in the Kenyan film industry.
  "One of the best Kenyan films I have seen in a long time, maybe ever. Go see it, support Kenyan talent."
  KC  rating: 4 /5 Stars
  (Soul Boy is now playing at Silverbird Prestige Plaza for a limited two week run. Also look out for the DVD.)

  
  

• Video: The Washington Projects - "Light Up The Dark"

  Posted: March 10, 2010, 10:22 am by KenyaChristian

  First single & video off of the album entitled "Light Up The Dark".
  
  

  
  

• Video: The Remnant - "Know This"

  Posted: March 9, 2010, 4:03 pm by KenyaChristian

  featuring Scar
  
  
  
  "in the words of Jane Austen I've never been more sure/if I loved you less I could probably talk about it more"

  
  

• May God bless The Woman

  Posted: March 8, 2010, 3:14 pm by KenyaChristian

  As a man I have to say I doubt there is any greater creation God blessed this earth with than a woman. In my context I have to especially praise my black women who continue to excel, grow, praise, care, nurture and love despite the odds being stacked against them for centuries. They have especially supported the black man who some people have tried their best to destroy. But if it wasn't for the black woman's support, I don't know if the black man would have survived. We may have never had a Barack Obama without a Michelle.
  
  
  Special shout out to Ann Njogu who recently won the International Women of Courage Award(IWOC) for her tireless work on women's issues. Another shoutout to Mo'Nique for her Oscar win for best supporting actress in the modern-day classic movie Precious.
  Ann Njogu
  BONUS: May God Bless The Woman, a poem
  

  
  

• Soul Boy @ Silverbird

  Posted: March 8, 2010, 11:25 am by KenyaChristian

  SYNPOSIS

  Someone has stolen his soul, mumbles the father as he sits huddled in a corner. Abila is shocked and confused but wants to help his father and goes in search of a suitable cure.Supported by his friend Shiku who is the same age as him, he learns that his father has gambled his soul away in the company of a spiritual woman.

  The teenager doesn't want to believe it and sets about looking for the witch. When he finally discovers her in the darkest corner of the ghetto, she gives him seven challenging tasks to save his father's lost soul. Abila embarks on an adventurous journey which leads him right through the microcosm of his home town.

  
  
  Will be showing at Silverbird Prestige Plaza. for 2 weeks beginning March 4th @ 7pm. Check Silverbird website for updates
  Previously: Soul Boy (Inside Look)

  
  

• Jean-Michel Basquiat : The Radiant Child (Trailer)

  Posted: March 6, 2010, 5:53 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  
  

  Director Tamra Davis pays homage to her friend in this definitive documentary but also delves into Basquiat as an iconoclast. His dense, bebop-influenced neoexpressionist work emerged while minimalist, conceptual art was the fad; as a successful black artist, he was constantly confronted by racism and misconceptions. Much can be gleaned from insider interviews and archival footage, but it is Basquiat’s own words and work that powerfully convey the mystique and allure of both the artist and the man.

  
  

• Video: Why Did I Get Married Too? (Trailer)

  Posted: March 5, 2010, 10:51 pm by KenyaChristian

  The first one was really good. This one seems, a tad over the top. I'm just hoping Tyler Perry doesn't overdo this series because of the money it generates, I could be wrong though.
  
  

  
  

• Tarica June - "Why I Write"

  Posted: March 5, 2010, 3:18 pm by KenyaChristian

  Hey folks, hope you've had a great week. Today I'm posting a song from female MC Tarica June. This is a track from her debut mixtape Moonlight Revolution. I'm also using this post to test the new flash format I'll be using to post up tracks(I tell you blogger can be a pain sometimes, but I'm sticking with her,lol:)
  
  
  
  

  
  

• iHub Launch today!

  Posted: March 3, 2010, 6:00 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

  iHub – Nairobi’s Innovation Hub for the technology community – is here! It’s an open space for the technologists, investors, tech companies and hackers in the area. This space is a tech community facility with a focus on young entrepreneurs, web and mobile phone programmers and designers. It is part open community workspace (co-working), part vector for investors and VCs and part incubator.

  
  Date: Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010Venue: 4th Flr, Bishop Magua Centre, Ngong Rd(opp Uchumi)Time: 5:30pm - 8:30pmEntry: Invite only (apply here to get your ticket, spaces limited)
  The launch will also be streaming live on UStream--------------------------------------------------------UPDATE: Pictures of the iHub launch at Africa Knows & KenyanPoet
  iHub Nairobi opens
  

  
  

• Video: Nneka interview with Causecast

  Posted: March 2, 2010, 7:51 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  Nneka discusses the oil situation in the Niger Delta and how it degrades the community in her homeland. Her involvement with Remember Ken Saro-Wiwa Movement raises awareness by speaking about the issues at her shows and on the radio.

  
  

• Video: 15 Questions Christian women need to ask a man before getting involved with him

  Posted: March 2, 2010, 4:48 pm by KenyaChristian

  by Pastor Cox
  

  
  

• Video: Canton Jones - "My Year"

  Posted: March 2, 2010, 4:46 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: GRITS - "Fly Away"(Hope Edition)

  Posted: March 2, 2010, 4:23 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  

• Video: Sho Baraka - "Oh Well"

  Posted: March 2, 2010, 4:11 pm by KenyaChristian

  
  
  "Revolutionary Died"
  

  
  

• John Githongo @ Kuweni Serious! (Pt.2)

  Posted: March 1, 2010, 11:58 am by KenyaChristian

  
  

Blah blah blah

Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes