Kenyanpoet
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Poets and Writers meet at Nairobi's Tech Hub for POWO
Posted: April 27, 2011, 12:45 pm by N.W
Last Saturday, 23rd April was the inaugural POWO event - a forum for Poets and Writers that seeks to encourage Kenyan Creative writers to exploit the various opportunities presented by their internet for promotion of their writing.
The event which was held at Nairobi's hub for the tech and creative community the IHub along Ngong Road on the Southern side of the Capital City.
It was also a 'Meet up' that sought to bring together Kenyan Creative writers be they writers of fiction, non fiction, poetry, prose with the common goal being their interest in using the internet.
Most of those who signed up for the free event on eventbrite already had blogs and it was a surprise to note just how many creative bloggers were in Kenya - Well over 50.
The event, though set to start at 11.30, started slightly late(12pm) due to lack of early risers being the start of the start of the Easter Holiday. Early arrivals were treated to some African Music then Videos by Kenya's own Mike Kwambo with the poem 'Big Ass Bed' and Chimamanada Adichie's 'The danger of a single story' that was shared with the TED crowd.
The event kicked off with Ndanu Mung'ala - MC for the day, welcoming all in attendance and inviting Njeri Wangari for the opening remarks.
Njeri read a quote from one of the speaker's earlier blog post, Njoroge Matathia. A quote that has also been shared on this blog from his post 'Made on the Internet' (one can read the full article here). She went on to explain the idea behind the POWO concept with sneak picks into what should be expected in future. She shared her experience in the challenge that most creative writers face - getting published and went on to talk about the opportunities the internet gives event towards eventually getting a publisher was the case with the eventual publishing of her poetry collection.
Kahonge ANTHONY KAHONGE
@ @Miganphyl29 http://www.ihub.co.ke/blog/2011/04/powo-poets-writers-online-2/ a link to the @iHubNairobi blog - #POWO23 Apr Favorite Retweet Replypeteretelej Peter Etelej ✔
POWO - Poets and Writers Online | Kenya http://goo.gl/fb/UQ98b23 Apr mawazo_mengi Wanjeri Gakuru
Glad to be home s/o to @powo for an interesting afte & the Sherlock's Den Everton game crew ;-) #bless ttyl!23 Apr peteretelej Peter Etelej ✔
bookmarked POWO - Poets and Writers Online | Kenyahttp://y.ahoo.it/RPagPzX823 Apr Blogs_Kenya Top Kenyan Blogs
[The Online Kenyan] POWO - Poets and Writers Online | Kenya: I happened to attend the first POW... http://bit.ly/f1yhyb via @peteretelej23 Apr peteretelej Peter Etelej ✔
POWO - Poets and Writers Online | Kenya: I happened to attend the first POWO meet-up at the iHub Nairobi. For th... http://bit.ly/gd8rRl23 Apr EdwinAbuga Edwin Gekonge
#powo was awesome. The 'afterparty' was awesomer. I rediscovered my sincere n passionate indifference to matters soccer.23 Apr Dracofs Draco Bosén
@maxhiago powo to sem treina fica doente e tenso :S , nem sei se vo pro shopping .S23 Apr roomthinker roomthinker
Good stuff #POWO. Met lots of tweeps @LarryMadowo @wanjiku@kahenya @bintiM @wagaodongo @French_freddy na wengine wengi i forget #mzeenimimi23 Apr aleyajamel Aleya Jamel
@ @Atibelle Hello!! So lovely to meet you at #POWO - Hopefully we will see you at the scrabble meet? Girl Power all the way!
The Day's speakers had arrived with the exception of Joseph Mucheru who sent his apologies due to a last minute commitment. He did however send us Neil Ahlsten - New Business Development Sub-Saharan Africa. The other speakers were, Wamathai, Potash and Muki Garang.
After the opening remarks, the first speaker, Neil gave a short presentation on the opportunities available on Google's platform for creative writers e.g Google blogspot- the blogging platform, analytics for traffic statistics, Google books, youtube among others. The presentation was quite brief and some attendees felt that there were more products that could have been discussed in detail.
There was free Wifi and most of those at the event had come along with their gadgets. Most freely shared their views as well as update those who missed on the ongoing events. The event's hastag was #POWO. This also proved to be a good icebreaker for the meetup that was to follow after the talks.
Muki Garang the Performer at the event gave a unique performance with his poetry piece 'People's TV 101, I have written about it earlier in my review of the JUkwaani Festival.
French_Freddy Fred Wambugu Maina
@ @EunShixx Pleasure was and is still mine #VanityTweet #PoWo. Tweetpics pronto uondoe hiyo panda :)24 Apr Favorite Retweet ReplyPlubera Makena Mbone Simani
@ @robert_mwangi #POWO is that the poetry thing you were meant to attend?23 Apr robert_mwangi Robert Mathenge
missed #powo at #ihub today! needs a really loud reminder!23 Apr Fawkie Franklin Senah
Despite my Demeanor @kenyanpoet should know I enjoy quite scenarios,actually thanks for #POWO Premier23 Apr __felipemarafon felipe
dae powo23 Apr EunShixx Eunice Chege
@French_Freddy It was nice to meet you @POWO. I'll check out your blog. Enjoy the weekend.23 Apr French_Freddy Fred Wambugu Maina
@ @TheParasGudka Cool. Already #following @nairobitweetup. Look forward to seeing you at #powo 3rd Saturday of every month23 Apr French_Freddy Fred Wambugu Maina
@Powo is creating an initiative based on the e-verything e-volving into the e-ra of e-market-led change #NigelFpercy #powo23 Apr French_Freddy Fred Wambugu Maina
@ @TheParasGudka #Powo @powo was a maiden voyage for Kenyan Poets & Writers to chart a way forward towards#ReadingCulture in Kenya23 Apr French_Freddy Fred Wambugu Maina
@ @brendawambui Sasawa.U ulikuwa wapi ukahata #POWO with @powo at @ihubnairobi? #Smh lakini it's on every 3rd Sato of the month so jipange :-D23 Apr French_Freddy Fred Wambugu Maina
@ @TheParasGudka Cheers for that mate. Al reciprocate on the#POWO @IhubNairobi today with @powo. Tweetpics pronto23 Apr kenyanmathree Mathree
Good 2 see u man! RT @Atibelle: @Blogs_Kenya Great seeing you at the @POWO meetup today. Blessed Easter!
Wamathai, who contrary to popular belief is quite slim, soft spoken and can sometimes get nervous infront of a large crowd was up next. His presentation on how Wamathai the blog started was quite an eye opener. His story on how he got kicked out of FB due to too many female fans was quite fascinating.
The last speaker of the day was Potash(Njoroge Matathia). His intellect was so imposing as he reminded writers not to be caught up in all the digital hype forgetting what their purpose is; Inform, Entertain and Educate.
During the Q&A session, most sought to know how they can drive more traffic to their blogs, if it necessary to be on twitter always, anonymous blogging as well as on soulful entertainment. Wamathai, in his answer to the use of twitter gave thought provoking challenge "Tweet Sense, not NonSense".
Writers were also treated to some videos by; Miceere Mugo at the 2010 Kwani Litfest, Def Poetry Gemini with the piece 'Poetic Bloodline' as well as Ngwatilo with her poem 'Two Clocks'.
In her closing remarks, Njeri gave the next meetup's agenda- A hands on tech workshop on the various tools available for writers online from; how to start a blog, how to embed a video or a html code, how to upload a video, using FB and Twitter effectively etc.
The event ended at 2.30pm with most remaining behind for the actual meet-up
There were 73 people in attendance. Read the rest of #POWO tweets here . Fred Wambugu took some lovely shots of the event available here
The Next POWO Meet-up will be on 21st May at he same venue. -
Why POWO? ‘The power of the pen meets the power of the Net’
Posted: April 21, 2011, 8:33 pm by N.W
The last 4 years have seen the rebirth of writing in Kenya and with it the emergence of performance poetry. Writers such as Binyavanga Wainaina, Parsalelo Kantai, Muthoni Garland, Kingwa Kamencu, Yvonne Owuor, Onduko Bw’Atebe among others. Many of these have gone on to win local and international awards.
In the same period, the re-birth of poetry but this time in spoken form was witnessed with forums like Kwani Open mic, Rhythm & Spoken, WAPI, becoming spaces where poets could share their poems in way of performance.
Other monthly as well as annual events like the Sunday Salon, Story Moja Hay Festival and Kwani LitFest have ensured that writers and poets get to meet under the literature banner to not only inspire each other but also inspire many Kenyans who enjoy a good read and watch poetry come alive.
Kaigwa the Sculptor, Binyavanga and NW at a past event
(photo courtesy of N.W)
Despite this growth however, the same challenges plague Kenyan Writers and Poets – getting published.
This has been a challenge that every new writer and poet faces in a bid to get their work out there and the debate always goes the egg and hen way; what comes before the other? The writer having a huge demand hence publisher seeing the worth in publishing or publisher taking a risk and discovering a gem?
The internet has been around for quite some time and has recently become a very important tool for socializing.
For early initiates like me who discovered the internet a bit early, there are a number of creative writers (writers and poets) who discovered this great tool and who started blogging as early as 2005. Muki garang and Matathia (Potash) are such writers. I also started this blog around the same time.
Fast forward to the year 2010 and a lot of poets now have blogs. Poets like Cereal in a box, CizoePoetry, Wamathai, Ngwatilo just to mention a few. Theirs is a battle half won in the publishing challenge as they are able to publish their poetry and get the much desired reaction from readers in form of comments to their poetry posts.
At this point I would like to share my experience which though unique in Kenya has become the norm in the west. I got discovered through my blog and did not take much convincing to get Nsemia to publish my collection as the comments were enough evidence of the nature of my poetry.
As a fellow blogger and significant other aptly put it “The power of the Pen meets with the power of the net” That is how POWO (Poets and Writers Online) was born.
It is time for creative writes to look beyond getting a book published and venture into cyberspace for the immense opportunities that lay in wait.
There are animators, TV producers, online magazines looking for some good creative works either in form of a story or a poem.
The digital world remains unconquered by creative writers with platforms like Itunes offering opportunities to poets and writers who can turn their work into audio. Youtube is a free video site where one can easily upload their performance video opening up opportunities for performances outside Kenya.
Although the internet does have a lot of benefits, it is also good to be cautious and know how to copyright your works, apply for intellectual property as well deal with cases of plagiarism and copyright infringement when such cases arise.
This is what the POWO forum seeks to do for its members, not only make them aware of opportunities in the digital world but also equipment them with the necessary tools to survive and thrive online.
Join us in this venture where ‘The power of the pen meets the power of the Net’
I leave you with a quote by one of the 1st POWO guest Speakers, Njoroge Matathia.
"As a writer, I cut my teeth on the internet a space where as far as writing goes, the dabbler meets the hobbyist and the MFA backed craftsmanship meets raw talent. The internet: a veritable patch pourri of style and form; a babel of trained and untrained voices; a cacophony of the phony know-it-alls outshouting of the too-smart-for-TV pundits; the only place in the wide world where genius shares both a podium and accolades with mediocrity."
Read the rest of this article " Made on the Internet" here. -
POWO(Poets and Writers Online) Meetup, 23rd April at the IHub
Posted: April 14, 2011, 9:57 pm by N.W
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Anthony David Coming to Kenya on May 7; The Lounge Unplugged
Posted: April 12, 2011, 10:35 pm by N.W
They brought us Hill St. Soul last year for the first ever 'Lounge Unplugged', this year in May they will be hosting Anthony David known for his hit 'Words' featuring India Arie.
Capital FM's first live event in putting life to Mid Morning show 'The Lounge', was dubbed 'Lounge Unplugged'. It was a huge success that surprised not just the hosts but even Hillary Mwelwa herself (the lead singer in the group Hill St. Soul)as she didn't think Kenyan's actually knew her music.
With 4 albums at present, Anthony David will be having a live performance in Nairobi on May 7th. Elani, a local group that has also been making inroads in the music scene will be the opening act.
If you didn't know Anthony David's music, its about time you looked for his albums and save up for the show whose venue might be the Zen Garden but this is yet to be confirmed.
Enjoy this hit song 'Forevermore' which he featured Algebra and rapper Phonte (its abt time pple stopped playing Kenny G on their weddings.........)
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The Spoken World - Dass Restaurant 14th April
Posted: April 12, 2011, 10:14 pm by N.W
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Fena Gitu; A new Fenamenal Sound in Nairobi
Posted: April 12, 2011, 12:23 pm by N.W
"Have you ever felt down down in your soul, you don't know what to do, you don't know where to go"
That is the first verse of the song 'Down' by Fena Gitu or Fena_Menal as her twitter handle suggests! Fena is fairly new to the music scene with this particular song having been uploaded on SoundCloud only 15 days ago.
Her voice is fresh, crisp with 'matter of fact' lyrics on life- a relief from the love, women, relationships and partying that most Kenyan songs by the younger generation are known for.
A few months ago I wrote an article exploring this new sound coming from Nairobi. In the article titled 'Afrosoul – Emerging soul from Africa or a fad?', I did mention that only time would answer the question.
From the look of things, I hope I am not jumping the gun when I say that we are witnessing something phenominal in the making. But don't take my word for it, catch Fena at the Kinanda Festival this Sunday, 17th April at Kifaru Gardens from 1.30- 6.30pm, Gate charges are Ksh.200.
She will be performing alongside Atemi, Kombo, Anto Neo Soul, Elani, Ma3, Adwar, Asiyo & Aceda -other names whose music would also be classified as 'AfroSoul'.
Follow Fena on Twitter for updates on when her Debut album is expected. In the meantime, enjoy the single 'Down'
Down by Fena Music -
Screenings Of Kenyan AMAA Award Nominees
Posted: April 6, 2011, 10:39 pm by N.W
* HOMAGES EXTRA ** SCREENINGS OF KENYAN AMAA AWARD NOMINEES *
* WHERE: GOETHE-INSTITUTMaendeleo House Monrovia StreetNairobi
* WHEN: Friday 8th April 2011 - 5.30 PM
* ENTRY: FREE
SCREENINGS OF KENYAN AMAA AWARD NOMINEES
On 25th February 2011, the African Movie Academy Awards announced its 2011 nominees list. The nominations party took place in Nairobi, the awards ceremony was held from 21st – 27th March in Yenagoa, Nigeria. The Awards are presented annually to recognize excellence of professionals in the African Film industry.
We will be screening some of the Kenyan films that were nominated this year:
* Wanjiru Kairu’s Weakness (nominated in the Best Short Film category)
* Zipporah Nyarori’s Zebu and the Photofish (nominated in Best Short Film, and in Best Child Actor)
* Judy Kibinge’s documentary Headlines in History (nominated in Best Documentary)
* Hawa Essuman’s feature film Soul Boy (nominated in the categories of Best Film, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Screenplay, Best Film in African Language, Best Young Actor).
Goethe-Institut Nairobi - +254-20-2224640 - prog@nairobi.goethe.org -
Theatre: Mugaathe Mugaathuku (The Unhonorable Honorable) 16th & 17th April
Posted: April 6, 2011, 12:23 pm by N.W
Kiongi a popularly elected president soon forgets his core mandate from his electorate. Surrounded by a bunch of crooked loyalists, they deeply engage in all vices against the same people who elected them. From impunity, corruption, grabbing of public land- including a cemetery, immorality, wife snatching, rape, corruption, maize scandal, condom scandal, contaminated food saga, violence, rigging of elections, wrong priorities, misuse of public funds; name it. By all means possible, they perpetrate all sorts of injustice to hold on to power. This goes on until the general public has had enough, life is unbearable, promises are broken, women and children are dying. Enough is enough………………………………………….Asiii!!!!!!! Was it a dream or what?.....................Aren’t those approaching screams?........................... Are they coming for me?
Watch the Play Mugaathe Mugaathuku at the Kenya National Theatre (Concert Hall) on Sat 16th, & 17th April 2011 at 3pm & 6pm
TICKETS: Adults : 500/-, Students: 300/-
For Advanced booking, inquiries call mpesa 0721548578. or Email: Thiongo_k(at)yahoo.com. Tickets available at Kenya National Theatre,
Theatre Impressionists- Home of real laughter, Producer: Thiongo K, Director: Eduardo Waigwa, Music: Kinyua Mundia, Choreography: John Mudembo. -
Kenyan Bloggers Form an Association; BAKE
Posted: April 1, 2011, 10:39 pm by N.W
On Friday 25th March, several Kenyan bloggers held a meeting in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, under the newly formed BAKE ( Bloggers Association KEnya). The meeting was the 4th in an initiative by some of Kenyas veteran bloggers.
There have been numerous complaints, accusations and in some instances, outright battle of words simmering between the blogger community and the mainstream media with cases of plagiarism, copyright infringement and a general lack of appreciation by the mainstream media on the impact that blogging has had in generation and delivery of news and information content in Kenya. This standoff has been aptly covered in a recent blogpost by Jacque Ndinda titled, WriteThinking: Plagiarism-masters of copy paste.
Read the rest of the article on Global Voices
@Kahenya, a Kenyan blogger at a previous BarCamp, photo courtesy of Njeri Wangari
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Fish cakes
Alas a fish cake.
Yet more fish cakes
Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.
The end of the fish cakes
