You are probably guessing on what am going to talk about. You may guess right or wrong whatever your perspective on this matter is.
Anyway, I have been thinking about this for quite sometime and now I have to write and give out what it is.
If you check articles from the past you will find where I have written about coast artists complaining over being sidelined in the entertainment industry in Kenya. Wait a minute did I say Kenya? Now when you talk of Kenya for a person in Mombasa and any part of this country he will always think 'Nairobi'.
The question is why Nairobi and the environment around it? I do not know the answer, maybe you help me answer it.
Music
My start is entertainment. As an entertainment blog we are very keen on trends on this vast industry. As I had said ditto, many artists from the coast had been quoted complaining about being sidelined in national entertainment matters. Now I am going to take a perspective of the whole Kenya. When we ve a national event like Kenya at 50 Celebrations for EXAMPLE why did it happen that only ONE coast artist perfomed ie Ali B? The rest of the other artists were from Nairobi, the likes of Sauti Sol, Jua Cali, Meja, Madtraxx etc. Does it mean, Susumila, Nyota Ndogo,Johny Skani or Sudi Boy could not rock the crowd?
Look at the Playlists in Tv Stations you rarely find a video from the Coast or other parts of the Country.
Leave that, Now there has been an issue about this MCSK(Music Copyright Society of Kenya). I do not know how this organisation work but from what I ve heard, they pay artists royalties on their pieces of music if you register with them. I am not ignorant that I do not know how they operate but I am to be honest that many artists also are as ignorant as me. The reason is simple, this MCSK guys do not sensitize the artists to register and get these benefits.I remember Odinareh Bingwa dissing these organisation in his song Jubilee.But if they get you playing local music without paying for their ticket in your Kinyozi, pub, PSV vehicle etc, they will arrest you and you will be fined. It will not matter whether the songs you were playing were of an unregistered artist or not.
Tv Programs
In this one I am not going to talk much but I am going to give what my view is. In Tv programs, the TV stations blindfold us to show that somehow they ve our interests when they do not.
In almost all TV Stations there are local programs that people love and they are sponsored by that Particular TV station. For example Beba Beba which is aired on NTV, Tahidi High which is aired on Citizen TV, Classmates which is aired on KBC and many more shows..
Now lets look at a coast-like show aired in any of this stations, Example Saida in Citizen Tv, The show is aired on Saturday from 6.30 pm to 7 pm. At this time hardly do you find people in the house sitting watching TV. This means the audience is limited. My question would be, if this Tv station airs all over Kenya why do you major in what you call local content that is 95% produced in Nairobi. Does it mean you can not get content in Kisumu, Eldoret, Murang'a or Narok?
Reality Shows
In the past there used not be many reality shows as such in Kenyan Televisions as there is today. It is only sad that the topic am talking about is actually well manifested here. Talk of Lets Say TPF(Tusker Project Fame) or Sakata Mashariki I may say almost all the personnel involved in it are from within Nairobi except may be when they are doing auditions regionally.
Lets look at another example 'Churchill Show' , May be I do not watch my TV but what I know his crew is 70% or so from Nairobi.
I can take the whole day and write all of them here and you will see my point. Talk of The Trend by Larry Madowo, How many Kisumu or Malindi artists as he ever interviewed?
There are many shows in Tv stations, I don't know Top 40 rich women, Young and Rich etc and you find the analysis is done within Nairobi and its Environs. You can not tell me that there are no young men or women in Mombasa who are rich even more than those interviewed in K24 and can inspire other Kenyans.
Radio Stations
I listen to radio every day and I know you also do. If I go back to music and all the complains about it you will be my witness.
I listen to interviews done by Caroline Mutoko in the morning show of Kiss 100, Interviews by Soulo and Amina in Capital Fm and many more. The funny thing is I ve never heard them interview anybody from the coast especially on the music industry. Lets say for Example Hits not Homework of Capital fm which am a big fan, they ve never ever had a coast artist interviewed or freestyle on their lyrical Wednesday show. Why cant this stations limit their frequency to Nairobi and leave us to listen to our Coast radio stations if the station's major is in Nairobi?
Last week but one when Nigerian singer Flava was here, he gave a reason why their music in Nigeria has managed to cross borders.It is even evident on their movies. They give priority to their own first before any other thus the saying 'Charity Begins at home'.
This list will be long and I do not have time to prove that Kenya is biased in Nature. If were to write about politics it could be even worse, but I know am weak so let me just say I am 2 pounds lighter after writing this.
DO NOT ATTACK ME, ATTACK THE ISSUES WRITTEN