Nigerian rapper, singer and songwriter  Kida Kudz returns with his powerful first solo release of 2021, “Animalistic”.

The single, available for streaming on all platforms here, is a masterful blend of melodic Afrobeat and ‘AFRO JIGGY’ sensibilities with personal and pertinent subject matter. 

Speaking on the release, Kida says, “Writing Animalistic was a spiritual process for me. I woke up early one morning, grabbed my pen and paper, started jotting down to the instrumental and tapped into the forces I needed; the lyrics just flowed from me."

Adding "I was painting a perfect picture of an African boy speaking to his people, trying to preach to them in a kind of way.”

Written on the day one of his family members was taken away, “Animalistic” explores the topic of incarceration and the discomfort and cultural issues around it.

Kida adds on how personal it goes, “You can vibe to the song but at the same time it is sending a message across to young people to stay up and stay woke! ‘Gangsterism got us locked in prison’ was a real life story of a family member that had been taken away that same morning when I wrote the verse."

"These are real things that I put in my song, things that are happening around me and that other people are experiencing in the world.”

No stranger to the limelight, Kida Kudz’ authentic, intelligent and vibrant output has had incredible co-signs from Playboi Carti and A$AP Rocky as well as gaining fans in the likes of HYPEBEAST, RedBull, TRENCH, GRM Daily, Complex, Hunger, CLASH and more.

He has graced festival stages from Oh My to Afronation and his distinguished personal style and keen eye for fashion has led to collaboration with Daily Paper, Tommy Hilfiger, Clarks and more.

Gospel singer Mash Mwana is mourning the sudden demise of his father.

According to the 'Hatachelewa' hitmaker, his father succumbed to Covid-19.

'The first time I heard about the coronavirus, I thought it was just normal but right now my father is no more," said Mwana on his instagram page.

The singer is appealing for financial support to offset his father's hospital bill.

"Today I lost my dad who was ill and admitted to the hospital. I have a pending bill of 500k to sort out within 48 hours. I need all my real ones to come through with me on this one." he said.

After dropping a sneak peak for his long-awaited sophomore album, Chemsha Changanya, Kuiyu follows up with the music video for Butter, shot and directed by PKG INC.

In his signature style, Kuiyu is sharing his story about being free and owning his intimacy, sometimes hard other times soft.

The video finds the Kiambu bred singer in a feel-good chill mood with happy people around him.

The project itself is a dedication to close friendship, individual beauty, freedoms and expressions, motivated by the themes ‘black boy joy’ and ‘black girl magic’.

The tracks’ architecture is an interesting, ear arousing assortment of sounds traditionally referred to as ‘indigenous’ sandwiched in a careful arrangement of Urban elements.

The music is lost in between RnB/Trap sequences and Afro-Soul dynamics making ‘Butter’ a unique contribution to East African Music Making. 

‘Butter’ offers a reintroduction into the portrayal of the masculine and the feminine, the African and the foreign, the pop and the folk.

As audiences evolve in the cosmopolitan environments, the music evolves too. What started out as an alternative experiment is set to become a model and template for future folk, RnB and bilingual creative  expression.

About

Kuiyu’s art draws from multiple influences without leaning on one in particular. A wandering spirit, he exemplifies authentic expression coloring outside the lines in his audio and visual art creations. His work resonates with a vulnerable essence, bold styling and edifying spirit. He hopes to delve deeper Exploring romanticism, identity and orientations, spirituality and the emancipation of the African mind in his upcoming sophomore album and virtual concert.

Worship singer Jescar Karimi is here with her latest musical offering titled “Mungu Mkuu”.

Watch The Video Here: https://youtu.be/FCc1Pf__HrA

ABOUT THE SONG

“I wrote the song 4years ago, from a point of acknowledging that God is great and greater than all other names. In my ups and downs, I choose to exalt His Name. The recording and release of the song couldn't have come at a better time than this. Days preceding the Mungu Mkuu video shoot were interesting. I had worked straight for 12 days and it was during this period while at work in the hospital that I got to launch the song with a patient in the isolation ward. That one particular patient that I ministered to also ministered to me with a word from Psalms 29; which happens to be one of my favorite chapters. “– Jescar Karimi

ABOUT JESCAR

Jescar Karimi is a born-again gospel singer born and raised in Embu. Her genre is Worship music and she fellowships at Deliverance Church - Kimende, where she also serves as a Praise and Worship leader. 

Jescar’s passion in music began while in high school, that is Moi Girls' High School, Eldoret and she got to nurture it all the way to Moi University where she sang in the University Choir. She recorded her first single while back in 2014 through the guidance of music producer Wycliffe who first saw that musical light in her and helped her light it.

Jescar Karimi’s first music video titled Ni Maombi was released in 2016. This was followed by the second one, Mali Bila Daftari, which was released in 2017. The song got considerable airplay both on radio and TV and won her an award in that year’s edition of KEGMA Awards. The win opened for her a lot of doors like enabling her to start interacting with top gospel musicians in Kenya who gave her more insights on how to improve on her music ministry. She later released "Kwaria Nawe" and “Tena Na Tena” in 2018, “Ni Jehovah” in 2019 and finally “Umenipenda” in 2020.

Jescar feels blessed and privileged to be able to serve humanity both as a musician and as a physiotherapist because she gets to do more than what her medica career entails; she gets to share God's Word and her musical gift with her clients whenever possible. She is also an inspirational writer and columnist; she regularly writes for her employer - the referral hospital she works for, in their magazine which highlights the various activities being undertaken to provide better healthcare to Kenyans.

Jescar Karimi has in the past worked with Biblica Kenya in issuing out Bibles to children with terminal illnesses and also with the same organization, at the start of Covid -19 pandemic, she got to share a devotional that was aimed at encouraging people in these tough times.

Quote about her music ministry – “My Music life story will be one of God qualifying the "unqualified" and I am excited about what lies ahead, as the Lord enables me to see the unfolding of the next chapters of my life.”

Nameless is the latest Kenyan celebrity to lose his Instagram account to hackers.

The verified account enjoys more than 1.2 million following, was on Monday taken over by hackers who are suspected to be from Iraq. The hackers have since been posting their own posts.

Taking to his facebook page Nameless updated his followers about the incident.

Hey fam… Just to let you know, my IG account was hacked Jan… We are working with a dedicated team to sort it out, and pray that we will be back in control ASAP . Will keep you updated. For now I will be communicating though here and Twitter, na pia Tiktok , hapo naweza release stress na madance stingo,” he posted on Facebook.

The news was first communicated by  Nameless’s wife Wahu  who posted a short message on her instagram account asking fans to disregard any posts coming from the account and reassured their fans that they are working to resolve the issue.

“Hey, fam. Nameless Instagram Account has been hacked. We are working to resolve the issue but for now please disregard any posts coming from Nameless Kenya account.” She posted on her official Instagram account.

Nameless becomes the latest celebrity from Kenya to fall prey to hackers. Just recently singer Sanaipei Tande also lost her account which had garnered over 230,000 followers. She was forced to open a new account.

Former Kenya Ports Authority [KPA] General Manager Corporate Services Justus Nyarandi is among six candidates shortlisted in the race for the position of KPA Managing Director to take over from  Daniel Manduku who resigned on March  last year (2020).

Nyarandi is the currently Executive Secretary of the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority (NCTTCA) based in Mombasa.

According to a source KPA General Manager operation and Harbour master Sudi Mwasinago is also among the shortlisted candidates. He will be making his third attempt at the post.

Others are former Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport Corridor chief executive officer Silvester Kasuku, former Principal Secretary at the Gender Ministry Mwanamaka Mabruki who previously worked at the port. 

Alex Odero Kazongo and little known Jim Paul Siro are also among those shortlisted for the fresh interviews for the KPA top post.

Unconfirmed reports claim KPA General Manager in charge of Lamu port Eng Abdullah Samatar has been elevated to Deputy Managing Director’s position awaiting the KPA board’s approval next week.

The KPA board was forced to go back to the drawing board after Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani declared a repeat of the recruitment of a successor to Manduku when the applicants could not beat the required threshold of over 70 percent marks as a qualification to occupy the MD’s seat.

https://ommydalla.co.ke/people/item/2047-kpa-to-re-advertise-md-job

Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala has mourned the demise of veteran Coast hotelier Kuldip Sondhi.

In his condolence message, Balala described the late Sondhi as a passionate hotelier and very outspoken about sustainable growth of beach tourism in the Coast region.

"Mzee Kuldip was my mentor in the tourism industry. It is a gift to have had a mentor, a friend and a father figure like Mzee Kuldip." said Balala.

On his part Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho described him as charming, always energetic and full of life.

"His passion for literature and poetry was unmatched, testimony to the numerous accolades, awards and adulation he received world over." said Joho.

Adding "He also served with zeal and dedication as a councillor in the defunct Mombasa Municipal Council and stood out as revered pillar of tourism development in Mombasa and the region as whole."

Businessman Suleiman Shahbal said Kuldip's death is a big blow the tourism industry.

Shahbal noted "The Tourism Industry has suffered a major blow following the death of Kuldip Raj Sondhi, a guru in the sector. Mzee Kuldip immensely contributed to the growth of the tourism industry in the Coast region."

Kuldip passed away on Monday morning. According to the family, he died at his Reef hotel facing the gardens he so loved with the Indian ocean breezes over his body.

http://ommydalla.co.ke/people/item/2138-veteran-coast-hotelier-kuldip-sondhi-is-dead?fbclid=IwAR0O50mqLtD-mn7Qim3i1U96htiwYbbVfJ32MHi2fEGB2iuTdJWQuw06HIU

The Coast tourism industry is mourning the loss of veteran hotelier Kuldip Sondhi.

Sondhi was the proprietor of Reef Hotels, Mombasa and Shimoni.

He was also an accomplished writer and poet who has been featured by BBC. He has written several short stories and plays which have been published in various anthologies.

His short story ‘Bad Blood’ was awarded the best East Africa story in the 1960’s and was published by Penguin.

The turning point in his writing career was in 1963 when the Orient Club of Nairobi requested him to write a play for their entry into the Annual National Drama Competition.

Sondhi also served as a nominated councillor for Mombasa during the defunct Mombasa Municipal Council.

Kenya Tourism Federation (KTF) Chairman Mohammed Hersi described him as a man who was passionate about the growth of the tourism industry.

"While he was in his 80's he still chose to hold my hand and guide me in matters Tourism leadership." said Hersi.

Adding "This is one man who believed in Kenya and fondly talked about it. He made a case for single gauge railway line way back in the 90s and it came to pass but not exactly as he wished though it moved huge numbers for Tourism."

President Uhuru Kenyatta has sent a message of condolence to the family, relatives and friends of Mama Shariffa El-Maawy who passed away Sunday morning at her Nairobi home.

Mama Shariffa, 89, was the mother of former Public Works Principal Secretary, the late Mariam El-Maawy.

In his message of comfort and encouragement, President Kenyatta described the late Mama Shariffa as a devoted and patriotic Kenyan who served the country for decades with utmost commitment and distinction.

"As a nation, we owe Mama Sharrifa a debt of gratitude for her immense contribution to the development of our country's education and health sectors.

"Mama Sharrifa was among the pioneer group of registered midwives in the country and has, over the years, offered her services to Kenyans across the country, especially in the Counties of Lamu, Garisssa and Kwale where she trained and mentored many health workers," the President recalled.

The President said Mama Shariffa embraced education at a time when few women in Kenya had the opportunity to pursue their educational interests.

“Mama Sharrifa was a trailblazer, a strong and determined woman who embraced education at a time when very few Kenyan women had the opportunity to pursue formal education and training," the President eulogised.

 President Kenyatta prayed to God to give the family of Mama Sharrifa the strength and fortitude to bear the loss of their beloved matriarch.