Kenyan R&B singer Meryl Paige Diva has been persistent in pursuing a not so popular genre in Kenya presently but still continues to woo her audiences. 

Meryl graced the just concluded Trace Live sets as a background vocalist for some of Kenya’s renowned artists where she displayed her versatility and collaborative skills.

She sang alongside King Kaka, Octopizzo, Kagwe Mungai, Naiboi, and Khaligraph Jones.

In some of these performances, Meryl went above and beyond a background vocalist’s job by offering vocal support and adding melody to rap music.

Her voice was instrumental in giving an emotional and mellow touch to the hooks and bridges of these artists’ songs.

On her set with King Kaka, Meryl did a splendid job with the hook of the song Betty creating a soulful break in his verses and also with the rendition of Lighters.

She also sang behind Amos and Josh and King Kaka in their collabo Baadaye during the show. 

Her sultry voice held the fort in Naiboi’s set on Trace Live especially in Kidege.

This set caught Kenyan songbird Wambura Mitaru’s attention on Youtube prompting her to ask about and commend Meryl for a job well done.

Wambura wasn’t the only one singing Meryl’s praises, Octopizzo also gave her public acknowledgment on his socials. 

“My favorite part of the whole show was singing full choruses of songs I have known and loved and allowing the masses that tuned in to connect and feel the same way.” Meryl says, speaking on her experience at Trace.

Meryl Paige has been in the live music scene for 7 years now and is well versed in the art of live performance. 

She started her musical journey at a young age in Sauti Academy, which has fostered many Kenyan musicians, and even hosts two events that give her and other Kenyan musicians a platform to share different genres of music.

Meryl recorded a number of singles including Regrets, When it's Cold (Dear X), Nawe , Hera featuring Waithaka Ent. and Light my Way with Josh of the Amos and Josh duo in 2019. 

She also produced her debut album SuperEgo in March 2020 which she describes as a body of work that depicts the daily struggle an artist has keeping up with society’s expectations and their own.

Meryl looks forward to creating and collaborating more with other artists. 

“I'd love to collaborate with Octopizzo because I’m a nyar ugenya bade dongo representing, Khaligraph because he is just a gift to us as well as King Kaka and Fena because we would gel very well together in a show,” she says. 

Stream "SuperEgo Album" here: https://backl.ink/129089734

The Trace Live performance is bound to leave a lot of people yearning to see more of Meryl and what will become of her.

According to Trace Eastern Africa Cluster MD, the music extravaganza was an initiative to support the local creative economy and offer lovers of music both in Kenya and abroad an immersive entertainment concert during a period of restrictive social interaction due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Following the success of their debut single “She Don’t Know”, AfroStringz releases a unique Afro Remix to the Hip Hop classic “Trap Queen” , the single that put rap artist Fetty Wap on the map reaching number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 2015, and leading to his record deal with 300 Entertainment.

Fetty Wap has approached Miri Ben-Ari back in April to collaborate on a live performance of the song for an award show, and Miri instead suggested to flip it “Afrostringz style”.

Fetty Wap fell in love with this new version that kept the classic feel of the song with a romantic upbeat production of lush strings and Afro House beat.

AfroStringz (www.afrostringz.com) brings together two worlds, a fusion of African music with strings sound, a multicultural entertainment experience that is unique, different and powerful. 

Stream/Buy “Trap Queen Afro Remix”: https://sparta.ffm.to/trapqueenafroremix

Speaking of Trap Queen Afro Remix release, Afrostringz say, “The challenge was in flipping a Hip-Hop classic “Trap Queen” and keeping it classic."

Adding "We used our Afrostringz unique sound and production for this Afro Remix. Our goal is to promote African music in America and create a world that has no limits, especially nowadays where the world needs harmony more than ever!”

Afrostringz EP is scheduled for release in 2021. 

Afro stands for renowned African producer "The Beat Boss" Young D from Nigeria while Stringz stands for Grammy-Award winning violinist/producer Miri Ben-Ari, originally from Israel. 

Afrostringz began when Young D. reached out to Miri after seeing her captivating violin feature on Diamond Platnumz’s crossover song “Baila”.

Miri, who was familiar with Young D.’s production for the song “Bom bom”(Timaya ft Sean Paul), met Young D. in the music studio to collaborate on a few songs.

The two quickly realized they have created a unique product and sound.

WCB C.E.O Diamond Platnumz has surprised his new signee Zuchu with a brand new car.

Zuchu who is currently ruling the airwaves with her hit song 'Mauzauza' was given the new Rav 4 last night during a live Tv show, Big Sunday Live on wasafi Tv.

Present at the show was Zuchu's mother, veteran taarab singer Khadija Kopa.

Zuchu was overwhelmed with emotions as the Wasafi boss  handed her the car.

She took to social media to thank her boss, Diamond Platnumz.

"Mwenyezi mungu wangu nasema Alhamdullilah, mbariki boss wangu na umuongoze kwa hiki kikubwa alichoniongezea kwenye maisha yangu. Si kila mtu ana moyo kama wako boss hakuna cha kukulipa my brother hakuna kwakweli Allah akupe umri wa uhai wenye mafanikio zaidi unatuokoa wengi sana Diamond Platnumz. Asante boss." she posted.

On his part Diamond Platnumz encouraged youths to go after their dreams and be descplined.

"Tuwambie vijana wenzetu waliopo mitaani kuwa kila kitu kinawezekana lakini lazima tuamini katika ndoto zetu, tusali sana, tuwe na nidhamu sanasana, na kuwaomba wazazi wetu waendele kutuombea ili tufike malengo yetu" said Diamond

This comes just a day after WCB hosted a high end event in Daresalaam for Zuchu to celebrate her growth and thank fans for their support. There were performances from all WCB artists at the event which was attended by several Tanzania celebrities and government officials.

Kenya is once again grieving the sudden  demise of a major face in the comedy industry, Charles Bukeko, popularly known as Papa Shirandula who passed on Saturday morning, at the Karen Hospital family.

According to the family spokesman Bernard Wanyama, the actor had been sick for only a couple of days before succumbing to his death.

“He was out of Nairobi for work for some time and returned on Sunday. On Monday, he was complaining that he was not feeling  well, maybe because he was in a colder environment when he was out of Nairobi, so he went to Karen hospital for treatment. At the hospital he was diagnosed with pneumonia and prescribed medication for the same, he was released for home management,” Said Wanyama.

He adds that only 4 days later, things were getting out of hand as his health was not showing improvements.

“He started complaining again on Friday night that he was not feeling very well, so the plan was to get to hospital the following morning. On Saturday morning the situation had gotten really worse and the wife had to rush him to Karen hospital, where he passed on arrival. He did not have an opportunity to even see the doctor,” He adds.

Bukeko had joined the acting industry right about the time he cleared high school studies in Upper Hills secondary, which was not always a smooth road.

In 1998,he  met Dr JPR Ochieng’ Odera  who would become his first ever director before moving onto Phoenix Theatre where he ran into Ian Mbugua and who, in turn, introduced him to James Falkland, who trained him for 3 more years  on the basics of theatre performances at absolutely no charge. But his breakthrough came with his feature in the Papa Shirandula TV series in 2010.

The 58 years old husband and father of three won the 2010 kalasha awards for best actor, in a TV series. And he also featured in the film, The captain of Nakara. Papa Shirandula opened a lot of doors, a role which became hard for people  to separate from the person he was.

A statement by the Royal Media Services group Managing Director, Mr Wachira Waruru, the actor passed away on Saturday morning to the shock of the whole fraternity.

“…Papa, as he was fondly known within the royal media fraternity, represented a pioneering group of Kenyan actors who immensely contributed to the growth and success of local productions. I am honored to have worked closely with Bukeko in the creation of the Papa Shirandula series that immediately gained wide acceptance across the country. His passing is therefore a big loss not only to the royal media family and Kenya’s acting fraternity but also to the country as a whole. His legacy and contribution to Kenya’s TV Industry will continue to impact many generations to come,” it read.

He will be laid to rest tomorrow (Monday) at his home in Busia County.

Nigerian DJ and producer Cuppy has collaborated with East African music star Rayvanny and Afrobeats wonderkid Rema on new single ‘Jollof On The Jet’, out 17th July via Platoon.

‘Jollof On The Jet’ is a smooth slice of Afro-pop, seeing Cuppy, Rayvanny and Rema trade verses amidst a relaxed, sunkissed production.

Speaking about the collaboration, Cuppy says, “Working on this collaboration was so uplifting. Due to social-distancing, we didn’t actually record in the studio together, but the beat encapsulated all of us and I truly believe we have created a delicious masterpiece!”

Cuppy burst onto the scene in 2014 when she was selected as a DJ at the MTV Africa Music Awards.

In 2015 she embarked on Cuppy Takes Africa Tour, the tour was filmed and a documentary series of the same name aired on Fox Life.

Cuppy has a catalogue of five strong singles including her compilation ‘Green Light’ with Tekno as well as her last release ‘Gelato’ featuring Zlatan.

An exciting, modern afro-pop jam, ‘Jollof On The Jet’ will no doubt enhance the excitement surrounding Cuppy’s forthcoming debut album even further.

Purchase / Stream Here

The Queen of Afro House Niniola delivers some fresh summer heat with “Addicted,” the latest single from her upcoming sophomore album, Colours and Sounds, dropping in September.

Following on the heels of the Afrobeat-inspired “Fantasy” featuring Femi Kuti, Niniola returns to her signature sound on a hypnotic rhythm from close collaborator and long-time producer SARZ .

“‘Addicted’ is about searching for a long-lost love,” Niniola says. “Having a crazy addiction to love.”   

LINK: https://fanlink.to/NiniolaAddicted  

Kenyan boy band Hart The Band have announced that they will soon be releasing a new song.

The band broke the good news to their fans via social media where they also revealed that they have lately been writing alot of new music and are at a point of not knowing which one to release first.

"Lately, we have been writing a lot of new music. And, by a lot, we mean like very many new songs. We are now at the point where we don't really know which one to release" reads posted.

The group also acknowledged the huge impact their hit song El Shaddai left for them.

"Also, El Shaddai really did it big for us and we would like to keep the same energy. Being in a group of three artistes who are perfectionists can sometimes get crazy. Anyways, watch this space #newmusicloading." they posted.

Singer Diamond Platnumz’s manager Hamis Taletale famously known as Babu Tale has officially joined politics.

Babu Tale who lost his wife Shammy last month is vying for the Mkuyuni Constituency Mp seat, Mkuyuni is in Morogoro.

Today, he was at the local Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) office to collect the official party aspirant form. CCM is the main ruling party in Tanzania.

The WCB Manager was among party delegates  present at the national delegates meeting which was held on Saturday in Dodoma, the event was graced by President John Magufuli.

Several artists and colleagues from WCB  have come out on their social media platforms to give him support as he makes this major move of joining the political scenes.

Babu Tale now joins his fellow manager at WCB Mkubwa Fella in politics, Mkubwa Fella is also a local councilor in Daresalaam.

“Personally, I believe leadership is your fate. Obstacles, heartbreaks, insults and all forms of challenges are part of leadership. You are not facing them alone; we are together with you...All the best Hon Hamis Shaban Taletale,'' said Artist Rayvanny.

“There is a difference between wanting leadership and leadership wanting you. In your case, we all understand that leadership needs you. Mr Hamisi Shaban Taletale, your wisdom in executing, solving, succeeding and good decision making skills are enough armors that we take pride in as people you  work with. I am confident the people of South Eastern Morogoro will be well in your Wisdom,” Said Sallam SK, Fellow manager at WCB.

“Through you I believe that the citizens in Morogoro will have found the right person to lead them and to fight for their challenges and transform Morogoro completely. May the Almighty God guide you so that you can also be a good leader to the citizens in Morogoro,” Added the Kipepeo hit maker, Mbosso.

“ I have no doubt over your leadership because I believe that if you were able to lead me/Wasafi and many other artists even before us, and all of them greatly succeeding, then I do believe that through you, the South Eastern Morogoro citizens will be safe in your hands. Myself together with the whole Wasafi family are solidly behind you to ensure that we are supporting you through it all to bring forth development in Morogoro and together, to help the Hon President Dr John Pombe Magufuli in building Tanzania,” Said Tanzanian Superstar, Diamond Platnumz.

Several Tanzanian celebrities have also come out to express their interests in different political seats, among them is veteran music producer Joachim Marunda a.k.a Master Jay who will be vying for the Rombo parliamentary seat, rapper Wakazi real name Webiro Wassira, former Miss Tanzania Lilian Kamazima.

Former actress and entrepreneur Antu Mandoza has also expressed her interest in the special national assembly seat.

CCM which on Saturday settled on President John Magufuli as the presidential flag bearer in the coming elections is now set to hold nominations to it's candidates for the different parliamentary and local councilor seats.

The just-concluded 18th Enactus Kenya Virtual Entrepreneurship and Innovation Expo saw an online panel of digitally savvy Corporate leaders serving as judges, carefully select a champion to represent Kenya at Enactus Virtual World Cup in Utrecht, Netherlands come September 2020.

This year’s edition of Enactus Kenya National Expo attracted over 20 Enactus Kenya affiliate universities (both public and private) from all over Kenya; to showcase the achievements of their community outreach projects to an online panel of judges.

Their projects focused on offering Technology and Smart Solutions to challenges facing Kenya during this Covid-19 pandemic. Areas addressed involved Energy, Housing, Agriculture, Health, Mining and Waste Management. Over 30 Corporate leaders and 20 university faculty members participated in the competition.

The Enactus Kenya platform forms a foundation where students gain necessary skills to participate in Start-ups, SMEs and Technology Innovation initiatives. 

Enactus Kenya has facilitated skills development for over 4,500 undergraduate students through experiential learning. This has been achieved through community outreach projects, trainings, thematic events, annual national business competitions and the annual Enactus World Cup.

The Expo provides a platform for the participating teams to perfect their innovations ahead of the World Cup Competitions, enhance industry collaboration and provide international exposure.

The university with the highest community impact solution represents Kenya at the Enactus Virtual World Cup which will be livestreamed from Utrecht, Netherlands in September 2020; with 36 countries participating.

Enactus Strathmore University captured first place with Data-Driven Agriculture; A customer-centered project that keeps track of farmland conditions and educates the farmer on ideal farming inputs and crops to cultivate for optimum and quality produce both remotely and in real time.  

Enactus Jaramogi Oginga Odinga of Science & Technology came in second with Hydropad Project that involves the making of the sanitary towels from water hyacinth and paper waste to improve the hygiene among women and children in the rural areas, as well as keeping teenage girls in school ultimately improving their school performance.

Enactus University of Eldoret came in third place with Agrisasa, a mobile application project that provides smart market solutions for small and medium-sized scale farmers by providing ready markets for their farm produce.

The market solutions are based on the seller’s geographical location.

The application also connects potential buyers and sellers.

"I congratulate all the university students and faculty members that participated in the Enactus Kenya Virtual Entrepreneurship and Innovation Expo, more so to the Champion, Strathmore University. I welcome both industry and universities to join us in the next phase that  is meant to enable virtual interactions between industry and academia to explore how best to navigate the COVID-19 new normal.” Said James Shikwati, Enactus Kenya Country Leader and Director Inter Region Economic Network (IREN).

“It was a pleasure to be part of the final round judges panel for the 18th Enactus Kenya National 2020 competition. I am amazed by the ideas and the projects presented in this platform. This reflects a lot about the Kenyan students' creativity and entrepreneurship promise.” Added Mohamed Saad, CEO GIZA Systems WECA

The 18th Enactus Kenya Expo featured: Enactus Teams Digital Project Presentations, Panel Discussions on the current issues, Enactus Kenya Home Stories Session following the Covid-19 Disruptions, Education, Technology and Innovation, The Job Landscape, Youth Entrepreneurship and Opportunities, Navigating Mental Health Challenges in the COVID-19 World, The power of Culture, and the Winners Announcement Sessions.

Working with 34 public and private Universities, Enactus Kenya has implemented more than 1,000 projects over time. Organizations and corporate entities participate through strategic partnerships to offer value to both the students and the respective organizations. 

About Enactus Kenya

Enactus Kenya was launched in 2003 following an M.O.U between Enactus International and Inter Region Economic Network Ltd (IREN). The organization operates in over 30 colleges and universities, with more than 3,000 students participating.

Enactus is an international organization that brings together student, academic and business leaders who are committed to using the power of entrepreneurial action to shape a better, more sustainable world. Guided by faculty advisors and business experts, participating students form teams on their campuses to create and implement community projects that empower people in need.

The experience not only transforms lives, it helps students develop the skills and perspective necessary to become effective, values-driven leaders. Founded in 1975, today Enactus has more than 70,500 student participants on campuses in 36 countries.

Today, FC Barcelona officially presents the new jersey for the 2020/21 season, whose design is inspired by the 1920s, considered the Club’s first Golden Era.

Following the Club’s official presentation of the jersey on Tuesday July 14, the kit is going on sale at the Barça Stores of Camp Nou (also online), Canaletes, Passeig de Gràcia and La Roca Village. Soon it will be available at the stores in Barcelona Airport (T1 and T2), which will open in the upcoming weeks.

Specifically, at the different FC Barcelona points of sale, fans will be able to find the quality Match jersey, the same one that the players wear at games.

This model uses the Vaporknit technology, a lightweight high-performance textile whose excellent elasticity helps to boost mobility and generate a high level of breathability.

FC Barcelona will soon announce the on-sale date for garments of the Stadium line, a cheaper line.

Due to a technical issue, these models were withdrawn from the distribution controlled by FC Barcelona, and once the problem is solved, the Club will inform when the garments will be available through the usual stores and distribution channels.

This season, the jersey is recovering its traditional vertical stripes, but is including gold as a distinctive element.

The ‘blaugrana’ stripes are bordered on each side by gold strips, which evoke the design of the Club crest that the team wore on their shirts throughout the 1920s.

Another outstanding feature of the new design is the roundneck collar that also has a gold-coloured rim, while the Catalan ‘senyera’ flag appears on the back, just underneath.

The full kit also includes blue shorts, with a vertical maroon stripe on the side, which also has a gold rim, and horizontally striped socks that imitate the shirt design.

Inspired by the Club’s first Golden Era

It was in the 1920s that football became a mass phenomenon in the city, and FC Barcelona attracted a good part of that attention with legendary players like Samitier, Alcántara, Zamora, Sagi, Piera and Sancho, who became Barça’s first local heroes.

Together they formed a legendary side that drew huge crowds and led to the construction in 1922 of Les Corts, the clubs first stadium of its own.

Of the many victories in that era, the most celebrated was the Spanish Championship (now the Copa del Rey), won in 1928 against Real Sociedad, and in 1929 FC Barcelona became the first winners of LaLiga title, a tournament that would go on to become the most important championship in the country.

Commitment to sustainability

The shirt and shorts are produced using 100% recycled polyester, obtained using recycled plastic bottles that are melted to create a very fine thread. The outcome is a material that not only boosts sporting performance but also has less of an effect on the environment.