Kenyan musician Ayrosh releases his second tranquilizing music video for the year, Kirinyaga. 

The single is off his debut EP - Murasta that was released in 2019 in collaboration with Waithaka Entertainment. Kirinyaga is the native Kikuyu name for Mt. Kenya and is a significant symbol of deity, endurance, and longevity in the culture. 

The song which is a blend of Gikuyu and a little bit of English was produced by Ayrosh and Bengatronic’s DJ Mura K.E. It details Ayrosh’s acknowledgment that a higher being is the true source of solitude, peace and grace. The mid-tempo track starts with a strong percussive drum beat, breaks into a melodic guitar line before leading into a blend of Benga and Afro-house. 

Watch Kirinyaga Video: https://bit.ly/AyroshKirinyaga

The video which is directed by Johnson Kyalo mostly captures Ayrosh singing in a serene, elevated landscape gives a soothing effect while watching it. “

Kirinyaga for me is for those times you feel as if you are just drifting through life and need direction. It's the quest for something to hold onto or something to aspire to be,” says Ayrosh.

The singer further adds that fans should expect dope collabs with amazing producers both locally and internationally this year, “Nothing but fire jams coming from this side."

About Ayrosh:

Ayrosh is revolutionizing Múgithi music blending it with Pop, R&B, Reggae, and EDM. He has collaborated with Mutoriah, Kwame Rigii, Ythera, and Waithaka Ent. since his first single Wendo in 2016. He graced numerous stages in Nairobi including Múgithii Festival, Jamhuri Festival, Africa Nouveau Festival, and his own production, Folk Fusion giving eclectic performances. 

In June 2019, he released the Murasta EP with Waithaka Ent, which cleverly blends Afro-house beats with Gikuyu, English, and Swahili lyrics. Ayrosh earned two nominations in 2018 for Best Alternative Artist of the Year at Sondeka Awards and Folk Artist of the Year at Cafe Ngoma Awards. He recently collaborated with Muringi in Nuu which was released in March 2020.

African pop diva Yemi Alade soars to new heights, commanding positivity with “True Love”, A Vtek produced tribal dance anthem which serves as the second single for her forthcoming fifth studio album.

After the urban-influenced hit “Boyz”, Alade comes blazing with her towering vocals and a pulsating guitar-driven instrumentation singing; “… I can feel it in my bassline, feel in my soul, I can feel in my liver, from my head to my toes…” before returning to the triumphant chorus preaching happiness, joy and dancing in the rain of true love.

“True love” is a true African pop gem, and sets the throne for the successor of “Woman of Steal”

Global multi-platinum rapper, Nasty C, releases the high energy track and hot visual, “PALM TREES” the latest single from his forthcoming and highly anticipated album, “ZULU MAN WITH SOME POWER” to be released via Def Jam Recordings on August 28.  “ZULU MAN WITH SOME POWER” is now available to fans to pre-save with “PALM TREES” being an Instant Grat Track.

PRE-SAVE ALBUM NOW

Quoted by Billboard as “South Africa’s best bet for a mainstream crossover,” Nasty C has been delivering hit after hit with “PALM TREES” being the next single to take Nasty C global. 

With over 120M streams worldwide and 3M followers on social media, Nasty C is one of South Africa’s hottest exports. Nicknamed ‘The Coolest Kid In Africa’, he has already secured support and praise from some of the UK’s biggest tastemakers like Charlie Sloth, DJ Semtex and Tim Westwood, he is now on the verge of a global breakthrough. 

WATCH PALM TREES VISUAL

In July, Nasty C teamed up with DJ Whoo Kid to put together a mixtape for fans around the world. The musical masterpiece titled, “ZULU” features the hit track, “They Don’t” includes his first-ever collaboration with Tip “T.I.” Harris for “They Don’t,” a powerful track created by the rappers in the wake of global unrest over rampant police brutality and racial injustice. On June 23, Nasty C and T.I.  joined Late Night with Seth Meyers for a virtual performance of the protest anthem. Watch now.

 ABOUT NASTY C:

For nearly a decade, Nasty C (Nsikayesizwe David Junior Ngcobo) has had a singular focus: to push the boundaries of his own potential. 

He has been pursuing his hip-hop dreams since childhood when, legend has it, he began rapping and learning to lay down tracks at age nine under the tutelage of his older brother.  At just fifteen years of age, Nasty released his debut mixtape, One Kid, A Thousand Coffins (2012).

He shot to stardom in 2014, with his boundary-breaking second mixtape, Price City, and “Juice Back,” a continent-wide instant classic smash.  The “Juice Back” remix featured Nigerian muso, Davido and South African rapper Cassper Nyovest. This early success won Nasty C the Best Freshman prize at the highly competitive South African Hip-Hop Awards.

Nasty C’s popularity detonated with his 2016 debut album Bad Hair, which hit #1 on the iTunes local chart and was the country’s most-streamed album within 24 hours of release. 

Its re-release, Bad Hair Extensions featured French Montana.

The seminal album earned him Nasty C four Metro FM Music Awards, a South African Music Award and a BET Awards nomination.

The momentum surged with Strings And Bling in 2018, named one of South Africa’s greatest hip-hop albums by such influential local outlets as TimesLive and IOL. Nasty C was the only South African nominated for a BET Hip- Hop Award in the Best International Flow category in 2019 and was also nominated for an MTV Europe Music Award that year. Strings and Bling won him two South African Music Awards and two AFRIMMAs (All African Muzik Magazine Awards).

Contemporary Nigerian Afro-pop artist Jobaa has released a new single “Olla'', the first single off his upcoming debut EP, slated for release in 2021.

"Olla" is an infectious up-tempo rhythm on a catchy percussion-driven Afrobeat production by Jaypizzle and engineered by Mix Monsta (Selebobo). This is his official solo debut; following his collaboration with Buju on the smash hit single “Sweet Love”.

Stream OLLA: https://smarturl.it/Jobaa.Olla

OLLA audio on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0VzpF-IPho

Speaking on his stellar debut, Jobaa says, “In terms of the Afrobeat sound and the lyrical content, this is the first song defining my versatility as an artist.” 

This release also comes after Jobaa inked a lucrative deal with U.K based entertainment titan JustJoJo Entertainment Limited.

Jobaa says, “Signing with JustJoJo Entertainment is a dream come true! I had almost given up on music to focus on my masters, but then God had other plans and blessed me with the best team.” Indeed there are big plans underway for Jobaa. He’s currently planning to release two more hit singles in 2020.

With the signing of the new deal, the young star destined to leave a mark in the scene is ecstatic. He’s got a special message to his Kenyan fans, “It’s an honour to share my music with you and hope you love it and keep supporting, asante sana."

In a recent interview with Gates Mgenge on Gates Live online show, Masauti shared that he would be working with an anonymous artist on a song from his EP 001 and as word has it, the artist was recently spotted on a video shoot in Mombasa with songbird Tanasha Donna.

The video is directed by one of Tanzania’s best video directors Hanscana working together with Mombasa based production house, above the rim as the executive producer.

The new song is titled 'Liar'. The audio was recorded by Mombasa based music producer Shirko.

Tanasha who is  Diamond Platnumz's ex girlfriend and baby mama seems to be doing amazingly well in the industry as she celebrated her milestones with her Sawa music video which she released about a month ago and has well over 1.5Million views on YouTube.

Sawa from her Donna Tella EP  is a representation of Love Peace and Unity, both of self and to others.  And well the song has allowed more people to see Tanasha more as the amazing woman and artist that she is away from being just Dimaond's ex and baby mama.

“1.5M+ views in 1 month. That’s an achievement and a half for me. It’s not easy for a female in this industry doing it on her own…the sleepless  nights my team and I had, financing your own projects (songs and videos) being behind every single step or every creative process of any project, having to enter boardroom meetings and try convince some bosses (some who are team mafisi) to trust the art… having a son and family to take care of…being your own boss is tough I tell you, but  when you see the fruits of your hard work finally blossom and grow into something amazing you know you’re blessed and become grateful. And trust me am just getting started,” shared Tanasha on her social media page.

She also added that as much as Sawa was not in her genre of creativity, she had to drop a positive and catchy song to encourage people through the tough times.

“Thank you East Africa, our song trended not only in EA but also all over UAE, hit #1 in countries I never expected leave alone ever been to, Qatar, Dubai, Oman, Saudi and it’s all because of the amazing love East Africans and Africans have shown me even when most thought I wouldn’t make it far once on my own,” she added. 

First Lady Margaret Kenyatta has commended community health workers for the frontline role they play in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

The First Lady pointed out that community education on health matters can save lives and it is critical especially at this time of the Coronavirus crisis.

“I applaud your selfless commitment to your work and your courage and compassion for people and for the community. I acknowledge the sacrifice you give of your time towards the demanding role of being community health workers,” the First Lady told community health volunteers.

The First Lady was speaking today when she presided over the virtual graduation of the first cohort of the 5100 community health volunteers who have completed a one-month training on COVID-19 response sponsored by the Beyond Zero initiative at a cost of Kshs 4.5 million.

The community health volunteers training curriculum developed by the Ministry of Health was delivered virtually by the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF) through a digital learning platform called “Leap mhealth”.

The First Lady expressed optimism that the training the community health volunteers received will ramp up their contribution to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Through the COVID-19 curriculum and guide developed by the Ministry of Health, you are now empowered and equipped with knowledge, skills and competence to protect yourselves, your families and the community,” the First Lady told the community health workers. 

Congratulating the community health volunteers for successfully completing the training, the First Lady assured them of her support.

“The work you are doing is for all of us and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. I just want to say how proud I am with each and every one of you. Please continue with this work because we need you,” she praised the community health volunteers.   

First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, at the same time, spoke against the stigmatization of individuals and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

She emphasized that those affected by the global pandemic should be offered compassion and comfort instead of discrimination.

“We are all affected and we will require all of us to support each other in any way we can to ease the disruption this pandemic has caused to our lives,” the First Lady said.

The First Lady noted that the support to families and communities has now become more urgent than ever before given the fact that jobs have been lost and household resources stretched beyond limits.

She encouraged all Kenyans to play their part in curbing the spread of the Coronavirus by strictly observing the Ministry of health guidelines that include washing hands with soap, wearing masks and social distancing.

“We have learnt that more effort will be required from all of us to eliminate the risks that make us more vulnerable, especially amongst the elderly and those facing other multiple health issues like heart disease, diabetes and cancer,” the First Lady said.

The First Lady also acknowledged the role and bravery of all frontline health workers in the fight against the pandemic.  

"You have been actively involved in contributing towards national efforts in tackling health issues facing communities. Your work keeps us safe especially during this pandemic,” the First Lady said.

Other speakers included Nairobi Metropolitan Services Director of Health Dr Josephine Kibaru and AMREF Enterprise CEO Caroline Mbindyo.

Dr Kibaru and Ms Mbindyo applauded the partnership between Beyond Zero, Nairobi Metropolitan Services and AMREF in training community health workers to help in the fight against the spread of Coronavirus.

What’s Good Networks and REVOLT TV, owned by Sean “Diddy” Combs have launched What’s Good Africa, an arts and entertainment magazine show that will highlight diverse creative talent while exploring all aspects of Hip Hop culture in Africa.

The brand new TV series is part of a content partnership between What’s Good Networks and its sister company East Africa’s award-winning content studio What’s Good Studios based in Nairobi, and REVOLT TV.

The show is slated to air on REVOLT TV (Check local listings via https://revolt.tv/listings) alongside NTV Kenya and NTV Uganda, starting mid-August.

The Making of What’s Good Africa: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8YlxDYsunU&feature=youtu.be

This proves yet again that Hip Hop is truly a global phenomenon by connecting diverse cultures and young audiences everywhere. 

This series has been in discussion with Revolt TV since early 2019 and we are pleased to finally see the fruits of our collective efforts.”

What’s Good Africa’s first season is a half hour show themed the Kenya Edition.

This first season will be hosted by top Kenyan media personalities Remmy Majala and Nick Ndeda.

Remmy is a highly-regarded entertainment and news journalist, best known for hosting and producing K24’s popular entertainment program “Arena”, which featured Africa’s hottest talent and entertainment stories while Nick is a well-known TV and radio presenter (KISS FM), and an award-winning thespian, playwright, director and producer.

“We’re very excited to partner with What’s Good Networks and What’s Good Studios to spotlight the vibrant Hip Hop scene in Africa, which is full of the young, innovative artists, influencers, and entrepreneurs REVOLT has been championing since our launch,” says Vice President of Programming at REVOLT Jonathyn Pankratz.

At the same time, What’s Good Networks have entered into a content partnership with NTV in Kenya and Uganda (Nation Media Group (NMG), the largest media house in East & Central Africa flagship broadcasting stations), to showcase What’s Good Africa in East Africa.

The two entities will also collaborate on other programs for TV and podcasts.

"NTV has enjoyed many collaborations with some of Kenya’s best content creators and we look forward to being a part of showcasing some of Kenya’s most amazing creative talents to the world,” says Head of Broadcasting at NTV Monicah Ndung’u.

On his part Kenya Film Commission C.E.O Timothy Owase says,“ The celebration of the diverse Kenyan talent featured on this show for a worldwide audience is a clear indication that Kenya is indeed the preferred filming destination”.

What’s Good Africa aims to celebrate unique talent both in front of and behind the camera, with director, producer and crew staffed by Africa’s leading media professionals.

With a mission of spotlighting and documenting Africa’s ever-sprawling talent, artists and cultural catalysts; What’s Good Networks already have their eyes on producing upcoming seasons in other African countries.

Executive Producer and Director of Operations for What’s Good Studios, Josephat Keya says, "We feel it is vital for Africans to tell our own stories and this series allowed us the opportunity to put Kenya's vibrant and unique storytellers front and center so they can be recognized and celebrated the world over.”

Tanzanian singer Nandy 'African Princess' was forced to apologize after sharing raunchy videos and photos online as she was promoting her latest song Acha Lizame ft Harmonize.

In the video Nandy and Harmonize get extremely raunchy as they serenade each other, they are also seen sinking into a kiss at the end of the video,

The singer made the apology after being summoned by the Tanzania national arts council (BASATA) last Wednesday, over the said videos and photos.

In a short video Nandy said ''Ningependa kutoa samahani kwa wapenzi wangu, mashabiki zangu, jamii kwa jumla, wazazi, serikali kwa watu wote wanaonifuatilia. Najua hapo nyuma tulikuwa tunafanya promotion ya nyimbo tukawa tunapost picha ambazo si za maadili. Nimetoka Basata kwa walezi wangu ambao wamenishauri na kunikumbukusha, sisi kama vijana wakati mwengine tunajishaua lakini halitajirudia tena wala sitoweza kufanya hivyo tena (I wish to apologise to my family, fans, the government and everyone who follows my music. During the promotion of my song, we posted bad videos that did not have moral integrity. I have discussed these issues with Basata and they have reminded me of those moral issues "

In a statement Basata accepted the apology.

Photos of Masauti Kenyan Boy dining with Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho last week went viral on social media, a clear gesture that something was in the cooking, and the artist has confirmed that the governor has extended an arm towards supporting his musical career.

Joho has not only  gained popularity for his stylish looks and musical taste but also for influence and support for artists both in Mombasa and Tanzania, which has created a very close friendship between him and the entertainers on both ends.

The Ipepete hit maker revealed the details of the dinner meeting with the governor during an interview with Gates Mgenge on Gates Live online show.

“You know the boss is someone who loves and supports talent and music. So he definitely heard that I was doing great things,  he called me over to talk about my musical career. He did not even let me explain in detail what I have been doing before going ahead to explain in detail how he was going to support me,” Said Masauti.

The artist is working to soon release his new EP, 001 which he gisted has 3 solos and one collaboration, with an anonymous artist he refused to reveal yet.

“This one will be a surprise, you will all know after the release. I just want to break the mentality that I only do singles,” He said.

Despite working with many big Tanzanian and Kenyan names including Nandy, Aslay, Khaligraph Jones and others whose personal lives are constantly in the public, the coastal star is known for his low-key way of living, especially relationships. This he says is simply to protect him from dramas in the public eye especially considering his genre of music.

“I avoid speaking on my relationship matters to avoid drama. Especially given that love matters is part and parcel with my music. I have to say though that I have even posted my girlfriend a lot but people just don’t seem to notice that she is the one. So I choose to leave that bit out for now,” added the artist. 

Realme, one of the fastest-growing smartphone brands in the world has today announced its official entry into the Kenyan market as part of the brand’s global growth and expansion strategy. 

The company, whose operations in both high-end and mid-range smartphones begun mid-2018 recognizes Kenya’s exclusive position as a regional nexus for smartphone technology and innovation and is keen to bring its global excellence in smartphone technology to Kenya with a range of products specifically designed to meet the leap-forward needs of young consumers.

With a combination of the fastest technology adoption and innovation, open economic policies, and a strong talent pool, Kenya makes an ideal hub from which to grow the realme brand in East Africa. In particular, Kenya is among the most dynamic and youth centric markets in the world.

realme’s launch in Kenya targets publics who embody the brand slogan “dare to leap”, which is inspired by the young generation who are regarded as being more open-minded, confident, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat, and receptive to new ideas and ways of living.

Speaking on the official launch, General Manager of Realme Middle East and Africa Operations Josef Wang reiterated that, “realme always believes that by providing exquisitely designed products and reliable performance, we can provide diverse consumer groups especially youth with better user experience.”

“We are committed to enabling young people to experience great products at suitable competitive prices also enjoy a happy life provided by advanced technology and unique modern design, so our plans for 2020 is to invest time, effort and all the required resources in AIoT,” he added.

The official entry of realme to the market is marked by the launch of the Triple Camera, Game Monster realme C3. The Entertainment King will retail under KES 14,000 and feature the below;

• AI triple camera
• 5000Mah Massive Battery which supports continuous playing of large games like PUBG for 10.6 hours.
• The triple camera which will enhance photo shooting experience.
• Helio G70 Processor.
• 6.5”Mini-Drop full screen that improves and supports game playing and movie watching experience.
• realme C3 Colour: Blue and Red.

 Aiming at exclusively meeting the needs of its target market and sharing in the same attitudes, the manufacturer’s focus continues to be on growing the brand and ensuring that every consumer considers the realme phones when making a purchase.

It offers Number Series, X Series, Pro Series and C Series, where more than 18 million users choose realme “Number Series” smartphones with most of the users being under the age of 25.

So far, realme has gained 40 million global smartphone users across 59 markets. Its uptake in the global market has been a success and according to the statistics of global smartphone shipments in Q1 2020 from Counterpoint realme ranks top 7 in the world, positioning it among the mainstream smartphone brands globally.

In 2019, realme's global smartphone shipments reached 25 million with a year-over-year rate growth rate of 808%, which ranks the 1st among the smartphone brands, making realme the fastest-growing smartphone brand in the world.

Realme’s entry into the Kenyan market introduces a combination of advanced technology based on the 5G network, with powerful performance, stylish design, industry-leading qualities, and the amazing possibilities of its UNI Smart AIoT whose sales have currently reached 1 million users.

The move will drive more market growth while allowing Kenyans to enjoy the benefits of cutting-edge smartphone technology and IoT. It will also create job opportunities, increase technological uptake, and increase foreign exchange earnings.

For more information please follow us on our social media accounts on Facebook @realme, Instagram @realmekenya, Youtube and our official website https://www.realme.com/mea-en/  

 About Realme

realme is a technology brand officially established on May 4, 2018, by Sky Li. realme aspires to provide products with a comprehensive superior experience for the young, and realme is committed to being a trendsetting technology brand.

It brings consumers products with trendsetting technologies, features and trendsetting experiences that are first applied in the price segment. realme’s global users have reached 40 million and its sales volume of AIoT audio products broke the record of 1 million in 2020.

According to the statistics of Counterpoint global smartphone shipments in Q1 of 2020, the emerging smartphone brand realme still ranks 7th with a year-over-year growth rate of 157% which ranks the first in the world as well. As the world's fastest-growing smartphone brand, realme stands firmly among the mainstream smartphone brands.