SPREAD THE LOVE IS BACK

Spread the Love Campaign is back this year, promising to do great things this time round.
An initiative of Kijiji Records, the campaign identifies and brings awareness to key social issues, which form the pivot around which the campaign will be themed that year. Founded in 2009, the campaign has received partnership from Faida Investment, Mavuno Church, Gina Din Corporate Communications, Red Cross, Capital FM among others.



The annual Month of Love serves as a call to action for individuals to be able to sign-up for a one month commitment of service with different social justice organizations and initiatives. This year the focus is on four prisons situated within Nairobi and its environs and the campaign is currently in the process of mobilizing people and corporate resources based on a needs assessment done.



The Spread the Love campaign team engaged the community, inmates and wardens of Industrial Area Police Remands in various community service activities.
Led by the founder of the Spread the Love Initiative, Kanjii Mbugua, the campaign team helped in painting 72 blocks of the remand premises, unblocking of sewage systems and tiding up the compound.
The team also gave donations of tooth paste and tooth brushes to the inmates, and joined the entire community in an afternoon of entertainment.
“Inmates are human being and they need to be cared for in every aspect of their lives. That is why we have come here to spend time with them and give some donations,” said Kanjii.



The Spread the Love campaign has done various facelifts to four prisons in Nairobi and its environs, and today’s marked the final one.
An initiative of Kijiji Records, the campaign identifies and brings awareness to key social issues, which form the pivot around which the campaign will be themed that year. Founded in 2009, the campaign has received partnership from Faida Investment, Mavuno Church, Crown Berger, Gina Din Corporate Communications, Red Cross (Emergency Plus), and Capital FM among others.




This year the Spread the Love Campaign will hold its first ever Spread the Love Honors Night on Tuesday 13th September 2011 at Crowne Plaza; the aim of the awards gala is to celebrate individuals and/or organizations that have made a difference in their communities and industries.



A panel has been set up to assess all successful nominations and determine whether they satisfy the relevant criteria to win in their respective categories. There are a total of 11 categories and each of the categories is well represented on the panel to ensure that the nominees are properly evaluated taking into account the relevant industry standards and practices.



The Spread the Love Honors 2011 seeks to identify and honor individuals and/or organizations that satisfy the criteria set out in the following categories:

Nurturing the Core – Preservation of the family institution and promotion of positive family values in society.

Healing Hands - Dedication to the enhancement of human health.

Restorer of the Elements - Celebrating innovative efforts to preserve and protect the environment.

Soul Stories - Telling the other (positive) side of the African story with any form of media.

Learn to Love - Dedication to promoting education using innovative ways.

Business with Heart – Operations that reflect a double bottom line - impacting both profit and people.

Champion for Justice – Dedication to advancing good governance and promoting sustainable development.

Love in Action – Individuals or organizations that are making an impact in society in profound innovative ways.

Challenging Change – Celebrating innovation and out of the box thinking.

Major Minor - Individuals under the age of 18 who are significantly impacting society.

Love Honors –This is the ultimate award; the recipient is an individual who has made a major impact in their community and devoted their time and energy to achieving sustained positive change over the span of their life. Their work will demonstrate measurable positive results and changes that have made a difference to the wider community.

ALPHA, DAVIS AND MSECHU TO JAM WITH CABO, SHAGGY AND EVE ARE COMING

So word on the street is that the promoters who have been contracted to sign up acts for the Tusker All Stars finale concert are from Tanzania. Crying shame. After Kenyan promoters, Homeboyz failed in their bid to get Usher and Keri Hilson to sign on the dotted line, Clouds FM people have been contracted to get acts for the Tusker All Star concert.







Though it has not been confirmed by EABL, the acts signed for the October concert are American rapper Eve, ragga star Shaggy and Angolan Cabo Snoop – famed for his hit Windek.







This means that the winner for the Tusker All Stars reality television show will be jamming the stage with the three international stars. The winners of the concluded show were Alpha, Davis and Msechu.







Meet the all-star finalists



Alpha Rwirangira

Alpha has been on a roll and busy with music and performances since he won the 3rd edition of Tusker Project Fame.

The soft spoken but charismatic young man recently won the Pan African Music awards for best male artist with his song featuring Bebe Cool, Come To Me. He was also nominated for a Kilimanjaro Award in the best male artist category, for his song, Songa Mbele featuring AY.

Alpha has toured the region giving live musical performances and most notably he had the chance to represent Rwanda in the 2010 football World Cup in South Africa at the Fan Fests that were set up for fan entertainment.

The talented performer has also managed to catch his President’s eye and is feted by many Rwandese as a role model for the youth. He has obtained the President’s scholarship to study Music and Business at Fulbright University in Ohio, in the United States.







Peter Msechu

The Tanzanian who is known to be a bag of laughs has definitely been busy since he left at the end of the third season as first runner up.

Msechu has recorded songs with a number of producers back home in Tanzania. He has recorded Unaniumiza Roho with renowned music producer and Tusker Project Fame judge Hermes Bariki at his B Hits Studio and Majaribu with renowned producer Marco Chali of MJ Records.

He cites Tusker Project Fame 3’s Ngangalito as his favorite contestant since the inception of Tusker Project Fame. He says that he admires his fellow musician due to his humorous streak and his superb stage performances.

Msechu has had the opportunity to meet the president of Tanzania, Jakaya Kikwete and other notable leaders in Tanzania because of his new found fame.







Davis Ntare

Tusker Project Fame Four’s golden boy, winner of Season 4 and energetic performer, has relocated to Kenya and has been in studio with R Kay working on his debut album.

He recently released his first single Sheka Sheka on Sound Cloud and the video is currently doing the rounds on You Tube as well.

He writes his own music and therefore promises to deliver fresh and original content in his album debut.

TOP NBA EXECS AT SPRITE SLAM FINALE

Glen Rice



The conclusion of the energetic Sprite Slam competition that was held in various towns in the country drew to a close on Friday (12 August) was conducted by former Los Angels Lakers NBA shooting star Glen Rice, NBA scout Bul Bior and Denver Nuggets Vice-President Masai Njiri.

Njiri, a Nigerian from a Kenyan mother who said:'' The game of basketball can be used as tool to education, meet people and get job s and the Kenyan youth have the needed talent''. Rice said,'' Kenya has the talent and the players who participated in the camp can do better than what I did during my NBA career.







Rice also added that he was impressed with the shooting talent of the young Kenyans.

The champs at the finale were all male team Beez who edged out the S.W.A.T.S 7-5 to clinch the 3 on 3 Sprite Slam National championship title at the University of Nairobi sports grounds.







The winners competed against a total of 7 men’s amongst them high schools, universities, colleges and clubs.

Beez who fielded regular premier league players led by Evans Leting of USIU-A Tigers team, Brian Busu of Co-op Bank along with Brian Shivachi and James Omweno had an advantage of experience over the Swats team of the U.o.N.

Another winner was Upper Hill School student Dominic Omunaka named as the best player and was chosen to represent Kenya in the Basketball without Borders four-day camp in Johannesburg South Africa in September.







Alongside basketball competitions, the youth demonstrated their talent in urban expression through graffiti and dance competitions and rap battles that saw Wycliffe Elegwa (Nairobi) emerge winner in the graffiti category. In the dance category Hotraxx (Kisumu) while in the freestyle category Joseph Collins Onyango A.K.A CJ Double O was crowned the national freestyle champ.







A host of celebrity artists graced the event with performances by Calif Records Mejja, Jimwat and Kendi, Ogopa DJ’s Avril and award-winning gospel artist Daddy Owen.

Additional Sprite Slam competitions are taking part in Uganda, Tanzania and Mozambique.

ISAIAH KATUMWA SET FOR KENYA SHOW

Ugandan jazz maestro Isaiah Katumwa will be headlining a show in Nairobi at the Carnivore restaurant on August 31.

The saxophonist nicknamed Uganda’s Kenny G has a robust portfolio that includes performing for more than 20 heads of states.

With a traditional folk musical background, he has for the past five years developed a blend of sounds to express his East African identity, smooth jazz influence and Christian passion. On the international scene he has not only featured on BBC, Africa Magic TV, DSTV’s Studio 53(Mnet) and the like but he has either shared stage or opened performances for names like Manu Dubangu, Jonathan Butler, Miriam Makeba, Oliver Mtukudzi, Alvin Slaughter etc.







He is also a qualified sound engineer whose passion is to see young lives changed through music. Isaiah has dedicated himself to a vision of inspiring untapped talent and potential using his personal life story. With his background of hopelessness as a child having to work for his school tuition from 10, parentless to the success he is.

The last time he had a concert in Nairobi, he got the jazz enthusiast literary dancing in the rain. Well he is back for another show, one you don’t want to miss.

ROYAL PRINCE EDWARD TO VISIT KENYA FOR PRESIDENT’S AWARD

British Royal Prince Edward will attend this year’s 13th International Gold Event (IGE) President’s Award at the Great Rift Valley Lodge, Naivasha from September 2 to 16. Prince Edward is the youngest child and third son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.

The IGE will be launched by the President and Patron of the award in Kenya, His Excellence Hon. Mwai Kibaki and it boasts of attendance from 200 international and local delegates from over 50 countries.







The IGE is one of the most important events that the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award International Association (IAA) organizes with the host country and is held once every three years. It brings together select Gold Award holders aged 20 - 30 years to engage in the governance and policy of the Award while discussing social, political and economic issues to better prepare and empower the youth to positively influence societies in the present and the future. Themed “Each One Reach One”, the event will encourage each attendee to use what they gain from the IGE experience to reach one goal they have set so as to be of value to themselves, their community, their country and the world.





Speaking on behalf of the International Award Association, Africa’s Regional Director Edwin Kimani stated that “the programme is formed on four pillars: - Voluntary Service, Physical Recreation, Skills Development and Adventurous Journey that will help youth unlock their potential, develop self reliance, social awareness, leadership and good citizenship”. The event will take the attendees to different parts of Kenya including Sagana where they will test their physical endurance, Empash, Longonot Township and Ndabibi Primary Schools respectively to participate in repair and renovation activities.

The first event of this kind, known as The Commonwealth Gold Expedition, was hosted by Canada in 1967.

MEET MERU’S TOP GRAFFITI ARTIST

Eric Kimani is a budding self-made graffiti artist who hails from Meru. Kimani is grateful for being selected for the Nairobi Sprite Slam finals at the Sprite Slam Meru Urban Expressions platform.

The twenty year old graffiti artist donned in a spray painted blue t-shirt and a black mask suspended around his neck traces his artistic roots to Nkwene High School where he articulates how he used to scribble artistic impressions behind his exercise books since he was in Form Two. As he fiddles with his spray can he says, “I draw my inspiration as a graffiti artist from paintings and painters at large.”

After completing his high school studies in 2009, Eric established a clothing line known as K-Wear in his Meru hometown; the clothing line consists of spray painted t-shirts and custom spray painted shoes.





He then ventured into researching more about graphic design on the internet where he also came across different designs that inspired him to produce more clothes for his customers in Meru. He so far has a stabilized market base in Meru made up of the youth in majority and his clothing line is quite popular too.

He sincerely thanks Sprite Slam Kenya for touring Meru where he has had a golden opportunity to showcase his talent as the sole graffiti artist in the Sprite Slam Meru Tour. It had always been in his prayers that Sprite Slam may pass through Meru where he boosts of having a home ground advantage and for Eric Kimani it is a dream come true as he prepares himself for the Sprite Slam Nairobi Finals.

UMBRELLAS, DUETS AND LOVE AT TUSKER ALL STARS REALITY SHOW

Tusker All Stars entered its fifth week with Rwanda’s Alpha Rwirangira still at the top of the charts with Msechu and Davies coming in second and third respectively.
This weekend’s performances saw the 8 stars pair up to perform duets with partners of their choice.







First on the stage were All Star giants, Alpha and Davis, performing one of African Reggae King, Lucky Dube and the Mighty Slaves’ greatest hits Usizi. The two gave a highly energized performance and proved to be a winning combination by delivering a worthy reworking of the popular reggae hit.









Caroline and Hemedi performed an East African hit from the popular Tanzanian songstress Ray C, Mama Ntilie. The chemistry between the two was unmistakable as they thrilled the audience with their lingala dance finale.
Patricia and Davis performed a rendition of one of East Africa’s most memorable hits, Haturudi Nyuma by Juliana Kanyomozi and Kidum. The two stars’ vocals blended perfectly to bring out the angst of the hit song.









Sultry songbird, Patricia, was up on stage again with Amileena, performing Beyonce’s If I Was A Boy. The divas complimented each other well as they sang about being on the converse side of the gender divide.






Resident comedians, Msechu and Ng’ang’a were up next as they performed a Westlife classic, Somebody Loves Me and they gave a performance which was highly energized as is characteristic of this crop of Tusker All Stars.






Viewers can vote for their favorite artist by sending a text message with the star’s Tusker number to 8009 for persons in Kenya and Uganda. Individuals in Rwanda can vote by sending a text message with the star’s Tusker number to 7333 while for those in Tanzania the number is 15324. SMS voting lines close on every Saturday morning at 8 am and re-open at 8pm on Sunday evening.

MO FAYA SELECTED FOR SUNDANCE THEATRE LAB

Top Kenyan thespian Mumbi Kaigwa will join other East African filmmakers and entertainers selected for the second Sundance Institute Theatre Lab on Manda, Lamu for a two-week exchange and development program.
The Sundance Institute Theatre Lab kicks off on July 17 till July 31 and will also feature other participating artists from East Africa including Andnet Dagnew (Ethiopia), Philip Luswata (Uganda), (Kenya), Schollarstickar Luwi (Tanzania), Pili Malundila (Tanzania) and Angel Uwamahoro (Rwanda). In addition to the Fellows, Creative Advisors for the Lab are: Hope Azeda (Rwanda), Lynn Nottage (USA), Stew (USA), Indhu Rubasingham (UK) and Liesl Tommy (USA/South Africa).
The selected filmmakers will join Mumbi who played the lead lady, Anna Mali in the theatrical release of Mo Faya. Eric Wainaina who played DJ Lwanda wrote the play. Anna seduced DJ Lwanda to keep him away from the slums and fighting for the rights of it’s inhabitants of Kwa Maji. When the government and media turn a blind eye to the decapitated bodies in the streets, DJ Lwanda must return home to expose the truth. But at what cost?
The cast also included Dan Chizi Aceda, Atemi Ayungu, Valerie Kimani and Peter King among others.
"For 25 years, Sundance Institute's Theatre Program has been discovering and developing new work, always with a focus on richness and diversity of storytelling," said Keri Putnam, Executive Director of the Institute. "Now in its fifth year, the East Africa initiative reflects our commitment to connecting with the stories and histories of other cultures, and supporting artists who can share them with global audiences."
"The insight and feedback we received for last year's charter Theatre Lab on Manda affirmed our belief that cultural exchange informs arts and artists on a deep level," said Himberg.
Sundance Institute East Africa is a program to support the work of theatre artists in East Africa, as well as to create exchange and exposure opportunities between U.S. artists and East African writers, directors, and performers.

WHEN RICCARDO MUTI WAS IN NAIROBI CITY

World-famous Italian maestro Riccardo Muti, Conductor and Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, was in Kenya for a grande concert on July 9, 2011 with more than 200 members of the Orchestra Cherubini at Nairobi's Uhuru Park grounds. Kenyan musicians and singers were also be part of the concert that proved to be the biggest-ever classical music extravaganza in East Africa.



The event was part of the Ravenna Festival's Roads of Friendship initiative, born in Sarajevo in 1997. Every year since then, the Ravenna Festival have organized and performed concerts in 14 nations, with Maestro Muti conducting various orchestras, to celebrate peace and to invoke solidarity through music.



The event was sponsored by integrated telecoms provider Safaricom.
Kenya was chosen for the 2011 location of the Roads of Friendship. Maestro Muti and the Ravenna Festival are dedicating this year's concert to funding educational scholarships for young people in Nairobi slums. These scholarships, which will be given to Italian missions, will be coordinated through a special committee based in Italy in the city of Piacenza.



The concert will also be a tribute to two Italian missionaries, Annalena Tonelli and Sister Leonella Sgorbati who worked in Kenya for many years, losing their lives in Somalia as martyrs.

KOBE BRYANT TO TOUR KENYA FOR BASKETBALL CLINIC?

There are reports that NBA star superstar Kobe Bryant might just tour Kenya for a basketball clinic. The LA Lakers MVP has already toured the Philippines and Korea for basketball clinics as part of an Asian tour organized by his sponsor Nike to promote basketball.
A source told Hot Secrets, “There are plans to have Kobe over but no final arrangements and date have been set yet.”
In Seoul the 32-year-old NBA player played one-on-one games with local players, and also spoke with a group of fans, delivering his passion for basketball.



In 2011, Bryant was featured in Taiwanese singer Jay Chou's single, The Heaven and Earth Challenge. The proceeds for downloads of both the single and ringtones were donated to impoverished schools for basketball facilities and equipment. The music video of the single also featured Kobe. The song was also used by Sprite in its 2011 marketing campaign in China.
Kobe has had an elaborate career he led the NBA in scoring during the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons. In 2006, he scored a career-high 81 points against the Toronto Raptors, the second-highest number of points scored in a game in NBA history.

UK CELEBRITIES TO HOST CONCERT ON CLIMB MOUNT KENYA

A host of top British celebrities will be attending a concert near the top of Mount Kenya, called The Great Gig in the Sky. The organisers have said that well-established pop artists will be performing and some celebrities will also be taking part in the trek.
BBC Radio 1Xtra DJ Gemma Cairney will be one of the climbers and she will host the concert.
Names of the artists have not yet been released but the 2008 Brit Awards, Best Female Artist Kate Nash is one of the musicians set to headline at the show.



The climb up Mount Kenya will start on September 20 and will last 10 days. The event is to raise money for Trekstock, a charity which supports young people with cancer.
The trek is being organised by 360 Expeditions, the company that led nine celebrities, including Cheryl Cole, Chris Moyles and Gary Barlow, up Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief in 2009.
Operations manager Nick Hamilton told UK press: “I know this will not be the only concert that has ever been staged on a mountain but there can’t have been many and this should be a truly amazing event for a great cause. It will be a lot of hard work transporting all of the equipment up the mountain. We may need to use a helicopter to get some of the gear up there, but I’m sure we can pull it off.”