Old ramblings

The following occured between the morning of 1st October and 2nd. 2012.

We've taken a one-week break after THUM. And to keep my mind busy (the sure way of avoiding social ills caused by peer pressure) I've been reading… Facebook updates and Twitter tweets. No, you can’t give me that ‘you should get a job’look. Ah-ah! I've been trying to get one and I've finally decided to flow with the tides, I am a writer, a musician and a creative. My definition.

To say the truth, saying Twitter tweets can make you chuckle.

This redefining of purposes (which happens quite often) was as a result of reading this book on advertising that Mahebo dropped on my mail. Considering my short attention span, I switched, as I always do, between reading the book and checking my mail (which is excuse to see if someone commented on that meme I shared or tweet something).

Just a sec, this break got me on a low note. No, not a low emotional state. It was a 50bob actually. All I had. Hence my reluctance to leave the house to zurura a bit.

Good, where was I…yes! I bumped into an article titled Confessions,thanks to a link posted by Ongre, who is not that much a reader of satire. He is a pseudo-geek. I assume pseudo means false. If not, well…too bad. I know he is one because I schooled with him.

Legendary: Bikozulu, Tom Odhiambo and Smitta (Tony Mochama) . Photo-Kenyanpoet

Confessions is the title of this blog post by a writer who has decided to go the Congo to overcome his writer’s block. I am serious. Biko Zulu is a hilarious character! No, I don’t swear. I avoid swearing, but I swear this is the kind of read that just makes you want to write a blog post.

So, I am feeling all creative…I guess it is because of the reading. I think back to stuff I avoid telling the world(online) about, since it is cliché,corny, immature and too revealing. However, here goes to the things that I have wanted to write about her. It is based on this.

She is beautiful. Writers have a way of exaggerating stuff, I know. However, and I won’t show/tell or link, but she is beautiful. Those eyes women add some shadowy thingy to, she has them naturally. The body.Yap.

More than that, she is, and I've told her, like a small girl. She loves pretty little things (focus). No, she doesn’t love pink, but loves polka dotted dresses.

What made me do this though is how she laughs. She giggles like a 10 year old and that lights me up every time. Especially when she has no idea I am listening out for it. It makes me want to throw her up in the air a couple of times just to hear it again. Funny how all my limited writing ability is strained when it comes to emotional let-outs. That is why I don’t do no poetry.

That’s it. All that mushy stuff ends there for now. 

ION, Hope we make it to the Kitengefest lineup. 5 days to go till the holiday ends. Can’t wait! (We didn't make it)

PS. The Business Mind magazine I debuted in is out. Grab a copy. Jussouknow, I was the first to interview the 12 year-old kid who has planted 12k trees before the Nation did it. Yap, I just had to. However, the lady from the Nation did a better job.

Aliens Do Exist

Aliens do not exist. If they do, then kindly give proof. As you quote pyramids/ufos etc kindly ensure no example you give has human functionality.

By that I mean, let’s say the Kanu hand in Uhuru park was built by aliens, k?

By the way, sorry for that title. That is what they call doublespeak for the sake of piquing the reader’s curiosity in the hope they will read while confused.

So, it is made using elements found on earth…elements we can identify-with our technology. We call this alien?

Moving on, does this spaceship have an opening? Does it have vents? Okay, it has no vents but then it has an opening…because these aliens use…’superior’ technology, right? Alien gadgets/alien ‘need for communication’/alien language/alien clothing…goodness!

Point being, if aliens were aliens, we should not be able to find any form of humanly understandable functional system to compare them to or even relate. If they are alien, why not fly, or crawl or at least do something we humans have never seen/felt/predicted or even dreamt? I mean we have seen earthly animals soar and slither, right? Is this form of movement any alien to us? Well…ah-ah!

Why do aliens in movies use computer-like apparatus that the movie watcher can identify with?

Why do aliens feel the need to find the head of our world? Why are we so quick to believe they evolved the same way we have and have been socialized in the same way? Why do aliens respect their leaders? Why do they have one? Oh, because for any system (the ones we have so far observed in all earthly organisms) to function there must be hierarchy? "That’s typical ‘humanspeak’," that's what I would have said if I was the alien called Rbrqez. With a name to boost. :-D

In my view if they are what ‘they’(alien experts) claim they are, then why are all aspects of their ‘alienity’ so relatable? Aren't they supposed to be unbelievably bizarre? With our kind of media hype, the world is kinda ready for aliens. When they get here, who knows we will even have done some fitting on prototypes for the fashion-conscious aliens. The female ones. I can get used to this.

I will stop there, because this rumbling can go on and on.  One last word, aliens do not exist. Better believe that. If they do, you’ll never see them. It won’t be in your lifetime so for now, focus on living. God would prefer if you did that.

Might do a post before Christmas, if I don’t …Merry Christmas!

P.S. This issue pesters me, and will continue worrying me for a while. How does Eric Wainaina, a Kikuyu, go out of his way to correctly pronounce Luo words for his songs and a young Kenyan Luo sees no need for the same? SMH!

P.P.S. I will keep the Eric Wainaina mentions to a bare minimum from now henceforth, lest I be labelled a pro stalker. Which would be cool!

A Musician is Like an Entrepreneur?? Really?

(NB: Scroll down to the re-blogged piece which is the subject of this blog post. Not my rumblings. Thanks)

I slept at 3 a.m. yesterday for two reasons. The first one (unimportant really  is that I had to get Eric Wainaina's 'Bwana Mkubwa' video and listen to the song because since the 2007/2008 elections, it has never been played. He redid to Orutu Special in Love and Protest but then I prefer the original feel. The blending voices of Suzanna, Nyota Ndogo, Atemi, Chizi and Sarah Mitaru are just, to quote Russel Peters, 'too good'!

On to reason number two since getting the video took 5 minutes. I decided to watch a presentation done by Eric and Sheba at Aly-Khan Satchu's Mindspeak. Problem is I started watching at around 11.30 only to realise later that it would take hours to end.

It's not that I can't see the time thingy at the bottom of the video, its just that once they started,there was no way I was going to sleep and leave it halfway. Their informal approach to it is, to quote...umm...just go watch it for yourself. Pssst, he mentions the Valerie storo at the end. Does it in a very professional way I must say.

I am an Eric fanatic so you will have to excuse anything you find subjective/biased.

So, they discussed how they started out and why they opted to focus on music rather than other 'socially accepted' forms of life... and I dozed off inspired. Yes, I said they-because she runs the company.

Next morning after breakfast and some typing for Koa, I bump into this blogpost by Muthoni Maingi and I decide I have to repost it.

This is the reason why I do what I do. Very few people know or can understand what I have given up to follow 'the path not taken'. That poem by Robert Frost has been echoing across the walls of my brain of late.

It's not that long really. If I cut out my long 'preamble' it would help. The original post can be found hapa. Here it goes:

Business, conversations and lessons

I love having conversations with go getters, alphas and doers in society. Picking their brains and hearing out their dreams, ambitions and thoughts for a better future, in their corner of the world always fascinates me. In one recent conversation, we tore down what it was that kept people out of doing something that mattered to them.

Was it money, fear or the relaxed atmosphere that a comfort zone offers? Was it that as a society we feared ‘failure’ and discouraged it so much that we ended up stifling the necessary experimental and curious nature that innovation and solution finding calls for. Or was it also, that we, who had enjoyed some measure of success were not honest enough in giving our ‘rise to x..’ story, and insisted on the glamourous rags to riches format instead? Which rarely provides anyone with the relevant know how in achieving the same level of ‘success’.

I guess there are many reasons to the why, however, in today’s post I will share some of the lessons I have learnt in running, owning and ensuring my company survives and stays relevant to my staff and clients (the most important people in that order).

When I started Deviate I was passionate about providing better marketing services and platforms for small but dynamically growing Kenyan businesses. Brands like Tile and Carpet, Tropical Heat and Mercantile Insurance had fascinated me when I worked at Creative Edge. What I however, found was that despite their having a few million shillings to spare for marketing, they were not receiving the best service tailored specifically for them. Media (billboards, radio, TV and Print) and agencies usually priced themselves and built their models in a way that would work really well for a big brand eg Colgate but not as well for a brand like Whitedent.

So I started Deviate, a company who’s sole aim is to provide better service, delivery and set standards for SME and agency relations. It’s a company that picks brands that it can grow with as opposed to just a brand that can grow the profit margins of the company. The company is entirely built around two groups of people, the staff and the clients.

I believe this is one element that has helped us grow to where we are, currently the company represents over 20 regional brands. And we’re a year old.

However, our business model is not all that matters. One of the biggest selling points Deviate has is the relationships with clients. This really is not marketing lingo. My clients inspire me as people, and they happen to be some of the most interesting and forward thinking people I have met. A huge problem in agency is the idea that ‘client is confused/stupid/complicated’. In many instances they are able to provide an outside-in view that can truly guarantee marketing ROI. A notoriously difficult thing to achieve. So we value our clients and their input, as well as enjoy creating something with them. After all, we work with SME’s, one of the most creative and dynamic groups there are. Do I go out of the way for them in many areas, yes, is it worth it? Yes, all jobs and retainer clients have come from WOM of current/past clients. Not to mention the repeat business opportunities that can be explored.

Now to the dirty bit of it all, the top was all flowers. Lack of money and fear of failure. When I started out, Deviate was going to be all about carvertising-selling ads on taxi bodies. Long story short it didn’t work out yet I had spent all my savings on it. I was flat out broke. I don’t know whether I should thank Zeus, Bacchus or Thor, but someone who I had worked with at Creative Edge approched me to pitch for an online brand management job. I did and I got it. However, it took about three months for this and the cheque on it to clear. I lived on Uchumi points and for one month my electricity was cut. During the three months, I got three job offers, not interviews, offers, one of whom wanted to pay me 120 000 ksh net. I emailed my thank you but regretted to inform them that I had started my own company. My family and friends listed me off as insane, and in all honesty at that point I kind of was. There was the constant nagging of inner voice me that kept reminding me that I had already failed in the carvetising, plus, the online brand management client might not want to go with me. I guess the lesson in this is that I was determined, possibly half starved to a near insane at this point and I really had a good feeling about what I wanted to do and I believed my solutions could make a difference. Money and comfort were just not going to cut it.

source: trebas.com

That client ended up being my first major win in many ways. They were a very recognizable brand, and over the year that I worked with them, we not only receive fantastic online PR but this translated to offline as the brand is referred to as one of the few active and engaging corporate brands online. Plus we got nominated for best corporate account at BAKE.

Do I still have issues with money, yes, can I still fail yes. In fact failure at this stage would mean ruining the lives of my employees and clients. Will I give up, or am I tempted? No. Never ever. I plan on building a company that will be over 100 years old and still counting. How many of those do we have in Kenya/East Africa that are truly ours?

Event Review-Acoustic Worship 5

Footnotes: I did this review 3 months ago and it wasn't published so I figured, it does nothing better on my desktop. ION, join us for the fourth Twendelele this Saturday, titled An African Christmas.

  After practice, we all confirmed if we had our tickets on us as we hurried along Kenyatta Avenue towards the Alliance Francaise. It was the 4^th of September and the 5^th edition of Acoustic Worship was about to start. I took a detour and by the time I got to the Alliance reception area, the place was packed. As I craned my neck trying to figure out where my comrades were standing while we awaited for the opening of the Wangari Maathai Auditorium, I realised I was surrounded by notables.

  Since we had to wait, I decided to schedule an interview with Jaya, a lovely songstress. Meanwhile all around I could see people I am supposed to know and I didn't  Think of musicians in the live music gospel industry, the young ones, they were all (or most of them were) here.

  Once the two heavy doors to the auditorium swung wide, we all ‘lined’ up true Kenyan style, tickets in hand. Inside was the expected haggling for strategically placed seats, but nothing ugly. I have seen worse.

Ten minutes later, everything quieted down and the applause began as Kato Change and Noel Nderitu entered the stage.

Kato Change, Noel Nderitu, David Gitoho (background-Mathewmatix on drums).KweliMedia

With no official ‘MC’ in the mix, the focus was on the music. First off was a piece done by these two then the rest of the band joined them on stage all silently, almost solemnly, with no acknowledgement of our presence as the audience. It was a performance. A friend would later tell me, ‘it was like they came for a jamming session.’

  Noel Nderitu definitely impressed with his two songs and the back-up vocals later on in Karimi’s I belong to you. He sang in a clear and crisp tone, no unnecessary embellishments all over the place. The parts he adlibbed he did well, with well-placed runs that left the audience hanging on to every note.

His interaction was the closest we got to an MC and he did a fantastic job with his casual laid-back approach. He made fun of the pianist, George Nyoro and even himself, leaving chuckles that punctuated the entire event. I loved the reggae crowd-part for his song, Go.

  Kato Change as always, utilized his spotlight, amazing everyone and even more, the guitarists in the audience. His improvs are to die for. For a versatile jazz and blues-loving guitarist, one wonders what to highlight when Kato plays. This night he added some African two-chorded riff that left the audience humming to themselves. He also wrote a Luo song he couldn’t sing, as per his own admission.

The song, called Aparo was vocalized by Lisa who mesmerizes more and more. For those complex jazzy runs adlibs a la Ella Fitzgerald or Jill Scott, Lisa is the one to go to. She wowed everyone with her vocal technique as well as feel.

  Karimi was also in the performers list. She told of how she dreamt of singing at the Acoustic Worship since the first one. Her dream had come true and she did leave a mark. Everyone remembers the powerful-voiced belter at the concert. The blend of her song,I belong to you with Isaac Houghton’s I know who I am was my favorite.

Karimi the belter. Source: KweliMedia.Copyright Mwangi Kirubi.

  You rarely get to hear (I have never) the bass guitar sound like an acoustic classical one. David Gitoho, from the UK as Kato informed us turned that instrument into something else. His bass guitar solo was worth writing home and pinning somewhere. He added the licks you would hear in a kawaida acoustic guitar with some breathtaking improvs that left even the non-musical members of the audience shaking their heads in wonder.

  Words fail to describe when you need them to. He even did a rendition of Lord I lift your name on high, the popular and classic Pentecostal song.    His looping enabled him to do much more. He admitted to having had ‘goofs’of which I am sure very few, probably only 2, people noticed.

  It is not that there were no songs done with the band as a whole, but the set up was such that the strength of every performer was highlighted.

  The percussions, played by Mobutu Sese and the drums by Mathewmatix Rabala also had their moment to be heard. Using mime-like movements, these two left the audience in bouts of laughter with their simple dramatic performance. This of course did not overshadow their performance as they exchanged instruments, each one trying to outdo the other. Mobutu Sese was all-out playing the full percussion set that had a djembe, congas and dununs not counting the shakers and sticks with a lot of energy and vigor. I did not know Mathewmatix could play percussions that well as well.

Mobutu Sese.KweliMedia

   However, it was their versatility that caught the ear of the audience as they moved through different styles from salsa to isukuti then back to ragga then hip-hop followed by chakacha then bossa nova. To make it better, they increased the tempo to a mind-blowing climax that earned them a standing ovation.

The man who stole most people’s hearts though was George Nyoro, the pianist. His arrangement of gospel hymns such as As the deer panteth and Baba Hakuna was remarkable. His playing is not just technically impressive but also very expressive. His arrangements too were mindboggling. The fact that he is a jazz pianist gives a clue. His way of playing around with modulations and tempo-change, not mentioning his speed places him among the most promising pianists Kenya is yet to see.

Words do not fully describe the precision and clarity of the pieces presented that evening. The audience sat down for about ten minutes after the last piece, not believing that it had actually ended. I believe good musicianship is all about growth which comes from learning. If the standards being set by these young musicians are anything to go by, then the industry is on the right path.