Its another baby boy for one of Kenya’s celebs. It is none other than Valarie Kimani. No names are known as yet.

The actress who starred in the MTV series Shuga also got a lead role in the very successful political musical Mo Faya.

The deal with Rockstar 4000 begins this month and will see multi-talented producer, DJ and Emcee Madtraxx in an historic, exclusive worldwide digital distribution deal, having his music made available commercially to a global audience.

“It’s not a surprise that this was the natural progression of my career,” Madtraxx said, “It’s all about progression, watch this space!” The only promises Madtraxx can make is good music for his fans, “The rest, even I can’t tell,” he says when asked what to expect from him in future.

“Madtraxx is not just an overall great entertainer but producer and has emerged from strength to strength over the last few years, from his roots as key member of the hugely popular and successful Code RED outfit and now taking over the airwaves as Madtraxx. The future with this truly multi-talented Rockstar is sure to be rockin,” said the CEO and Founder of Rockstar 4000, Jandre Louw.

Uganda is secretly preparing for the third edition of MTV Africa Music Awards (MAMAs).It is still not clear whether the pan African music channel will change it’s mind but Ugandans are keeping their fingers crossed.

Nazizi Hirji, a hip hop/ reggae artist and one of  the most awarded Kenyan artist has given birth to a baby boy.

Nazizi, who released her first single “Ni sawa tu” when she was 16 years old, has been married for two years now and is a proud parent of a baby boy called Tafari.

The Kenyan Boy Kenyan Girl hitmaker is now hinting at getting back into the game. Apparently they are in discussion with Wyre on a new yet to be recorded single.

Luanda — At least 20,000 tickets will be put up for sale at the US singer R Kelly show dubbed “Força Angola”, to be held on 28 August at Coqueiros municipal stadium, in Luanda, under the invitation of mobile operator Unitel, said the official of promoter Step Models.

According to Karina Barbosa, R Kelly’s concert happens in support of Angola’s national senior male basketball team that will play at the 2010 FIBA World Cup, which will be hosted by Turkey from August 28 to September 12.

The official stressed Friday to Angop that the number (20,000 tickets) is necessary and advisable to fill the stadium with fans.

The tickets cost between AKz 5,000 (grass) and AKz 6,000 (stand).

The event is set to start at 8pm, but the stadium gates will open at 04.30pm

Globacom on Tuesday in Lagos formally signed on hip hop sensation duo, Peter and Paul of P_Square as brand ambassadors at a breathtaking ceremony which also saw the contracts for other Glo ambassadors renewed.

The event, held at the Mike Adenuga Towers in Lagos, was another opportunity for the crop of Globacom ambassadors to reaffirm their commitment to the telecom icon for endorsing them and for taking such a commendable step to lift Nigeria’s entertainment industry to a higher pedestal.

P_Square, the newest addition to the classy list of Glo ambassadors, described the endorsement as a welcome recognition of the group’s contribution to the entertainment industry in Nigeria and indeed Africa, adding that this would spur the duo to greater achievements in the music industry.

Globacom’s Group Chief Operating Officer, Mr Mohamed Jameel said that the engagement of P_Square as brand ambassador and the renewal of the contract for others was a testimonial to the willingness of Globacom to always recognise the vast, shining talents that abound in the country.

“P_Square remains a well focused and popular music group and the youths of this country and this continent would find the group worthy of emulation. The choice of P_Square to join our brand ambassadors was therefore not misplaced. We havecarefully selected our crop of brand ambassadors and we believe they represent the very best in their chosen professions,” he disclosed.

“We have been actively projecting enterprising Nigerians who have excelled in their fields of endeavour. We are of the firm belief that their faces would help fire the aspirations and dreams of many youths to reach for their goals and rule their world”, Mr Jameel added.

He also said that the feedback from the public largely influenced the renewal of the contracts of the ambassadors as there has been wide acceptance and recognition for the step taken by Globacom to lift the status of Nigerian stars.

Stars whose contracts were renewed at the event included Ramsey Nouah, Desmond Elliot, Jim Iyke, Mike Ezuruonye, Nuhu Aliyu, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal and Ini Edo-Phillip Ehiagwina. Others were Uche Jombo, Monalisa Chinda, Funke Akindele, Nonso Diobi, Sanni Denja and Mohammed Yakubu.

Also on the bill were Pasuma Wonder, Original Stereoman (Ekwe), Ego Ogbaro, Sammie Okposo and ace comedian, Basketmouth.

Well we heard that Jackie met the lawyer at Centenary Park recently and the two have been seen walking hand in hand on numerous occasions.

Like the singer, the lawyer also hails from Arua. Maybe that could explain the choice of the location for the launch. Hmmmm Jackie Chandiru

SLUM tourism has a long history — during the late 1800s, lines of wealthy New Yorkers snaked along the Bowery and through the Lower East Side to see “how the other half lives.”

But with urban populations in the developing world expanding rapidly, the opportunity and demand to observe poverty firsthand have never been greater. The hot spots are Rio de Janeiro, Mumbai — thanks to “Slumdog Millionaire,” the film that started a thousand tours — and my home, Kibera, a Nairobi slum that is perhaps the largest in Africa.

Slum tourism has its advocates, who say it promotes social awareness. And it’s good money, which helps the local economy.

But it’s not worth it. Slum tourism turns poverty into entertainment, something that can be momentarily experienced and then escaped from. People think they’ve really “seen” something — and then go back to their lives and leave me, my family and my community right where we were before.

I was 16 when I first saw a slum tour. I was outside my 100-square-foot house washing dishes, looking at the utensils with longing because I hadn’t eaten in two days. Suddenly a white woman was taking my picture. I felt like a tiger in a cage. Before I could say anything, she had moved on.

When I was 18, I founded an organization that provides education, health and economic services for Kibera residents. A documentary filmmaker from Greece was interviewing me about my work. As we made our way through the streets, we passed an old man defecating in public. The woman took out her video camera and said to her assistant, “Oh, look at that.”

For a moment I saw my home through her eyes: feces, rats, starvation, houses so close together that no one can breathe. I realized I didn’t want her to see it, didn’t want to give her the opportunity to judge my community for its poverty — a condition that few tourists, no matter how well intentioned, could ever understand.

Other Kibera residents have taken a different path. A former schoolmate of mine started a tourism business. I once saw him take a group into the home of a young woman giving birth. They stood and watched as she screamed. Eventually the group continued on its tour, cameras loaded with images of a woman in pain. What did they learn? And did the woman gain anything from the experience?

To be fair, many foreigners come to the slums wanting to understand poverty, and they leave with what they believe is a better grasp of our desperately poor conditions. The expectation, among the visitors and the tour organizers, is that the experience may lead the tourists to action once they get home.

But it’s just as likely that a tour will come to nothing. After all, looking at conditions like those in Kibera is overwhelming, and I imagine many visitors think that merely bearing witness to such poverty is enough.

Nor do the visitors really interact with us. Aside from the occasional comment, there is no dialogue established, no conversation begun. Slum tourism is a one-way street: They get photos; we lose a piece of our dignity.

Slums will not go away because a few dozen Americans or Europeans spent a morning walking around them. There are solutions to our problems — but they won’t come about through tours.

Kennedy Odede, the executive director of Shining Hope for Communities, a social services organization, is a junior at Wesleyan University.

That’s a reality that Jimmy Gait now knows so well.

The Huratiti star, who recently landed a lucrative deal with Coca Cola and also a while back was endorsed by KPLC to be the face of their mulika mwizi campaign will be launching his band in one and a half weeks time. “I want people to experience a new Jimmy Gait” he asserted.  The band which also comprises of a Dj will be launched on 14TH of March at Stima club along Thika road, along with his new campaign dubbed make it or make it.  Also watch out for his new song which he said he will be releasing in a months time.

by lily

But beginning Monday (01.03.2010), Mombasa singer Nyota Ndogo was on air with her first radio show. The late night show airs on Baraka FM in Mombasa on weekdays from 9 p.m. until midnight.

”It’s a dream come true and I believe I won’t disappoint my fans,” she said.

It is not clear whether the singer will shift to Mombasa again now that she has a side hustle. Nyota relocated to Voi three years ago after her marriage to a music producer ended.

The station, which was scheduled to be re-launched last December, has been undergoing restructuring and face lifting in order to regain it’s top spot at the Coast. The management have said that they believe that by hiring the musician, they will attract a huge listenership.

By George Madiangi