From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2013
Kenyan actress based in Hollywood, Lupita Nyong’o will together with the director of the 12 Years a Slave Steve McQueen get an award on October 21. The two are expected to receive the Hollywood Breakout Director Award and New Hollywood Award, respectively at the 17th annual Hollywood Film Awards. Previous recipients of the New Hollywood Award include Robert Pattinson, Gabourey Sidibe, Jennifer Lawrence, Felicity Jones and Quvenzhane Wallis.
Lupita who is Kisumu Senator Prof. Anyang Nyong’o’s daughter stars in the movie alongside Hollywood bigwigs like Chiwetel Ejiofor, Alfre Woodard and Brad Pitt. She plays Patsey, a slave on the Epps plantation. Her other credits include playing Perdita in “The Winter’s Tale”, (Yale Repertory Theater), Sonya in “Uncle Vanya”, Katherine in “The Taming of the Shrew”.
Lupita who is also a graduate of Yale School of Drama’s acting program and also holds a degree in Film and African Studies from Hampshire College, Massachusetts, also a lead actress in the Kenyan TV drama Shuga in 2009. She acted as Ayira, a vivacious college student who loved the high-life. She has also graduated with a degree.
Lupita who was born in Mexico and raised in Kenya makes a brief appearance in the second season – Shuga: Love, Sex, Money, where she was also a co-director. Her other work includes the documentary In My Genes which she wrote, directed and produced. It tells the story of people living with albinism in Kenya. She has worked in the production sets of different movies including the Kenyan-filmed Constant Gardener.
The first trailer of her slave drama made its debut online this week and the Kenyan actress is seen working on a plantation picking cotton with other slaves and at one point coming to the defense of the main character, Solomon Northup, acted by UK-based Chiwetel Ejiofor.
It’s a movie adapted from the autobiography by Solomon Northup, who was a free man but was lured to a well-paying job in the US, kidnapped and sold as a slave in Washington DC in 1841.
Like Lupita, there are also other young, romantic and beautiful Kenyans women who have made us proud. One of them is Miriam Chemmos, a multi-talented Kenyan singer/song-writer and actress living in the United States.
Among the inspiring songs she has released include a new album titled Lovebird. Released on January 7, 2013, Lovebird celebrates love, peace and unity, and is a collection 15 tracks sung in both English and Swahili incorporating a verity of genres – reggae, salsa, hip-hop, rumba, pop, RnB, and soukous.
Miriam was born in Kenya by a Kenyan father and a Tanzanian mother. She spent her childhood between Kenya and Tanzania. She began singing and citing at an early age, and competed at the national drama and music festivals while in high school in Kenya.
In 1998, Miriam moved to Iowa in the US where she studied Theater/Music and Media, and graduated in 2001. After graduation she moved to Washington, DC, where she acted in several regional theatrical shows and also hosted her own radio titled “Retrospect’ on Voice of America. While in Washington, DC she also featured on CBS hit TV series “The District” 2003 and in several independent films such as “Refuge” and “Mirrors”.
In 2004, Miriam moved to New York and landed numerous roles on off-Broadway shows and on print and television modeling jobs. She also became a member of the famous Motown girl musical group “The Marvalletes Revue”. While performing with this group Miriam shared stages with legendary groups such as “The Escorts”, “Kool & The Gang”, and “Soul Generations”.
In 2007 Miriam released a hit single titled “RUDI” that would top charts and countdowns in several radio stations around the world: BBC Radio (UK), SARFM (New York), Voice of America (Washington, DC), Kiss FM (Kenya), Capital FM (Kenya), Sanyu FM (Uganda), Ghana Choice FM, among others.
The success of the RUDI single gave Miririam a great deal of media coverage, including being featured in several US and overseas magazines. She was featured in the September, 2007 issue of Vibe Magazine, with the magazine calling her “The Queen of African Urban Music”.
The next one is Susan Anyango- half-Russian half Kenyan with the killer smile, endless legs and soft attitude currently holds the tiara as outgoing Miss Kenya. She is 6 feet tall, slight in weight, very soft spoken (a little coy even). She is involved with the jigger campaign which is a former Miss Kenya’s initiative.
In her tender age, Susan prays, reads a lot and plays basketball. She has also featured in a Safaricom advert and once Miss Kerugoya for two years. She owns a car (which she loves) which came with the crown. She is studying Journalism and Communication at KEMU (Kenya Methodist University). She will participate in the Miss World competition in London in October this year.
Known as Chantelle, Winnie Wambui Naisula Ole Siameto is another celebrity young and industrious woman. A friend got her the name Chantelle because she felt the song and Winnie did not blend well.
Born 21 years ago, Chantelle is a child of mixed race, with a father of both Maasai and Indian origins. Her mother was of the Gikuyu origin but passed on when she was only 11 years. She is the only girl in the family of four boys.
One day she will accomplish her dream of becoming a T. V. presenter. She especially admired Sophie Ikenye who was a star news presenter when she was growing up. In her absence, Julie Gichuru and Lilian Muli-Kanene are the people she looks up to, and is sure she will one day do her thing like them. For now though, she is concentrating on her newly discovered talent, rapping.
Chantelle is a firm believer in the Kenyan music industry. She is happy her generation is storming into the music scene and has great admiration for the Camp Mulla group, whose music is great although they are quite young.
Meet another young and romantic woman, Pierra Makena. She is talented lady set to perform in Big Apple in New York at the awards which are scheduled for Sunday then proceed to perform in Washington D.C, California and San Francisco. Pierra’s deejaying career has grown massively in the years and has even seen her ranked Kenya’s top female deejay.
Her moment of fame started a while back through acting in various local television shows including Kisulisuli and the all famous Tahidi High after which she was featured in a MNet show Changes.
This lady of many talents has a lot going for her as apart from acting she has other things up her sleeve. She is the Marketing Manager at ONE F.M and at some point she was a radio presenter before she quit and pursued her current passion, deejaying in which she proved that a woman can thrive in a male dominated field. One place you will be sure to catch her performing is at The Circle. Good work Makena.
Tanya (Sarah Hassan) Shish (Shirleen Wangari) Freddy (Abel Mutua) OJ (Dennis Mugo), Pierra Makena among others have been through Tahidi High and they have made Kenyans proud in theatre industries.
Miss Karun of Camp Mulla is another one. At 19 years old, this girl has risen above the ‘auto tuned, shake your behind while spewing crap’ madness. She has grown into a singer who understands her vocal capabilities and is surrounded by mentors who actually understand what music is about. Karun has flown off to the US for studies.
Born Karungari Mungai, Karun is the daughter of designer Molly Mungai, the CEO and creative strategy director at African Mystique Ltd, and Eric Mungai. President Uhuru Kenyatta and Eric Mungai are great childhood friends and he has therefore seen the young Karun grow up. She performed at Uhuru’s inauguration ceremony.
Others are Kambua Manundu, a good gospel singer. She works for Rauka, a gospel music show on Citizen TV. Rauka is Kiswahili for “wake up” – and Kambua has been waking up audiences wherever she goes with her drop-dead gorgeous looks and beautiful, soaring voice.
Sarah Hassan (Tanya) is another young Kenyan woman whose life revolves around fun. She is on One FM as the breakfast show presenter or on hosting Mashariki Mix. Then comes Sheila ‘Nikki’ Mwanyigha, a Easy FM’s broadcaster.
Sheila came to the limelight in the late 90s after she took the airwaves by storm with the track mapenzi tele. Sheila has released a new track with Camp Mulla’s Taio dubbed Feeling Good. The track is currently gracing the airwaves.
Sarah Ndunu and Sugar as she is known is a young actress, who was the talk of town after she won the Best Female Actress Kalasha Award and, Sugar, that tasteful singing beauty from Phoenix Records.
Others are Joey Muthengi musician, Alice Kamande, Wewe Pekee gospel star and the Groove Awards 2011 Best Female star singer, Amani, Tero, Sanaipei Tande, STL, Wahu, Habida, Size 8, a sizzling hot gospel singer, Brenda Wairimu, Avril and Marya among others.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
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Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ
UN Disarmament
Conference, 2002