A cocktail of concerts

By David Odongo

The Pilsner Mfalme DJs contest - The King moves the crowd DJ Competition - started with a bang over the weekend with actions taking place at Club Maggies in Nairobi on Friday and switching to Club Wizard and Spree in Machakos and Eldoret respectively on Saturday.

In Machakos, four DJs battled it out in a style that is unique to this Mfalme edition. DJ Kayman, DJ Zack, DJ Bruce and DJ Sankee went head to head making ‘The King moves the crowd theme’ quite appropriate.

 For the first time in the competition, contestants played behind a screen, shielding the competitors from the crowd. DJ Kayman from Machakos contends, "Playing behind the screen increases the challenge because people will not actually know who is playing. So your skills really come into play. How good you are determines the reaction from the crowd." Crowd acclamation determines whether the contestant progresses to the next round or not.

Anonymity lauded

DJ Bruce, who made it to the semi-finals agrees with DJ Kayman, "Anonymity makes the competition better because the crowd will judge based on how you play and not who you are."

In the first round, the DJs played in front to the crowd and judging was done by MOB Deejays. The second round was done behind the screen and crowd acclamation determined the best DJ. Three DJs made it through and will face each other in the semi-finals.

Successfully inaugurated in 2008 by Pilsner Lager, Pilsner Mfalme- The King moves the crowd DJ competition aims at providing a compelling and engaging experience to consumers while developing Deejaying talent and positioning it as a worthwhile career choice. The competition aims at reaching 1,000 DJs countrywide out of which six will battle it out for the coveted title of Pilsner Mfalme. The winner also walks away with a brand new souped up van and DJ equipment valued at Sh2.6 million.

Meanwhile, the just ended Mr and Miss JKUAT beauty pageants saw Bruno OJ and Michelle Syokau win the coveted title. Held at Charter Hall in Nairobi, the event, which drew contestants from JKUAT main campus saw 25 contestants battle for the crown.

The event consisted of four main categories; official wear, cultural/creative, professional and dinner wear which saw the contestants strut their impressive stuff on the catwalk. The event, which ended at dawn, drew thrilling performances from artistes; Mejja, Q-Tac and Churchill Live crew, which saw Eric Omondi and Fred Omondi as the MC’s and performances from Masanduku Junior and Marlboro.

Michelle, a joyous beauty queen and a second year Bachelor of Science student said that the title meant a lot for her. "There is a lot to be done with this title. There are many projects we need to finish and a lot more that we need to start," she said. "Now that I have this title, I am going to use it to air the students’ concerns and do projects for the school that will help the students and community in general."

The new Mr JKUAT was also happy about his achievement. "The journey has been long and I am happy about the title and I know this is only the beginning, we have greater tasks ahead," he said.

A few metres from Charter Hall, Kenya Polytechnic, too was holding its annual beauty pageant. Fresh from performing at the JKUAT function, Mejja and Ala C quickly crossed Haile Selassie Avenue to perform at the Kenya Polytechnic beauty pageant.

Live in Meru

Come Saturday, more than 7,000 revellers thronged the Kinoru Stadium in Meru as the acclaimed Safaricom Kenya Live entered the Central Kenya leg. The live concert rocked the town, known for its miraa growing, in a night of sizzling music from Kenya’s leading artistes. Some of the signature performances that headlined the high profile concert included gospel maestro Allan Aaron, Jua Cali, MOG, Mike Rua, Nameless, Wahu and Wyre.

Also making a debut performance at the event were Central’s rising stars Ameru Crew, Flemmy, Malaika, Opus and Rilscas. Eastern’s own guest artistes Bubbah and Simbo who were picked at the Machakos concert in April also graced the concert. Security was tight at venue and gates were open as early as 5.30pm even though performances would start two hours later.

No playback

The Safaricom Kenya Live concerts, open to persons over 18 years old are corporate countrywide series of live concerts aimed at promoting local music, talent and enhancing live stage performances in Kenya’s music industry. The Safaricom Kenya Live concerts have successfully toured a number of major towns among them Bungoma, Mombasa, Kisumu and most recently Machakos where they delivered superb live concerts and electrifying performances from the local superstars.

One unique thing about Kenya Live is the fact that the music is purely live without playback with all artistes backed up by a live band. Apart from promoting local music talent, the concerts provide an opportunity for residents of various regions in Kenya to come face to face with some of the biggest names in Kenya’s fast-growing music industry.

DJ John and DJ Hassan of Homeboyz kept the crowds on their feet at the after-party. All the artistes performed live backed by the acclaimed Altimate and Juma Tutu bands. Among the other artistes on the Kenya Live bandwagon are Redsan, Juliani, Phonotex Success Band, Ally B, Osogo Winyo, Eko Dydda, Ken Wa Maria and Stella Mwangi (STL).

—Additional reporting by Brenda Kemei.