Otile Brown
28-year-old Jacob Obunga aka Otile Brown, made it to the history books this year after becoming the first Kenyan artiste to clock 1 million subscribers on YouTube. According to the YouTube channel, which now has over 1.25 million subscribers, the Dusuma hitmaker joined the platform in 2016. Last year, two of his songs i.e, Dusuma and Chaguo la Moyo, became the most-watched YouTube music videos in the country. The Dusuma official lyrics video garnered over 26 million views on YouTube in 10 months, while Chaguo la Moyo racked up over 25 million views just three years after it was uploaded.
Nelly Cheboi
Arguably now a celebrity, Nelly Choboi has recently been in the global limelight. The founder of TechLit Africa, Ms Cheboi, is this year's recipient of the coveted CNN's Hero of the Year award. She was one of 10 nominated in November to compete for the CNN Hero of 2022 award for creating computer labs for schoolchildren. Cheboi, also named in the Forbes 30 under 30 list in April, was chosen to present her journey on resilience at the United Nations (UN) in October. She attributes her success to her mother, who endured hardships to ensure her children were educated despite poverty.
Eliud Kipchoge
The long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized in the 5000-metre distance race has indeed proven that our thoughts only limit us. This year in September, the 38-year-old bet his world record at the 2022 Berlin Marathon in a time of 2:01:09, just 30 seconds shy of his 2018 world record. As a result, he is now widely considered the world's greatest marathoner.
Femi One
In the just concluded AFRIMMA awards ceremony held in Dallas, Texas, in November 2022, Femi One was crowned the best female rapper. Born Wanjiku Kimani, Femi put Kenya on the map after becoming the first East African Female rapper to take the title home. In her acceptance post on social media, Femi took the opportunity to encourage upcoming artistes, urging them to remain consistent in the craft as it will eventually pay off.