Naomi Osaka responds to Hana Kuma naysayers
Sports
By
Vincent Kejitan
| Jun 23, 2022
Japanese professional tennis star Naomi Osaka has finally broken her silence after the name of her media company caused a stir in Kenya.
Earlier this week, Osaka teamed up with Los Angeles Lakers basketball star LeBron James to form Hana Kuma, which translates to ‘flower bear’ in Japanese but has a totally different meaning in Swahili.
As expected, there were many reactions online and Hana Kuma has been a trending topic for two days now.
On Wednesday, albeit in a veiled manner, Osaka responded through a tweet: “Prayers for all my overthinkers. We be going through it.”
In the comment section, there was heated debate over the choice of the name and the meaning in Swahili and while some suggested a name change, others called for embracing diversity and appreciating the fact that different names can have different meanings based on the language being spoken.
On her part, Osaka maintained that Hana Kuma will mainly air impactful scripted and unscripted TV series, documentaries and branded content.
“I’ve built my career taking a different approach than those around me and because my journey has been so different it’s opened my eyes to all the incredible stories out there that aren’t getting told.
“Stories that are global, about a variety of cultures and points of view, about important social issues. That’s why I’m launching Hana Kuma, a media platform focused on stories that are culturally specific but universal. Stories that are bold and playful like me,” she said.
Adding: “I’m incredibly proud to be building a business that is a true reflection of me and I couldn’t think of a better partner than @kingjames to do this.”
Hana Kuma will closely work with SpringHill Company, one of the video-production companies created by LeBron James and Maverick Carter, which will mainly handle matters financing, operations and production.