East Africa: And Now, TV Series Dedicated to the Music of Region

East Africa: And Now, TV Series Dedicated to the Music of Region

The Nation (Nairobi)

8 March 2008
Posted to the web 7 March 2008

Kamau Mutunga
Nairobi

Monday marks the beginning of Skika, the first ever TV series dedicated to East African music.

The week will also see the screening of the second episode of The Apprentice Africa, the first continental version of The Apprentice, the reality game show that stars American property impressario Donald Trump as the show's chief executive officer.

Trump later made the show famous through the catch-phrase, "You are Fired!", which is now patented. And there are Kenyans taking part in these two shows - Aimee Ongeso and Eddy Mbugua, - both popular thespians locally.

Aimee, an actress with Heartrings Kenya, will be hosting Skika, the music show sponsored by M-Net to the tune of $60,000 (Sh4 million).

Eddy, an actor with Phoenix Players, will be gunning - with two other Kenyans - for the $200,000 (Sh13 million) annual salary and a luxury car, against 18 contestants from Africa and the diaspora.

Aimee will start hosting the 13 episodes of Skika, the music programme aimed at exposing the region's entertainment potential which will premier on DStv next week.

How did she get to host the show? "I went forauditions and presented my poem, I am My Own African, then left after a personality assessment," says the 24-year-old who graduated from the University of Nairobi with a degree in mathematics last year.

Vibrant youth culture

Each episode of Skika, that will showcase the vibrant youth culture, will feature three music videos, a news segment, interviews and a behind-the-scenes footage structured to entertain and inform.

Aimee has been making a name for herself as a talented actress with Heartstrings Kenya, the local comedy outfit.

And you might remember her in many plays such as her colourful portrayal of Boadecia, the harsh mother-in-law in Norman Robbins' comedy, Pull The Other One, staged at the Alliance Francaise auditorium in October last year.

The screen must be stark different from stage? I inquired.

"Yes it is," said Aimee. "You can judge the reaction of the audience on stage as opposed to screen. So I have to rely on facial expressions and gestures to connect with an audience. Again, one's voice has to be lower on screen, than stage."

Aimee has starred in several productions such as Ray Cooney's Chase Me, Comrade, Dennis Willis' Bridegroom for Sale and Dead or Alive, the adaptation of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit.

Skika was created for Channel O by Mondeas, Quite Bright Films and Mwafrika Entertainment, all Nairobi-based production houses. "This project highlights the commitment we all have towards the development of quality local content. It's a content revolution in Kenya and we're proud to be a part of it," said Rand Pearson, the director of Mondeas.

"Channel O has profiled African artists and provided a platform for their music for over 10 years, and Skika is just another step forward in celebrating the vibrant music legacy and dynamic future of East African music," says Yolisa Phahle, the general manager of Channel O.

But Aimee never dreamed she would be part of it.

"There were very many people during the auditions, and this chance will open many opportunities for me," says Aimee, currently rehearsing for A Husband for Breakfast, Heartstrings' next comedy.

While hers is a music programme, Eddy's is a reality show (that began last week on a localTV station), in which the last contestant left standing (or sitting) becomes the eventual winner of The Apprentice Africa, the globally successful franchise created by Mark Burnett, the British-American television producer in 2004.

Job interview

The show entails a 16-week job interview involving rigorous business tasks that require street-smart and intelligent contestants to impress the CEO. And at the end of every episode, one person from the losing team is sent home.

Last week, Hanna Acqua, a Ghanaian living in London, was fired.

That ended the ambitions of Hanna, an alumni of America's Vanderbilt University of being the apprentice. Eddy, 30, is a sales and marketing manager, but he's locally known as a polished actor with the Phoenix players for more than 10 years.

You might remember him as Charley, the cunning fake lawyer in Ray Cooney's comedy, One for the Pot, staged at the Phoenix in December 2006, or as Jools, the separated father of two on a worldwide business tour in John Goodrum's drama, Sorry, I Love You, staged in September, last year.

 

East Africa: And Now, TV Series Dedicated to the Music of Region

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How will the psychology university graduate fare? Well, the show's website describes him as witty and with a "deep sense of professional responsibility... an analytical mind, a competitive spirit, a calculating disposition and a dose of humour".

The two other Kenyans in the show are Joyce Kathomi Mbaya, a 25-year-old graduate who describes herself as "not simple but complicated", and Anthony Njagi Migui, a 26-year-old commerce degree graduate, who believes he's equipped with both the professional knowledge and the personality traits required to be the apprentice.

The CEO of Apprentice Africa is Biodun Shobanjo, who plays the Trump equivalent. Shobanjo is the chairman of Insight Grey, one of Nigeria's largest and most successful advertising agencies.

But the 63-year-old, it has been pointed out, lacks the charismatic presence, tinge of arrogance and sense of entitlement exhibited by Trump, who remains the bench-mark for all CEOs in The Apprentice franchise.

Nevertheless, reality shows have provided a launch-pad for the careers of many previously faceless Kenyans such as Didge (Maxwel Nyatome) and Kaz (Karen Lucas) through M-Net's Project Fame in 2004.

Same as Alvan Gatitu, Linda Muthama, Cedric Ndambala and Valerie Kimani, the finalists in the music reality show, The Tusker Project Fame (auditions for its second edition are already under way) in 2006.

The other was Deal Or No Deal, the reality money game show in which over 10 Kenyans won more than Sh10 million. The top prize was Sh6.7 million, and our own Jackson Githaiga, a psychology major at Uganda's Makerere University, won Sh3.2m - the highest of any contestant in the show's history.

Just last week, the music reality show, Idols East Africa, was launched in Nairobi. Its ultimate prize? An international recording contract with Sony BMG, and a cash prize worth Sh5.6 million.