We criticised Davido, but are Kenyan musicians any better?

Top Nigerian act Davido recently had a nightmare set in Kenya. His visit was marred by reports of rude behaviour towards the media and his hosts. His presence was considered a fail because of his 25-minute-long terrible play-back performance and getting on stage late (past 1am).

It sparked an online furore and a  heated argument on why some Kenyan could pay Sh8,000 to see a Nigerian act, yet a Kenyan show charging half that price is considered costly.

If, however, Davido had given a good show, would Kenyans still have protested? Davido’s poor performance has brought to light some pertinent issues in Kenya’s entertainment industry.

Nobody deserves to buy a concert ticket only to get low quality in exchange. Irrespective of the origin of the artiste, Kenyans should not accept mediocrity.

A good number of Kenyan DJs prefer playing Nigerian tunes, even as a warm-up to Kenyan concerts, exposing Kenyans to more Nigerian music.

This is part of the reason why Kenyans do not throng local concert venues: Many local artistes are not as popular as their Nigerian counterparts. This makes it easier to convince Kenyans to pay more for Nigerian acts.

It’s also true that most Kenyans don’t know much about Kenyan music and its availability.

Do Kenyans attend regular Kenyan events like ‘Live at The Elephant’, and the free live gigs every Thursday night at Choices Pub in Nairobi? Yes, they do, plus other events, judging by their popularity and that of artistes hosted.

ANOTHER PROBLEM

There is another problem in the general Kenyan disregard for the arts and culture industry.

Many Kenyans, even those who work in the entertainment industry, do not care much for standards and nurturing what is authentically their own. And so they find it hard to understand why an artiste should be paid well or need specialised professionals like publicists or managers.

For as long as Kenyans refuse to put a value on local artistes, they shouldn’t expect world-class shows.

Ugandan musician Maurice Kirya is one of the mentors on Maisha Superstar — a new music show on MNET. He says: “I haven’t stayed in Kenya long to study this industry, but the main difference between Kenya and Uganda is that in Uganda, people pay good money and as much as possible to see local acts.”

We live in a society that treasures politics and newscasters more than our local artistes.

Why are the most followed personalities on social media in Kenya either TV presenters or radio personalities, and not artistes?

Kenya’s celebrity culture is non-existent and cheap.

Kenyans also have a short attention span and are always on standby, waiting for the next opportunity to roast someone on social media. Lesson to Davido and all other foreign or Kenyan acts —  you are only a favourite in Kenya for as long as you behave or perform as they expect you to.

It’s good that Davido’s experience has sparked good debate. We should stop bashing Davido. He is just a 22-year-old spoilt, rich kid who needs more than your hate to change the course of his career — maybe new advisers and mentors. In the mean time, he retains his title as one of Africa’s hottest artistes right now and is still raking in big money.

So, where does that leave our own artistes? What role have you played in supporting Kenyan artistes? Have you gone out of your way to discover new music?

It starts with your perception of what is cool or not. It’s very easy for Kenyans to swear that there aren’t any well-produced or good songs by Kenyan artistes.