Bob Collymore, the arts lover

Under Bob Collymore, Safaricom has not only supported the various sectors of the arts, but also improved the quality of products from artistes, measurement and appreciation of value of works, and helping to improve the living standards of creatives. PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • His leadership saw Safaricom sponsor local artistes and hold a tour that saw the creatives paid ground-breaking rates.
  • His story about creating and selling art pieces from the time he was 12 has been written over and over again.
  • In 2012, Safaricom started “Niko Na Safaricom” tour concerts for local artistes.

The passing on of Safaricom’s CEO Bob Collymore is also being seen as a blow in the creative arts and performances industry.

When Michael Joseph stepped down as Safaricom CEO in October, 2010, the company had just begun its sponsorship of Groove Awards and Classical Fusion as well as other classical music events.

Enter Bob Collymore. Bob came from an artistic background.

His story about creating and selling art pieces from the time he was 12 has been written over and over again.

PLIGHT OF ARTISTS

Having grown up partly in one of South America’s poorest countries before moving to the UK to join his mother at age 16, probably Bob understood the plight of Kenyan artistes and what it was like to try and make ends meet in the country’s economic situation.

Under his leadership, Safaricom’s sponsorship of creatives, both local and foreign, has been ever-expanding in terms of scope.

In 2012, Safaricom started “Niko Na Safaricom” tour concerts for local artistes.

Although each act would be approached individually to negotiate the terms, the concerts would see the artistes paid rates that had never been offered to them by promoters.

There were real VIP lounges, and not just separate tents set apart from the main audience area, a backstage that befitted celebrated individuals, a stage that could fit as many acts as it would take to make a performance perfect, and lighting and screens on stage that added glitz and glamour to the concerts.

There was a VVIP tent set aside for Bob Collymore, just in case he would attend at a moment’s notice.

He attended some of them.

LIVE PERFORMANCES

The tour would run for a year but from then on, the Kenyan music and entertainment scene, especially live performances, would never be the same again.

Artistes who benefited from the tour include Size 8 Reborn, Octopizzo, P Unit, Sauti Sol, Gloria Muliro, Willy Paul and comedian Eric Omondi.

In 2014, Safaricom Jazz was introduced to the public.

The event managed to fuse old school jazz music and other genres that morphed from it over the years.

Hence, the audience it attracted was a bigger one; the purists got to enjoy their saxophone-piano-bass and sometimes ensembles, and those just getting to know the genre and the younger audiences would enjoy the more contemporary forms of it.

GHETTO CLASSICS

To bring an even bigger mass into the mix, Safaricom sponsored Ghetto Classics, a community programme that has helped train hundreds of slum children from Nairobi, Mombasa and Kiambu to play classical music instruments such as violins, cellos, clarinets and so on.

It was also during Bob’s tenure that Safaricom gave a chance to Kenyan photographers to tell the Kenyan visual story through the Safaricom Calendar giving them a national platform to showcase their talent.

“This is My Kenya” is what the platform was called. This year, it has turned its gaze on painters and other artists in order to afford them the same benefits.

When Bob got married, the couple started painting as a form of relaxation. Bob Collymore has personally, as well as Safaricom, supported a lot of artists and art events.

THEATRE SHOWS

Safaricom has also sponsored a lot of theatre shows including plays, musicals and ballet performances with the latest and best known being Lwanda Rockman.

Michael Joseph Centre has always been a free resource centre for creatives who want to use it.

Be it music shows, play productions, artist talk or even art gallery, the fact that creatives don’t have to pay for the venue means that there is an increase in their revenue.

They are also provided with lighting and microphone facilities.

Under Bob Collymore, Safaricom has not only supported the various mentioned sectors of the arts, but also improved the quality of products from artistes, measurement and appreciation of value of works, and helping to improve the living standards of creatives.