SHOWBUZZ: Sh50 million spent on Ali Kiba’s wedding?

Bong flava crooner Ali Kiba crossed the borders to spend what some sources claim is Sh50 million on his wedding in Mombasa on Thursday.

Kiba tied the knot with his Kenyan wife, 23-year-old Amina Khalef. The two had dated secretly for close to two years.

The flashy, adults-only exclusive ceremony was conducted at Masjid Ummul Kulthum Mosque and the after-party held at Diamond Jubilee Hall.

The amount quoted includes all the expenditure of the day: hiring of luxurious cars to ferry around friends and family of the musician, renting the Diamond Jubilee Hall—with decor alone said to cost Sh2 million—hotel rooms for his large team at the luxurious English Marina Hotel, as well as payment of dowry to Amina’s parents.

“In total, he parted with Sh50 million for the one-day event,” a close confidant, who requested anonymity, told Showbuzz.

The star is now scheduled for a second wedding on April 29 in his home town, Dar es Salaam, and will thereafter leave with his wife for their honeymoon in Italy.

Pozee’s label ready

Musician Willy Paul, who has now transformed from gospel music to secular, is set to open his new label, Saldido Records, which is estimated to have cost Sh2.5 million to set up.

The new studio, located in Sosian Estate on Kayole Spine Road, is already complete and what remains is the commissioning. According to a source, Willy Paul got most of his funding for the recording facility from a rich female friend, said to be very close to the singer.

With the construction 100 per cent complete, Showbuzz understands that Willy Pozee is waiting for an appropriate time to do the launch.

He intends to hold a huge ceremony for that event, which will be attended by the big shots of the Kenyan entertainment industry.

“The studio is complete and I can tell you for sure it is one of a kind; a world class facility.

“Pozee, with support from a well-loaded female friend, has invested greatly; from the premises itself to the instruments and machines. I am made to understand the investment is nothing short of between Sh2 million and Sh2.5 million,” a source said.

Yvonne’s pregnancy has nothing to do with me, stresses Hopekid

With pictures emerging of gospel musician Hopekid’s former girlfriend Yvonne Orio pregnant, the artiste has moved quickly to say that he is not the man responsible.

Orio, who dated Hopekid for five years, broke up with the musician — with very few people noticing.

Majority of the gospel dancehall artiste’s fans only came to realise that he was no longer with the fashion blogging woman early this year when he posted pictures of himself with his new girlfriend, Naima Dawood, who is of Dutch and Kenyan origin.

Many imagined that it was a recent breakup, with Hopekid lucky enough to have a quick rebound in Naima. They were of the opinion that he might be the father to the baby Orio is carrying.

However, speaking to Showbuzz, Hopekid dismissed the notion by stating that the last time he set eyes on Orio was over a year ago, the time they broke up.

“You’re cracking me up. I am not responsible for the pregnancy. Yvonne and I broke up in November 2016 and just to be precise, I haven’t laid eyes on her for the past 16 months or so,” Hopekid said.

Dufla: My contract at Grandpa just ran out

Kenyan dancehall musician Dufla Diligon, who rose to fame with the "Tempo" club banger, has given reasons why he ditched Grandpa Records, owned by music producer Refigah.

Rumours doing the rounds claimed that the down-to-earth singer had a fallout with Refigah but Dufla clarified the matter when he spoke to Showbuzz.

“I didn’t have a fallout with Refigah. I left after my contract with the recording label expired last December. Since then I have been working alone with my new team.

“Besides, Refigah got busy with other ventures so I guess it was the right time for me to leave,” Dufla, who dropped his latest jam "Katapila" on Friday, explained.

He becomes the latest artiste to leave Grandpa following departures by Kenrazy, Visita and DNA.

I know who hacked my accounts, says Jimmy Gait

Gospel musician Jimmy Gait claims to have identified the cunning hackers who took down his Facebook and Instagram social media accounts, which were recently hacked and all the contents deleted.

The melodious singer says he has suspects, who he strongly believes were responsible for taking down his popular social pages that he depends on to interact with his fans.

His Facebook page had over 4,000 followers whereas the Instagram one commanded 46,000 followers.

“I have identified the people behind all this. I am contemplating reporting them to the necessary authorities, but in the meantime I have already contacted Facebook and Instagram administrators to help me regain control of my accounts,” he said.

With his accounts being hacked, Gait joins a growing list of celebrities who have suffered the same fate.

DJ Pierra, popular socialite Vera Sidika, Susumila, and Kenzo Matata are among those on the list.

Just a few weeks ago, unknown hackers took over multiple Vevo-owned YouTube accounts and made alterations to several song titles, including worldwide hit "Despacito".

This comes at a time when the Kenyan Parliament has passed a Motion that could see hackers, cyber suspects and impersonators jailed for three years, or fined up to Sh3 million for the offence.

Wangechi’s new song after a year

Talented female rapper Wangechi is back in the music scene after a year’s hiatus, with the release of her latest jam "Used to it". 

The gifted rapper has been on and off the music scene since she was involved in a road accident in 2015 that claimed a close friend’s life.

Since then, the 24-year-old rapper has not kept up with the pace of the ever-changing music scene, even after she was featured in Coke Studio and had a chance to work with American R&B star Ne-Yo and other top artistes.

However, a few days ago, she made her way back with "Used to it", produced by KadzBeats, after ditching her former music producer and manager Kevin Provoke.

Wangechi comes back at an interesting time when the industry is witnessing a re-emergence of female rappers.

She faces stiff competition from Kush Tracey, Noti Flow, Femi One and the new kid on the block, Petra, who has been trending lately with several collabos like "Rider", "The Khali Cartels" featuring Khaligraph Jones, as well as "I Got That" featuring Victoria Kimani.

Consumator to host Mutuini race

Poetic comedian Peter Consumator will host the first edition of the Mutuini Marathon that will be held next Sunday in Dagoretti South. Consumator, assisted by Mcee Hype Willy, will be the main host of the race that will start at 6.30am.

The charity event will feature 3.5km, 10km, as well as 21km competitive races at Kirigu Primary School, Dagoretti South Constituency.

The first 10 athletes in the two main races will receive prize money, with the winner of the 21km taking home Sh70,000, runner-up Sh50,000 and the first runner-up Sh30,000.

Registration for the marathon, at Sh1,000, payable to M-Pesa pay bill number 700694 (your name as account), is ongoing.

The organisers are targeting a total of 1,000 participants.

All the proceeds from the event will go towards supporting Mutuini Hope Centre, a care and education project in Mutuini Ward, Dagoretti South Constituency, Nairobi, for needy and neglected children.

Nation Media Group is the official media partner of the race that also has sponsorship from NHIF, the Chinese embassy, Nairobi Hospital, Aquamist Ltd and Co-operative Bank.

Other entertainers include DJ Slyce and one-man guitarist and Mugithi specialist Ben Kariz.