Teen singer and writer eyeing Sh3.5m from her first book

A multi-talented girl from Kirinyaga County is dreaming of earning Sh3.5 million from a book.

Reward Nyawira, 14, an allegedly confirmed genius, started primary education straight at Class Three level. She is already mobilising influential people in her home county to attend the official launch of her first book — Busara ya Ajabu (Amazing Wisdom).

30,000 COPIES

It is a religious book that seeks to draw people to Christianity. She has written it in anecdotal form, packing inspirational testimonies from her young life as a born-again Christian.

She says her target is to sell 50,000 copies, with a single book going for Sh700. With that, she believes, she will make her way into the millionaires’ club while still below the age of adulthood.

She already has her marketing plan in place: Sell 30,000 copies within her Seventh Day Adventist Church, where she is an active member, then sell the remaining copies in the open market.

TOP LEADERS

To succeed, she is betting on the success of the launch event, where she expects the local leadership led by Governor Anne Waiguru to attend. If she is lucky enough, she could even catch the ear of President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto.

Other invited guests include Equity Bank CEO James Mwangi and Nairobi Institute of Business Studies CEO Lizzie Wanyoike.

INVITED ABROAD

She is not new to planning such events. She has jetted out of the country 15 times to spread the gospel through preaching, singing and reciting religious verses.

Greatly talented, she plays all the musical instruments captured in the Bible, and it is this strength that has endeared her to many of her church faithful, who invite her locally and abroad to feature in religious shows.

The Form Two student at Moi Kabarak Girls High School, where she averages B, has travelled to countries like America, Italy, Algeria, Tanzania, Uganda and Nigeria, featuring in public and indoor crusades and religious camps.

TWO ALBUMS

She has written and recorded two albums, which are available in both audio and audio-visual versions.

“My first album, Ndina Gikeno (I am happy), was recorded in 2014, while Nakupenda Sana (I love you (Jesus) so much),” was released in 2017,” she says.

Her mother Josephine Wangechi, a single parent, says she cannot explain the unique talent her child has.

MUSICAL LINES

“It is a direct anointment from God. Her extraordinary nature started manifesting at two years when her verbal sounds reflected musical lines. I think it is because I have been very religious. This could have influenced her … she amazes many people, I included,” she says.

The music, she adds, is doing well. The two hawk it from town to town.

ACCEPTANCE

Young Nyawira notes: “I have gone to major towns in Central, Eastern, Coast and Nairobi regions to sell my work. In a good day, I sell about 100 copies at Sh100 each. I have come face-to-face with acceptance everywhere. After I present myself and my artistic work, many people buy it. The only problem is that I can only sell my work when I break for school holidays.”

From the earnings, the girl is able to offer financial support to her mother and her 16-year-old-brother.

FINANCIAL PILLAR

The mother says: “Out of her earnings, I am able to pay her school fees as well as those of her elder brother. She is a critical financial pillar in this family”.

Young Nyawira says her great inspiration is Mother Teresa, as well as Wangari Maathai, both of whom “reflected great passion for humanity in their lives”.

To follow in their footsteps, Nyawira says her ultimate desire in life is to pursue higher education and become a lecturer in business studies to help many people gain entrepreneurial skills to defeat poverty.