After Nairobi Artistes,Now Embu Artists Hit The Streets To Protest To The Government Of Embu Over Lack Of Support. (Photos)
Looks like the 70% Airplay clamor is not just a Nairobi thing. Or a passing fad. More and more sections of artists,from different towns and of different talents,are now coming forward and organizing protests of their own and it’s catching fire.
Some bunch of weeks ago,irked Nairobi artists stormed the Nation Centre to try and pressure the media (and Government) into implementing the 70% Airplay constitutional requirement for local content.
The protest was so huge that international media entities,including BBC,joined in the fray…Al Jazeera even did a one-hour special talk show on the state of Kenyan Music and the source of all this bitterness and revulsion towards excessive Naija content.
And soon enough,Culture CS Hassan Wario jumped in too… And some executive legislations were passed.
And now,exasperated artists from Embu,under the banner ‘United4Talent’ decided to stage their own protest after what they called lack of attention from the Embu County Government,poor representation,impropriation of funds meant to boost youth and arts and a slew of other ills affecting them and their pockets.
And in a protest fervently organized on social media,by among others,leading Embu town blogger Charles Kimenjo,political aspirant and businessman Collo,poet June Cullen and current Miss Embu Gladys Njeru Koki,the protest happened today starting 9.30am allover the dusty town.
After massive lobbying and much grassroots organization,the artists,comprising rappers and singers and poets and models,poured into the streets and marched all the way to the County Government offices from where they presented their plight and had a closed-door session with Local Government representatives.
Talking to Ghafla on phone,Blogger Charles Kimenjo termed the protest a success and expressed hope in how things were projected to look in the near future.
‘The protest was a massive success. Artists came out in full numbers… Ready for anything and more importantly,ready to make their voices heard and respected. It was a full house as the whole town was brought to a standstill by tens of frustrated artists who have for long complained of poor representation,lack of financial support and exorbitant charges charged to young people to start business and grow their talents… ‘
Well… We applaud the United4Talent participants and salute their courage and commitment to justice and prosperity.
Check out the photos…
