Comedian Mathenge’s take on Diamond’s Azimio appearance
Comedian Alex Mathenge has added his voice to the debate as to why Kenyan musicians appear to be increasingly ignored on the local stage.
The debate reached a crescendo at the weekend when Tanzanian musician Diamond Platnumz was reportedly paid Sh10 million to perform for 30 minutes at a political event graced by Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga.
Mathenge claims Kenyan musicians could not grace the events as they are victims of what he referred to as ‘State capture’.
“(The) reasons why Kenyan artists were not at the Azimio grand event but Diamond was there (is that) we are victims of corporate capture. Perform there and lose all your corporate deals for the next decade!” he claimed in a post on Instagram.
Mathenge joins a swelling list of artists who’ve shared their take on Diamond’s appearance.
Eric Omondi, also a comedian, maintains Kenyan artists need to up their game while Juliani, a musician, suggests the Azimio rally organizers intentionally sidelined Kenyan musicians.
Mathenge is known for creating well-thought-out viral clips that attract millions of views on YouTube.
The comedian, whose real name is Alex Macharia Wanjugu, has worked as a radio presenter, voice talent, creative writer, and Master of Ceremony (MC).
The award-winning content creator boasts 246K subscribers on YouTube and was among ten creators who were awarded the Silver Button in 2019 after surpassing the 100,000 subscribers mark.
Others were MCA Tricky, King Kaka, Bahati, Ajaabu TV, Sharon Waniz, Timeless Noel, Wabosha Maxine, and Willy Paul.
A few months back, Mathenge was embroiled in an ugly online spat with musician KRG the Don.