Nairobi News

Afro-soul sensation Fena Gitu and the group H_art the Band are an unhappy lot for what they have described as poor treatment during the much hyped BBQ Live concert that was headlined by Nigerian artiste Wizkid.

Fena Gitu and H_art the Band both took to their social media pages and revealed how they were mistreated by the organizers of the event that was held on Saturday night at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC).

In their lamentations, H_art the Band have recounted their woes on what should have been a memorable night for them; from being not informed of the exact time of their performance, being hurriedly informed to step on the stage long before they had even arrived at the venue to having part of their team frozen at the enterance.

“Never have we ever come out of a performance angry #truth ? it’s been a tough decision to make on whether to tell or not to tell Because Real ninjas are not snitches,” the group wrote in a long Instagram post.

⚠LoNG POST ALERT ⚠Good Morning Beautiful people ? it’s unlike us to complain or B*@£* but, Never have we ever come out of a performance angry #truth ? it’s been a tough decision to make on whether to tell or not to tell Because Real ninjas are not snitches?On that note still, someone once said, ” Bad things happen because Good People don’t speak out. ..” #Confused ? Anywho, warevaa warevaa Here Goes ? Last Saturday Night, these NinjAs were on top of the World ready to rock the stage at BBQ LiVE ( @bbqliveke ) Yaani ,we were so excited – it was going to be a good night or so we thought ? We didn’t know exactly what time we were performing – sounds unprofessional yes ?!? Truth is since the day before we had tried to inquire but no one was willing to tell – we were being taken round in circles *inserts merry-go-round pic* ? No worries, no one was going to kill our good vibes ? At 7pm we get a call from an anonymous person that we are supposed to be on stage in 5min ? Ps: we are still at home so we request for some time because there’s nothing we can do – Kayole-leshwa hakuna Uber-chopper apparently ?it’s then that This person threatens to cancel our performance if we don’t get there ASAP ? This phone call immediately alerts us to put on our Hater shades on ,it was going to be a Long ride*inserts Limousine emoji – get it?!? LongRide* ? We get there and from the main entrance the security officers start bad mouthing us_& talking trash ⚠OMG;!;! The Hater shades almost came off for a second ⏰ We readjusted them ,swallowed a huge lump of hate _& put our chins up – nothing else mattered now but the show ahead? Normally, such disrespect is followed by some Kayole-leshwa street madness but we had saved our energies for a better purpose? The drama doesn’t stop here?At the backstage entrance ,the person handling the artist decides to freeze our whole team ? Apparently, she doesn’t know why we need a Drummer for the performance aTi, the backstage is for artist’s only ⚠*Beep Beep* Bad Vibes Alert⚠We sense bad vibes _& so, we tell our team of camera-men, videographers _& management to chill outside?it wasn’t worth all the fuss to try to get in ? END OF PART 1

A post shared by PrOUDLY KENYaN (@h_arttheband) on Jul 24, 2017 at 12:50am PDT

Fena, who curtain raised for Wizkid three years ago, was not spared the organizational mishap either.

“To be honest, this gig was for us to mop the floor for Wizzy, not to share a stage with the legend. Wewe ukimaliza kumop, chukua kitambaa yako uishie. Of course I understand it’s not easy planning an event of that scale, figure it out… It was so funny for me to see Red and Nameless standing backstage in the rain to get a glimpse of Wiz,” she wrote on Instagram.

? I don’t want any media interviews about this ? This is not a gimmick. We are not here to play around or to be toyed with. This is the bane of my existence. I may not have a big team running around for me just yet, but I’ve done quite well so far, because when dealing with me it’s quite simple and straight forward. Sina demands, sina pang’ang’a. So I may be quiet and polite, but I’m done being nice. It never got anyone anywhere clearly. I am an independent artist working hard against all odds to prove to myself and to my fans that this shit can and will be done. I am here to shape the future of Kenyan music, because even as a fan, I’ve complained about substandard artistry and it feels good to see so many visionary upcoming Kenyan artists today. To literally be a flag bearer internationally, for women and for my country. We are in this industry together. That’s the joke. How are we going to make Kenya a world-class concert destination if we can’t even look out for our own? As an individual on the board of organizers, wouldn’t you feel some kind of fulfilment “when Fena blows up” because you created a platform and environment for the “local” artist to prosper? Radio is getting it right, DJs are getting it right, the artists are getting it right. Tuliacha kuzozana when we all understood that we need to step up. We all want to eat bruh, tusaidiane. We actually want YOU to make it big so that we make it big too. But mkiendelea kututreat ovyo hakuna mahali tunaenda. To be honest, this gig was for us to mop the floor for Wizzy, not to share a stage with the legend. Wewe ukimaliza kumop, chukua kitambaa yako uishie. Of course I understand it’s not easy planning an event of that scale, figure it out. Pay attention to detail. It was so funny for me to see Red and Nameless standing backstage in the rain to get a glimpse of Wiz. They should have been ushered straight from stage to VVIP. Mimi ata ningepelekwa Regular si mnajua bado tutaturnt tu ? The staff was stretched thin, everyone running around everywhere…it was a mess n I felt bad having to come down on my friends for it coz wako jobo pia. Maybe I’m just bitchin coz I wasn’t fed and I’m hungry.

A post shared by Fena Gitu (@fena_menal) on Jul 24, 2017 at 10:02am PDT

Apparently, it was not just the Kenyan artistes who felt shortchanged at the gig.

One Wizkid fan by the name Martha Onyango recounted on Facebook the shady treatment she and other revelers got from the organizers despite parting with a Sh25,000 for VVIP tickets.

A promotional poster by the organisers indicated that VVIP ticket holders would be entitled to designated secure parking, VVIP lounge next to the stage, free drinks and food, a meet and greet session with Wizkid and an Uber ride back home at the conclusion of the show.

However, according to this disappointed fan, nothing of sort happened.