FISH FIESTA FESTIVAL

Fish Fiesta 2023 is a signature tourism event organized by the County Government of Kisumu through the Department of Trade, Tourism, Industry and Marketing (TTIM) under the Marketing Campaign 'Kisumu My Pride', which aims to promote and position the county as a tourism, trade and investment hub.

Being the Marketing arm of the County Government of Kisumu, the Department is charged with the mandate of coordinating tourism development and promotion of activities and programmes that ensure increased tourism visitor numbers, promoting development of trade, industrialization, enterprises, and cooperatives through county policy formulation and implementation, regulation and infrastructural development.

CECM Tourism, Trade, Industry and Marketing Hon Farida Salim

Ohanglaman’ Mak Adem (b. Odero Ademson) began his amazing musical show at Kisumo’s Dunga Hill Camp at 4:30PM when the sun hard started to fungaya virago vyake and, for the next 3hrs and 22minutes, well after the sun had bid the day goodbye and given the moon the baton to shine upon Nam Lolwe’s waters, serenaded revellers with his versatile musical prowess and talent, strumming the Nyatiti to a million times and genresweaving his voice, smile, sweat, and lyrical Juogi to paradistic effect! (YES! That is one sentence, FU! ��)

M A K A D E M

Performance

Review by WNG Oluoch Madiang'

MakAdem’s general summation by performance critics always revolves around the motif of his ease of bestriding Benga, Ohangla, Pop, unalloyed Nyatiti, and providing transcendental Fela Kuti-esque performance experiences.

Watching and consuming MakAdem’s performance, one couldn’t help welcome into theirselves an osmosic transfer of enjoyment, entertainment and energy.

Watching and consuming MakAdem’s performance, one couldn’t help welcome into theirselves an osmosic transfer of enjoyment, entertainment and energy.

With his Alego fingers expertly causing his authentic kamabanane Nyatiti strings to croon their best notes (his Nyatiti was sourced originally in our very Alego Dala), and a posture of control, one would wonder why anyone would miss any of this experience in their lifetime.

My especial moment in the whole show was when MakAdem paid respectful tribute to the GrandMaestro Ayub Ogada with an energetic and artorgasmic rendition of ‘Ondiek’. Aaaaah, such sumptuous feeling!

Please, before you become a cabbage unable to control your body and senses, you MUST patronise a MakAdem show. Today MakAdem travels to Nakuru for a show on 9th. Endeni.

The resident Loko Band gave MakAdem backup for this show, while the legendary Dave Otieno worked the sounds.

A showcase of jewelry knowhow and natural fabrics set the ambiance of the attendees’ mood on the red carpet with many opting for silk. Hand gloves, chunky wedges, thighhigh boots, stilettos, ruffles, and designer handbags were the statement pieces nominating one to the bestdressed list. To couple the theme orange was mixed with blacks and whites, and there were a lot of dark blue hues, aqua, reds, and African prints ruling the night. Most interpreted the theme the best way they knew how, veering off.

Next In Fashion: The Plus Size Revolution

BySydneyOtieno

Body diversity has been a conversation in the mouths of many fashionpreneurs, designers, and models but dragged itself on gaining a voice in Africa with designers still hinged to the ‘model-slim’ fetish of the late 20th century which saw plus size models missing a seat at the fashion high table. The conversation continues upon the completion of the 8th edition of Kisumu Plus Size Affair held at the Sarova Imperial hotel in Kisumu’s CBD on 8th April.

Designers like Angela, Irene, and Beryl sent their collections down the runway with the theme being juggled all through. Crocheted shorts, blouses, and minidresses in a wide palette of brights was mixed with solid blacks achieving sportive contrasts.

Drapey kimonos highlighting African prints (kitenge) on the hems and belts were the focus of Irene’s presentation.

Beryl served the awe of the night’s closing with a bridal gown of clean cuts and precise back construction spotlighting just enough of the model’s back. Thigh-high slits made a cut in nearly all the presentations.

Feeble fate

Should ticket sales be of more importance than the show itself? or do I have to ask a waiter to move so as to get a glimpse of whatever is happening on the stage? What is the point of it all?

The show might have reached its target earnings because believe me not, it was packed but it may have also fallen short in advocating for body diversity in the fashion industry, not in terms of the models presented or the array of collections let down on the runway but in lacking the voice of urgency and alarm that modeling is a passion and any body size matters.

One is left to wonder what is next after seeing all these models, was it just another fun easter weekend night? It’s frustrating that the focus was not majorly on fashion relevancy to the plus size women as the show seemed to take a promotional stand with ten-minute or more breaks to advertise the sponsors. One cannot lose sight of successive movements near the runway and all over the place crashing all hopes to soak in the beauty of the designers’ creations.