8 Kenyan celebs you wouldn’t believe are geniuses

Let’s face it, when most of us think of Kenyan celebrities, if you’ve been through the previous 8-4-4 system or you’re one of the unfortunate “alumni” of the CBC curriculum, then you automatically assume them dense.

The reason for this is the fact that for the most part, our education system puts an emphasis on academic excellence to the absolute dereliction of any other forms of intelligences or even talents. So you’re a footballer? Big whoop. Your teachers will drum it into the rest of the class or worse still, into you’re head that you’re nothing. The same can be said for actors and entertainers. Wait, I think there is a special bottom rung made entirely of comedians.

But what if I told you that while there are different cadres of intelligence, there are some -a precious few- who excelled in both the conventional way aswell as at the pursuit of their talent and craft? Some entertainers and celebs who were actually not just talented but also academically intelligent enough to juggle high level performance in all that was required of them?

And we all know what that mean. In both 8-4-4 and CBC, it takes a whole lot of cramming. Beyond simply being familiar with the material, you have to actually cram for the exams and often it involves some outdated and useless procedures (for most career paths) such as the Bosch Process (Chemistry anyone?) because let’s face it, I have never used that knowledge anywhere outside of my KCSE exam hall.

Even before we start, I need to actually clarify some metrics for you to fully appreciate the genius of these celebs. KCSE is graded on a scale with a maximum grade of A plain equivalent to an 80% score and above (to 100%) through to the minimum grade of E, equivalent to or lower than a 25% score.

Let’s take a quick look at the celebs who scored highly on their national O-Level exams (what we here in Kenya call KCSE). And I assure you that some of the characters who are certified geniuses will blow your mind.

Fena Gitu

Fena Gitu
Fena Gitu

This would surprise many but the Femcee cum LGBTQ advocate (though she does this on the sly) is a Precious Blood Riruta alumni who managed to score an A- (A minus) in her KCSE exam.

Fancy Fingers

Fancy Fingers
Fancy Fingers

Sauti Sol’s Polycarp who is an alumnus of Strathmore actually managed to score an A before he went on to pursue a degree in actuarial science.

JB Masanduku

Tina Kaggia’s ex-husband and comedian was actually a student at two “Ivy League” Kenyan schools; Starehe Boy’s Centre as well as Alliance High. And as if that isn’t impressive enough, he managed to score an A in the national exams.

Maureen Kunga

Maureen Kunga

One-half of the two ladies that make up the trio that is Elani (do they still make music anymore?) is an alumnus of Kianda School where she managed to score an A in the national exams. And as if that weren’t impressive enough, drum roll, please…

Wambui Ngugi

Elani’s Wambui Ngugi

The second half of the two ladies that make up the trio that is Elani (which at this point I have to state also includes Brian Chweya) also scored an A in KCSE.

King Kaka

Kenyan rapper, King Kaka

The rapper formerly known as Rabbit (isn’t that one of if not the worst name you’ve ever heard a rapper gave himself?!) made it against all odds. He was at Eastleigh High which if you know anything about Nairobi, isn’t exactly a bastion of education. And yet he managed to score an A- (A minus).

DJ Creme

The disc jockey too wasn’t in what we would consider a Kenyan “ivy league school” given he studied in some backwater secondary school before going on to score an A- (A Minus) in his KCSE exam.

Wahu

Come on, you already know this girl is smart. I mean, she went on to study mathematics in university. What more can I say? She too is an alumnus of Precious Blood and got an A.

I’ve purposely left out Babu Owino from the list. Google his grade yourself.

Clearly, a lot went into their academic prowess and this definitely includes (on the most part) not having to worry about their allowances. That is where Co-op Bank comes into partnership with you to avail to your child every possible advantage that you can afford them. One simple example of this is ensuring they always have their allowance/ pocket money at hand and not have to worry about it being jacked.

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DJ Creme Facing Parental Alienation Is Very Troubling

DJ Creme is a man hurting. This is abundantly clear when you realize that he has taken to his social media accounts to lay out his pain and whether or not you agree with this method of crying out is beside the point. We are focused on the reason for his hurt.

Word went around that his marriage had come to an abrupt end after he and his long time partner and fiance, Denise had gone their separate ways and she had taken the couple’s kids along with her and she was not allowing him to see the children.

While this is a terrible turn of events, the truth is that DJ Creme is one of many men who have realised that when to comes to their children, they do not have any power nor agency over the young ones’ welfare nor wellbeing. That means that when marriages fail, a lot of men lose their children and life goes on.

I mean, even when you look at the comments on his post, most of them are simply making fun of the medium and the videos shared instead of actually reaching out to the man. A lot of blockhead celebs like Shaffie Weru were more focused on the fact his daughter was upset he was not forgiving her after she had apologised several times over.

Creme’s son

And that is partly where the problem is; a lot of men do not have genuine relationships. Can you imagine, like DJ Creme, going on social media to let out your cry for help only for your “friends” to post nonsense in the comment section? Why not just give the man a call? I really have to question whether or not he has friends and this also reflects negatively on the man himself.

And why don’t we address this issue? I dunno. Why has Denise denied him access to his children? I don’t know but what I do know is that DJ Creme needs to be directed to some of the more experienced family law advocates so that his case can be handled.

I mean, at the end of the day, this entire saga is taking a toll on his mental wellbeing. He is clearly hurting but he needs to be more logical about the way he handles this. He will also need therapy because running to IG to angry-post is not where it’s at. Running to social media to cry for help only makes him the subject of tabloids and entertainment rags.

And as men, we need to take note of what happened. We need to closely monitor this case because it is going to affect more than half of us as fathers. And we need to also realise the importance of a tribe of men who will become our support system. But for now, all I can do is pray for him and his family. All we can do is try to help from the distance between us by offering up our prayers and sending good vibes.

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