Showbiz recap: Dancer Titi Brown acquitted, Patoranking thrills fans in Kigali and more
Sunday, November 12, 2023
Nigerian singer Patoranking performed in Kigali this weekend. Net photo

Last week, Nigerian music stars Patoranking and King Promise thrilled their fans at the meet and greet club party held at Shooters Lounge, and the Nyarugenge Intermediate Court on Friday acquitted dancer Thierry Ishimwe, known as Titi Brown, of defilement charges.

The New Times highlights more stories that made headlines last week in local showbiz.

Dancer Titi Brown acquitted, court rules out damages payment

The Nyarugenge Intermediate Court on November 10, acquitted dancer Thierry Ishimwe, known as Titi Brown, of defilement charges.

According to the verdict, the court determined that a victim identified as M.J., had been raped and later became pregnant. However, the decision to acquit Ishimwe was reached due to the absence of concrete evidence beyond M.J.'s testimony to conclusively link Ishimwe to the rape and pregnancy.

Titi’s release from prison was welcomed by many of his fans who missed his choreography videos.

ALSO READ: Dancer Titi Brown acquitted, court rules out damages payment

King Promise, Patoranking thrills Kigali fans

Ghanaian singer King Promise and Patoranking, who is one of the best artistes on the continent, thrilled Kigali fans during the meet and greet parties held at Shooters Lounge over the weekend.

King Promise’s meet and greet show was the first to take place and delivered an energetic performance that was dominated by his hit tracks like Terminator, Ginger, 10 Toes and others.

Patoranking’s show, held on Saturday, also attracted hundreds of revelers and featured performances by DJ Pius among others.

ALSO READ: Ghanaian singer King Promise thrills Kigali fans

Beauty queen Doriane Kundwa reacts to Miss Rwanda saga

Last week, during the Ally Soudy On Air show hosted by renowned journalist Ally Soudy, Miss Rwanda 2015 Doriane Kundwa, commented on the Miss Rwanda competition saga, saying that the competition should not be halted completely because it opened doors and empowered young girls in the country for the last many years.

The beauty pageant was suspended last year following the arrest of Prince Kid, the brains behind the event, who was sentenced to five years in prison last month, for rape and soliciting sexual favours towards contestants in the pageant.

Kundwa said that while it was a good move to hold individuals responsible for the problems the competition has been facing to account, a lot still needs to be done to revive the competition and give it a more female-friendly structure.

She is the first contestant of the competition to comment on the saga.

Rwanda could host Grammy Awards

According to Africa Intelligence, Kigali was selected as the first music centre for the Recording Academy, an American learned academy of musicians, producers, sound engineers and other music professionals, famous for its Grammy Awards, a move that could see Rwanda hosting the first African edition of the Grammy Awards in 2025.

This follows the visit of Harvey Mason Jr, CEO of the Recording Academy, to Rwanda in 2022, where he met with officials from the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) to discuss potential areas of partnership in the music industry and other related fields on the continent.

ALSO READ: African stars nominated for Grammy 2024: Olamide, Asake makes their debut, key nominees

The five cities selected to act as regional hubs for the Academy's future pan-African headquarters include Kigali, which is also the first city chosen as a music centre, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Nigeria's economic capital, Lagos, as well as Abidjan, which has been selected as the Academy's French-speaking hub.