Diamond Platnumz to open studio in Rwanda

It looks like East Africa’s big wig isn’t just interested in conquering the hearts of music lovers, but also, doing business within the East African region.

Tanzanian Bongo star Diamond Platnumz has hinted on plans to open a music studio in Rwanda. The singer, who currently owns Wasafi Records, arguably the biggest record studio in East Africa, has revealed his much anticipated plans for our local music industry.

The singer posted on his social media platforms a picture handing over a document to a Rwandan identified as Lee Ndayisaba, and captioned it: "My Dear Rwandese artistes, I’m so happy to inform you that, from next week @wasafidotcom branch will be officially open in Rwanda.... I will soon announce where and how you can get connected and be able so to sell your music through the @wasafidotcom platform.” Word has it that the studio is being initialised by Lee Ndayisaba, the managing director of Clouds TV Rwanda, a station that temporarily closed its doors recently. We are told that prior to finalising the deal; the two met in Dubai and later signed an official agreement to open the studio in Kigali. We don’t know exactly when the studio will be up, but this will be a big boost for our local music industry.

Is DJ Pius heading to Trace TV?

While many doubted if he would return, DJ Pius is back home after a successful European tour with Charly&Nina.

They were away for three weeks holding a series of performances in different parts of Europe. The girls returned last week whereas Pius returned on Monday. Word has it that while the singer was in France, he was up to something.

News reaching our desk is that Pius was finalising plans with Trace TV, one of the world’s leading music and entertainment stations. We are told that the Agatako hit-maker is in discussions with the TV management.

We are told that the singer will be responsible for selecting the music videos that air on the station. Trace TV, a French television network, is devoted to urban contemporary music videos operating across the world including the Middle East and Africa, Europe and South Asia.

What we are not sure of is whether DJ Pius will continue making music or he has decided to take on a full time job. We will keep you posted.

Ciney is getting married

Female rapper Aisha Uwimana, commonly known as Ciney, is a very happy woman.

And why shouldn’t she be? We are told that her boyfriend surprised her with an engagement ring during a show at Kigali Serena Hotel on Sunday.

Word reaching our desk is that the singer has been in a low-key relationship with a guy identified as Ronald Tumusiime.

The latter surprised the songstress during the Comedy Night show that was graced by popular Kenyan comedian Eric Omondi.

We are told that the wedding ceremony is slated to take place in July.

Sauti Sol apologises over Studio Mashinani debacle

Kenyan Afro-pop music group Sauti Sol apologised to President Uhuru Kenyatta over remarks made by one of their members accusing the government of stealing their idea.

Recently, group member Bien Aime Baraza who’s also a lead vocalist, accused the government of Kenya of stealing the group’s Studio Mashinani idea and implementing it a year later with Jamaican artistes Richie Spice, Luciana and Etana.

Baraza also claimed that the idea was presented to President Kenyatta who instructed them to give a proposal to the then Youth Fund Chairman, Bruce Odhiambo.

But in a complete turnaround, the group issued an apology to the President for the remarks made by one of the group members.

They posted a statement on the group’s Facebook page; "We would like to issue a sincere apology to our President, Uhuru Kenyatta, for a statement which led to his goodwill and intention being wrongly interpreted by the media. Again, we would like to reiterate Bien’s statement that he (President Kenyatta) had no hand in this as he deals with millions of national issues and it is something he probably delegated.”

The project, which includes studio based interviews, field recordings, live links to facts, youth news and music to entertain youth, was launched by Kenya’s Ministry of Information and Technology. The launch of the project was, however, snubbed by Sauti Sol before Bien took to social media to express the group’s displeasure with the turn of events.

Nigeria’s Davido reportedly hospitalised amid paternity scandal

HKN Gang boss, Davido, who is at the centre of a paternity scandal with an Ibadan-based girl, has been hospitalised over an undisclosed illness.

The news of the self-acclaimed Omo Baba Olowo’s illness has emerged online. This comes after the entertainer shared a black and white photo on a hospital bed with a drip fixed on his hand via Snapchat.

Another photo on his Snapchat also shows emoticons of a thermometer in the emoji’s mouth – depicting his hospital situation.

A while back, Davido made major headlines following a paternity issue with the Ibadan-based young lady who alleged that Davido is the father of her three-year-old daughter.