IT WAS A WEEKEND of mixed fortunes in the showbiz industry as events and concerts slowly proved to be getting back, but from the look of things, the mood is not yet fully back. A case in point is the two-day Wave Music Fest, which took place on Saturday and Sunday at Canal Olympia. The hyped festival did not attract as many people as expected, as just a few dozen revellers turned up. It is either because the event was not properly advertised or the distance was a not favourable for many, given the curfew. Nevertheless, the few who turned up seemed to have enjoyed the ambience and the performances, as different artistes including Alyn Sano, Bushali and Phil Peter entertained them to the maximum. Wave Music Fest is one of the very first concerts to be held since government okayed the resuming of events and shows following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions. Artistes who graced it include Yvan Buravan, Davis D, Alyn Sano, Bushali, Ish Kevin, Ririmba, Logan Joe and Kenny K-Shot. Bushali performing. Organisers had prepared for a good number of people, with the hope that Kigalians missed going out for shows but that was not the case. MCs Tino and Ange Umulisa did their best to keep the few who turned up engaged as performances from Bushali, Alyn Sano and Phil Peter thrilled them. Perhaps it is worth noting that the Isibo TV presenter is using the opportunity to advance his own music career, having slowly plotted his way onto the stage with a couple of collaborations with already known artistes. The singer performed his songs including ‘Agafoto’ which he features Marina, P-Fla and Fireman as well as ‘Amata’ which he did with Social Mula and ‘Bimpame’, his song with Marina, among others. Sano’s new look, with short hair, performed a number of her songs including ‘For us’, ‘Naremewe wowe’, ‘We the best’ and many more, while Bushali returned to stage to prove that he is still the King of Kinyatrap. He took back his fans with songs like ‘Niyibizi’, ‘Ku Gasima’, ‘Ni muebue’ and ‘Kamwe’, the popular collaboration with other artistes. The likes of Yvan Buravan and Davis D performed on Sunday. Despite the low turn-up, the feeling of the concerts coming back set the momentum for what is to come in the coming months, hopefully, with Covid-19 cases declining. Was actress Isimbi appointed ‘Peace Ambassador’ by the UN body? Over the weekend, it was reported that actress Alliance Isimbi was appointed World Peace Ambassador by a United Nations body, known as the International Association of World Peace Advocates (IAWPA). The actress known as ‘Alliah Cool’ in the local movie industry, received the ‘Award of Eminent Peace Ambassador’ from IAWPA in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria, alongside other eminent individuals, thereby adding the title ‘Amb’ to her name. “The journey to success has been tedious but I thank God for making the path clear for me, to become a UN eminent peace ambassador. What God cannot do does not exist,” Isimbi posted. Alyn Sano performs at Wave Music Fest. / Courtesy However, a quick search shows that IAWPA is not a UN agency, but it is rather a non-governmental organisation in Nigeria, affiliated to the United Nations Global Compact. The United Nations Global Compact is a non-binding United Nations pact to encourage businesses and firms worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation. The UN Global Compact is a principle-based framework for businesses, stating ten principles in the areas of human rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption. Under the Global Compact, companies are brought together with UN agencies, labor groups and civil society. Cities can join the Global Compact through the Cities Programme. The UN Global Compact is the worlds largest corporate sustainability (or corporate social responsibility) initiative with 13000 corporate participants and other stakeholders over 170 countries. Organisations under the UN Global Compact, such as IAWPA which awarded Isimbi with the recognition are not therefore UN agencies. Other ‘Eminent Peace Ambassadors’ IAWPA claims to have, include the President of Liberia George Weah, the Governor of Imo State, Nigeria, Hope Uzodinma, Evangelist Bishop Samuel Ben Owusu and several others. Nevertheless, the win brought about by her Lagos-based management team, One Percent International MGT, is a step in Isimbi’s career and efforts to spread her name beyond Rwandan borders.
