Much ado about nothing:#Kenyansontwitter vs TreySongz

An innocent tweet by R&B star Trey Songz has triggered a furious backlash from a group of kenyan twitter users calling themselves #KenyansOnTwitter.

R & B star Trey_Songz

The genesis of the attacks arose from a tweet that said

The response from #Kenyansontwitter was overwhelming that this morning, @TreySongz and #KenyansOnTwitter beacme a trending topic. Trending is when a discussion topic on twitter is so popular that it generates a buzz locally or globally.

The R & B star posted those comments after watching a documentary titled “Famous, Rich and in the slums”. It is a reality TV show that takes celebrities out of their privileged lifestyles and integrates them into a ghetto community  of Kibera.

I think #KenyansOnTwitter are making a big deal out of nothing. For starters, the man did not say say anything wrong, he was simply expressing gratitude for what he has. He is a rising music star with a succesful music career making millions (in dollars not shillings).

Secondly, those who are shouting loudly on social media don’t come from Kibera. The profile of a typical Kenyan social media user is 18-35 years old, male and female, middle to upper classes. They access the internet via their data enabled mobile phones, in university or  work, Others access it via their mobile internet modems. These people are in essence so far removed from the reality of Kibera. Though the official census results shattered the myth of Kibera being the biggest slum in Africa, it didn’t change the abject poverty that is the reality. A reality that most of this people encounter not physically but via their TV screens. They therefore lack any authority, moral or otherwise to roast Trey Songz on his twitter post.

This angry group may be reacting to what they see as an attack on their affluence rather than patriotism. The typical social media user leaves in the richer parts of Nairobi like Westlands, Kilimani, Muthaiga, Runda, muthaiga or Kileleshwa. This group suffers from an illusion of perceived affluence. Affluence they perceive a millionaire American Musician is belittling hence the hostility. As #Kenyansontwitter continue bashing Trey is probably preparing for his next global tour.

In conclusion #Kenyansontwitter need to stop behaving like sharks in a feeding frenzy. The sharks smelt blood and went for the jugular, attacking Trey taking his comments out of context.Use the power of social media instead to drive impactful social change. Address social issues and get our elected representatives to act on the issues in South Africa, people complaining of potholes on the road are prompting action to fix them. Use social media for social and regime change, Egypt did it, Tunisia did it. Why not Kenya?