Popular Kikuyu benga queen Joyce wa Mama is lucky to be alive after she was attacked during her birthday celebrations on September 24.
The grapevine has it that she was with dozens of her friends when, in the evening, a woman walked to her ‘enjoying a binge’ and sprinkled a substance from a bottle.
There were claims that love beef, business emotions and jealousy might have played a role in the attack.
“It was Wa Mama who screamed first, saying she could not see … There was apprehension in the party and three companions of the songbird also reported they could not open up their eyes,” said a Nairobi-based musician.
Others claimed that the victims overreacted because they were intoxicated and that the incident was minor.
But on Monday, Wa Mama told Nation.Africa that the incident “has left me and several of my colleagues shaken but [we are fine]”.
She added: “I think we were panicky, but all is well now and my fans [have] nothing to fear.”
Asked what exactly was used to attack her and how she felt, she responded: “It was a liquid and it was bitter in the eyes as well as corrosive on the skin”.
Asked whether the attack left her scarred or bandaged, she said it was “none of that, just a medical checkup and we were all ruled fit to be out of the hospital … and we can see, eyesight is intact”.
She said she had not decided whether to report the incident to the police.
A male crooner who was at the party said “it was a champagne burst gone awry”.
He claimed that the so-called female attacker was indeed a person who came to wish Wa Mama a happy birthday and wanted it to be a surprise.
Those behind her could see that she was carrying a bottle of champagne.
“She approached the table where Wa Mama was seated with several guys and held the bottle towards them. She uncorked it and the surprise pop sound and gushes of the contents flew in full force and the next thing was Wa Mama was down screaming and pandemonium broke out,” he said.
It was reported that Wa Mama insisted on being rushed to a hospital with her friends.
Her musical mother figure, Ms Wangari Wa Kabera, told Nation.Africa that “it was not a big deal, she is well and all her friends are also well”.
It was Kabera who introduced Wa Mama to the music industry in 2009.
Wa Mama built her name through backup roles in Kabera’s band and in John Njagi’s artistic works, her petite figure attracting interest from her fan base.
She weighed 39 kilos when she started in music, and when she addressed an Azimio rally in Kiambu County during campaigns, she joked that her weight had risen to 48.
She is famed for hits like “Wanjogothaga Niki”, “Tiga Kunjira Sorry”, “Wari Wakwa”, “Zurura Dada”, “Thina Ni Umagwo” and her latest song released two weeks ago, “Mundurume Njamba”. She also released a collabo with Samidoh known as “Ihuha” (boil).
She hails from Kongo-ini village in Murang’a County and one of her biggest supporters, she says, is her MP Ndindi Nyoro.
She has been associated with several dates, including Gukena FM sports presenter Munyeki The Sonko, with whom, by their own admission, she has a baby son. BY DAILY NATION