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The ‘Black Shines Brightest Stories’, a show celebrating the creative industry made its Maisha Magic premiere on July 23. The show, which airs again on July 30 and 31, is part of the ongoing Guinness Black Shines Brightest campaign that hails African creativity and ingenuity. The stories are unfiltered personalized accounts from creatives who are seeking to inspire the next generation of artists through their work.

In an exclusive screening held at Emara Sereni on Thursday, July 28, guests were given a peek into segments focusing on art, fashion, food, and music, with Black Apron Chefs, a private chef service shining a light on the painstaking journey towards creating a leading brand with a focus on African cuisine. There was also the husband-and-wife team behind Uncle Nene, talking about the hurdles they had to surmount to create a recognizable brand in the food industry.

In the art segment dancer, Salim Gori popularly known as ‘Dance General’ gave an inspirational tale of his humble journey as part of Sakata Dance Crew and what it took to grow from living in informal settlements to becoming a star boasting of a following of close to over 600,000 fans. Catherine Jepkemboi, popularly known as ‘MiniCheps’ on Twitter and Instagram, on her part, gave a revealing account of how persistence and focus can spur one's creativity and lift them beyond their status in life.

On his part, Mombasa-born graffiti artist Eliamin Ali recalled picking an interest from the distant Nairobi’s flashy matatu culture and went in to create a thriving tattoo business with enviable partnerships like one with Amp Studios. For fashionista Berven Boguk, putting in work is key if one is to make something out of their surroundings while the bold Swiry Nyar Kano had the story of how inherent pride in black is an opportunity to stand out, with colourfully good results.

Some of the creatives also featured in Guinness Black Shines Brightest Stories include Samantha and Natalie Mwedekeli, the founders of Mama Rocks Gourmet Burger and renowned producer DJ Suraj.

The night ended with a question-and-answer session with panelists including the series’ producer Nick Mutuma and others sharing the creative process, behind the scenes, that birthed the mini-series. “Black Shines Brightest Stories show is an immersive journey into the diverse creative talent that Kenya has to offer. It reveals the different paths that talents have taken the unique challenges that these creatives have faced along the way and importantly the resounding success that they are now reaping as a result. It also encourages the audience, this black generation, to be the best version of themselves,” said Nick Mutuma.

With this kind of unapologetically Black content, viewers can look forward to unfiltered personalized accounts of talents, their journeys, and the motivation to succeed in their spaces while inspiring a generation in the process.

The show is the first of other collaborations to come as part of the Black Shines Brightest campaign by Guinness. The brand is working with culture makers from across the country and the continent, which embodies the spirit of Black Shines Brightest in different ways. These collaborations will continue to celebrate Africans in their creative elements.