The Sankara Hotel on Wednesday, May 8 hosted the official relaunch of popular movie streaming platform Showmax.
Despite recent heavy rains, the weather held up, allowing the event to proceed smoothly without any interruptions.
The red carpet was a showcase of glamour, with notable personalities arriving in style to celebrate Showmax’s new beginning.
The atmosphere was set by a captivating acapella performance from Nikita Kering, followed by Okello Max and Costar Ojwang’s collaborative track, ‘Asembo’, getting everyone on their feet.
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During Nikita Kering’s performance, ‘Single Kiasi’ actor Michael ‘Smallz’ Munyoki, took a daring step by ‘proposing’ to Nikita.
“Will you marry me, Nikita?” shouted Munyoki from the audience.
Nikita, in response, asked Munyoki to ask the question while on stage, and Munyoki did not hesitate to move up on stage and go on one knee, leaving the crowd in laughter before the two shared a hug and Nikita concluded her performance.
Their spontaneous on-stage moment, complete with Munyoki kneeling and Nikita’s warm response, left the crowd enchanted.
Following the performances, Emma Gichonge, Showmax’s General Manager for East Africa, took the stage to share insights into what the relaunch means for viewers.
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She highlighted the exciting content lineup, including the addition of the English Premier League for football enthusiasts.
As part of the relaunch, Showmax introduced a new technical platform in collaboration with Peacock, a streaming service active in over 70 countries. This platform offers a range of live and on-demand content, including sports events.
“The ambition for Showmax is to be the number one streamer on the continent, including Kenya, and there has been a lot of investment that has been put into the business, not only with the new platform that we migrated the customers to but also more importantly with the additional local content that we will see this year,” Gichonge told this writer.
Gichonge emphasised Showmax’s commitment to promoting local content, revealing plans for more Kenyan original films in the pipeline.
The event attracted various celebrities, actors, influencers, and media stakeholders, all impeccably dressed for the occasion.
Showmax took the opportunity to announce the premiere of five original shows, including ‘The Real Housewives of Nairobi S2’, ‘Big Girl Small World’, ‘Untying Kantai’, ‘Nilichoma’, and ‘Jiji’.