This archive report was first published on 13 September 2021.
Since leaving mainstream radio almost five years ago, Kalekye Mumo has been on a journey of self-discovery and reinvention. In this interview, she shares her experiences and insights on finding purpose in every season.
Published on September 13, 2021, on Standardmedia.com, Kalekye Mumo speaks on her transition from mainstream radio to digital media, her experiences as a woman in a predominantly male industry, and her thoughts on dating and marriage.
After leaving mainstream radio, Kalekye Mumo got back onto TV, hosting a game show and a talk show on K24 TV. She then delved into digital media with the show Live & Uncut, an interview-based show that initially ran on Facebook Live before moving to YouTube in 2019 under the brand name KM Network.
However, when Covid-19 hit, Kalekye Mumo had to put the interviews on hold and later found her way to doing an IG live show that is based on the radio style of hosting called KM Radio. She is also a Media Training consultant working with various organisations and currently looking towards creating a radio training program for the youth.
When asked about her lowest moment in her career, Kalekye Mumo shares that it was when the people who were meant to have her back in the workplace did not. She learned that she is a solo entity with her own ambition and chose her path. She advises that when you get a job, understand that you are only responsible for yourself, be clear about your values and non-negotiables, identify your mentors, and be ready to work twice as hard as your male counterparts.
On navigating the Nairobi dating scene, Kalekye Mumo shares that dating in her 20s was full of uncertainty and naivety. She was trusting and open to people being good from the onset, but that was a lie, and she got her heart broken many times. Dating in her 40s is easier and harder - easier when it comes to identifying jokers, but harder because most of the good men are either taken or come with excess baggage.
She advises that to date in her 40s means being introduced to guys by people who truly know her and her values and can vouch for the said guy or not dating at all. For her to date, there must be direction, a serious committed monogamous relationship that leads to marriage.
On being single, Kalekye Mumo appreciates her space and the time to get to really know herself. She believes that when you are single, you need to take the time to know yourself and understand what you truly value. She has gotten a lot to do over the past two years where she decided to be intentionally single and discovered that she thought she needed someone to make her whole while actually she needed to see herself as whole first.
She concludes that she is being readied for a solid relationship and has no fear, as her faith tells her that if He put the desire in her heart to be married, He alone will fulfill it.
Looking back on her life, Kalekye Mumo does not have any regrets, as she has lived a colourful life with some ups and downs but a life that she is thankful and grateful for.
Her advice to someone who would like to follow in her footsteps is to be yourself, know who you are, have an idea of what you value most, and what your message you want to pass through this service. Master your craft and be true to who you are.
