She’s many things in one: a radio presenter, actress and commère. Introducing the one and only Nancy Wanjiku Karanja, popularly known as Shix Kapienga. The reggae lover ranks among the A-list celebrities in Kenya whose style is uniquely different from her peers.
Away from presenters with a heavy adopted American accent ruling our airwaves, Shix has remained true to her sheng background and she’s loved for that.
Here is her story as told by WoK.
Age
Shix is 36 years old. She was born on April 27, 1987 in Kangemi, Nairobi. She is a third born in a family of four.
Early Life And Education
In an interview with a leading digital news outlet, Shix admitted to having a normal childhood and not those long stories of a hard life spinned by celebrities to garner sympathy. The cheekiness aside, Shix was not a stubborn kid as many think.
She played in the mud whenever it rained, ate mafifi leaves and played ‘kalongolongo’, just as a typical kid would do in that generation when the only TV station was KBC. Her early life in Kangemi molded her to become the actor she is today.
School
The petite radio host started her education at Westlands Primary School. She was to later join Good Samaritan Primary School in Nakuru before moving to her old school where she sat for her Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exams.
The actress was admitted to Mirithu Girls’ High School before joining Kangaru Girls’ High School where she completed her O-levels.
Appreciating the value of education, Shix enrolled at Daystar University to pursue a degree in Communication.
Thrived In Sports
Shix has a competitive streak since her days in school that has manifested in her career. Even with her stature, she went on to play volleyball and was good at it.
She told Citizen Digital that Kangaru Girls reached the provincial levels for the first time when she was part of the team.
She played as a booster and striker because her height could not allow her to play as a middle blocker. Other sports she took part in include football, table tennis, basketball, netball, athletics and badminton.
The radio presenter harbored dreams of becoming part of the much fancied Malkia Strikers.
Career
She did not end up being a sportswoman when she realized she could act. This epiphany came later in high school when she took part in an inter-dormitory drama competition.
The seed had been planted and when she completed her O-levels she joined the theatre. Her career in the highly competitive media world started in 2008 at Ghetto radio where she was the sports news presenter for the sheng round up.
Origin of her name Shix Kapyenga
The name Shix Kapyenga was formulated by her long time friend Mbusii, a radio presenter at Radio Jambo. According to the actress, Mbusii told her since her name is Wanjiku she adopts the short form Shixx and Kapyenga-denoting small in sheng-to symbolize her physique.
Roles she has played
She has proved to be one of the finest actors in the country. She played ‘Baby’ in Shuga, a victim of s3xu@l abuse by a trusted relative.
Her role as Amina in Nairobi Half Life propelled her into new heights of stardom. She was a natural playing the part of women of the night.
Her parents have not watched the movie and she doesn’t think they can stand the script.
She has also acted in Beba Beba as Tasha.
Radio Presenter
She co-hosted Hotzone on Hot 96 with Rapcha The Scientist. According to the Royal Media Services website, the show has over 2 million listeners. Shix was among the journalists fired from the SK Macharia owned media house.
Relationship
In an article appearing on the Nairobian titled Shix Kapienga and MC Jesse are officially dating seemed to confirm rumors that were swirling on social media platforms.
She rubbished the reports a year later when Kalekye Mumo asked her if she was a homewrecker saying that she prefers to keep her personal life private.
This has been a touchy subject and in a past interview with Ebru TV, the radio presenter threatened to storm out of TV station if that line of questioning persisted.