It’s been over a year since Kelis made the move from California to Kenya, where she lives on a 300-acre farm with her three children. Now the “Milkshake” artist is sharing why she thinks folks from the diaspora should follow her to the “land of opportunity,” but her followers are not really feeling the idea.
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In a recent TikTok video, the artist spoke about the pushback she received for a pro and con series she made about living in Kenya. Among the pros, Kelis listed Kenyans being friendly, affordable and good quality healthcare, and the ease of doing business.
But folks scratch their heads when the “Millionaire” artist listed the cons, which includes potholes in the road, a lack of waste management, and the high cost of imported goods.
“The waste management here is trash; it’s absolutely awful, it doesn’t exist,” the artist said in her TikTok. “The other big con is shipping and importing. If you want to live like an American here, it’s definitely going to cost you like triple the price.”
Hearing these cons, users in the comments were turned off by the idea and said they were not keen on the thought of moving to Kenya.
“You did not sell me on this, but you hair is fabulous,” wrote one user.
“No way, I’m going to stay where I’m at right in the US,” added another.
“It’s more expensive to live in Kenya than in America, for those who are accustomed to the US lifestyle, its not worth it,” commented another.
However, Kelis is not backing down from convincing her TikTok followers to get themselves a plane ticket and head to the African continent. In another TikTok video posted Monday (Nov. 3), Kelis spoke about how some of the cons she listed were actually business opportunities.
“What people are missing is that the cons really are business opportunities, and I think that’s one of the things that I really love the most. Africa really is the land of opportunity—the whole continent… With the trash issue, honestly, waste management would be amazing. So many countries on the continent need it; it’s a great business opportunity.”
Kelis also added that people can bring their skills to Africa and create businesses, and encouraged them to DM her for ideas.
“Whatever skills you have, you can absolutely bring them there, and you can create great business opportunities… This is for the diaspora, I am talking to you. Marcus Garvey said, ‘This is the land of opportunity.’ I couldn’t agree more… I’m calling the diaspora to come and invest. Put your money in the continent. There’s so much that we can do. There are so many business ideas. I have tons of ideas, so DM me,” Kelis ended the video.
But viewers in the comments were still not convinced by the artist’s call to create business in Africa and dismissed the concept.
“If only their government didn’t tax the hell out of us. It’s like punishment for helping our people,” wrote one user.
“No one’s coming over to get scammed. You lack resources and infrastructure. Africa isn’t for investment. You’re stuck there, and you’re not doing as well as you claim. No one will risk retirement on toxic people,” commented another.
On the flipside, other users were tempted by the idea and saw the opportunity to create a life and business for themselves in Kenya.
“Preparing to come there in a few months. Would love to come and see you and see if I can invest. I am a trucker,” added one user.
“I have technology innovation I would love to have in Kenya,” wrote another.
@HopeOnPurpose pointed out that it could be a good idea for Black women in particular: “With the amount of educated, intelligent, experienced black women that have been laid off unfairly, I can see them doing amazing things in Africa as their own SHE-EO.”
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