Kenyan Gen Z Content Creator Quits Job A Year After Viral Video

Content creator Christine Keni announced on Friday, March 15 that she quit her job as a Brand Ambassador for Light Art Club, nearly a year after her video showcasing her day at work in the Generation Z era went viral.

Keni became an online sensation overnight on April 5, 2023, owing to her office tour where she gave her followers a glimpse of her usual day at work in a company that embarked on radical changes to adhere to the demands of Gen Zs entering the country's workforce.

In a video mashup she posted on her social media handles, Keni revealed that she was motivated to chase the dreams that she had since her childhood.

"You know how you've always thought of dropping everything, quitting your job and chasing your dreams that you have had since you were a little kid? Yeah, I did that," she announced.

Content creator, Christine Keni. /INSTAGRAM.CHRISTINE KENI

Keni reminded her followers of her previous occupation as a digital creator at Light Art Club, which has offices at Westlands in the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD), where she posted content that often went viral, most notably the office tour.

However, she revealed that she quit her job to pursue music, her passion that has seen her write songs from the age of 10, asking her followers to support her as she commenced her musical journey.

"I quit my job and decided to pursue my passion...music. I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and I think it's time that you see what I've been working on, so I hope you all support me through this journey...love you all," she added, with snippets showing her trying her luck in rapping and playing instruments such as the piano.

A one-minute, 12-second video Keni posted of her day at the office saw her greeted by a caricature of the late businessman Bob Collymore upon ascending via a lift to the office, coupled with an array of signatures and neighbouring a choice of sweets depending on someone's mood for the day.

After greeting her co-workers and taking a seat at her workstation, Keni grabs a cup of coffee drawn from an automated machine that produces coffee depending on someone's preference, and here she chooses mocha. She then walks to the balcony to bask in the sun while enjoying her beverage.

She then gets down to work, choosing a selection of songs from her favourite artist, Lil Maina, looks at her weekly planner and makes her presentation on her first meeting of the day presenting ideas.

Keen Kenyans might have noticed that among the trends she listed for the day include Maandamano (she wrote it as Maandamanzz) in response to the Azimio la Umoja demonstrations, which were called off temporarily to allow for bipartisan talks with the government.

Keni, on expressing that she felt sleepy, got onto some cushions to take a nap for hours before waking up to play video games through a PlayStation console provided by the office.

She then enjoys some lunch; chicken wings with a side of chips (French Fries) while browsing through her phone before getting back to work and shooting video content for the company. After a cup of water, she then heads out of the office on her way home.

Following her announcement, Kenyans took to X to share their reactions, with some expressing their bewilderment at how she had the luxury of quitting a job they thought was well-paying, despite the current unemployment crisis in the country.

Other Kenyans claimed Keni's parents were well-off and had connections, hence she could get another job with ease compared to ordinary Kenyans who have had to tarmac for months, even years for job opportunities.

Kenya Unemployment Statistics

The World Employment and Social Outlook Trends by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in January 2024 predicted that job seekers will increase this year above the 2023 records, pushing up the unemployment rate by about 1.9 per cent.

“This as new vulnerabilities and multiple crises erode prospects for greater social justice,” the report reads.

“Both the unemployment rate and the jobs gap rate, which is the number of persons without employment who are interested in finding a job, have fallen below pre-pandemic levels. The 2023 global unemployment rate stood at 5.1 per cent, a modest improvement from 2022 when it stood at 5.3 per cent.”

In Kenya, the average unemployment rate according to Trading Economics stood at 4.9 per cent as of January last year.

Data by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) concurs this saying the unemployment rate in the country decreased to 4.90 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2022, from 5.30 per cent in the third quarter of 2022.

Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) also warned of more job losses in the country as a result of the implementation of the Finance Act, 2023 and the weakening shilling that is adversely affecting businesses.

Its preliminary survey revealed that 70,000 Kenyans had lost jobs in the period between October 2022 and November 2023, and more were at risk of losing their employment as employers consider more job cuts.

About 40 per cent of employers were noted to have plans to reduce the number of employees to meet the increasing costs of operating in Kenya.