By Martin Siele (@S_iele)
A much hyped show featuring some of the country's biggest artists went south on Saturday in Nakuru as a section of the crowd turned violent.
The show, sponsored by EABL's Chrome Vodka brand, was going well until soon after midnight when bottles started being thrown towards the stage in the middle of a performance by Ethic Entertainment.
The line-up included gengetone stars Ethic, Sailors and Boondocks Gang as well as Willy Paul and genge pioneer Jua Cali.
A regular ticket for the event cost Ksh250 and was redeemable for a 250ml glass bottle of Chrome, something many later blamed for the chaos witnessed at NAC Grounds.
The event started off well, with Boondocks Gang delivering a great performance running through their biggest hits such as Rieng, Mboko Haram and Mathogothanio.
As they wrapped up, a DJ kept the crowd on their feet for about an hour and a half before the next performance.
Ethic took to the stage and started performing as usual, at which point it seemed the vodka had gotten the better of some of the youths in attendance.
Bottles started flying towards the stage three songs into their performance, and kept increasing in number.
Ethic, made up of Rekles, SWAT, Zilla and Seska initially tried to brush it off but it soon became apparent that they could be seriously injured as the chaos kept building up.
They were soon escorted off stage by members of the security team.
The VIP tent backstage where various performers were holed up was also not spared with bottles pelted at it forcing artists to make quick exits.
At this point violent scenes replaced the main show as a confused crowd scampered for safety causing even more confusion. One or two fights broke out in the crowd.
A number of people reported thefts of their valuables while some women complained of being sexually harassed at the event.
Event-goers being able to redeem the relatively cheap ticket for alcohol was blamed by many for the unfortunate ruckus.
Many on social media advised event organizers to adopt a different model for their events in future, terming 250ml glass bottles a weapon in the hands of rowdy youth.