I Filmed a Kenyan Village to Debunk Myths About Africa.

Added: 2026-06-02

[00:00:01]This is my village in Meru, Kenya, Africa.

[00:00:05]As you can see, we live in huts. Big, suspiciously modern huts. As you can see, most of these homes are made with beautiful African mud. Strong mud, modern mud, award-winning mud. Mud that will probably outlast your strong American houses.

[00:00:31]Some people in the West say that Africa is always hot. How hot?

[00:00:36]Scorching hot, desert hot.

[00:00:39]Let's go outside.

[00:00:41]As you can see, it is hot. So hot that there is fog. In this apparently scorching inferno, [music] let's check my phone for the current temperature.

[00:00:51]18°. For our American friends, that's about 64° Fahrenheit. [music] Africa has no water. No piped water, anyway. We have to walk [music] hundreds of miles every day to get it. Barefoot, uphill both ways, [music] while being chased by lions. Now, if this was true, what do you think is coming out of [music] my taps right now?

[00:01:24]I don't know about you, but this looks like good old H2O to [music] me.

[00:01:29]Clear and clean. Scandalous. Someone should alert the National Geographic immediately.

[00:01:37]Africa is a desert.

[00:01:39]Africa is a barren, >> [music] >> treeless, brown, desolate desert.

[00:01:45]Clearly, these are not trees. It's a big movie set with fake plastic trees. I may be a little bit legally blind and color blind, but I can swear on my cat, [music] and my cat is very special to me, that this is greenery, real, alive, aggressively photosynthesizing greenery.

[00:02:04]It looks just like America, if you ask [music] me. Possibly greener, but don't tell anyone.

[00:02:13]>> [music] >> Everyone speaks one [music] language.

[00:02:20]Let me share one interesting statistic about Africans.

[00:02:24]We are polyglots by nature. [music] Almost every Kenyan can speak at least three languages. Meanwhile, some of your countrymen are still struggling with one.

[00:02:35]>> [music] >> It's a necessity.

[00:02:39]>> [music] >> Africa has no schools. This is the most absurd stereotype I have ever heard in my entire educated life.

[00:03:25]In my village alone, there are two universities, numerous junior and senior schools, and many colleges. As we speak, I'm standing in the middle of a senior school campus. It has buildings, actual buildings, with roofs and classrooms, and students inside them learning things. So, to those who say we have no schools, what is this? And this? How do you think we get our undergraduate degrees and doctorates from aliens?

[00:03:55]Are the aliens also administering final exams and handing out medical licenses?

[00:04:00]If so, very impressive.

[00:04:02]>> [cheering] >> Extremely thorough aliens.

[00:04:06]Africa has no internet. Yes, Africa has no internet, >> [music] >> yet I was able to upload this video onto YouTube, which last time I checked requires internet. Africa has no internet. Our phones are only for calling and receiving calls.

[00:04:24]All those Africans commenting on this video, playing video games, making content, streaming, online shopping, and developing websites and complex software are clearly bots or ghosts. Highly organized, extremely articulate ghosts who somehow figured out two-factor authentication. How could they possibly exist? There's no internet.

[00:04:48]And you know what this is?

[00:04:50]This is a home internet router, bringing [music] high-speed fiber internet right into my house. I'm not rich.

[00:04:59]It only cost $10 a month.

[00:05:02]Installation, free.

[00:05:05]>> [music] >> Africa is crime-ridden, unsafe, and war-torn.

[00:05:11]I know of a place where everybody is walking around with guns.

[00:05:16]According to the World Atlas rankings, it is the ninth most dangerous city in the world.

[00:05:22]Violent killings [music] and carjackings are the order of the day.

[00:05:26]You cannot just walk around here.

[00:05:28]>> [music] >> You can get shot for looking at someone the wrong way, or simply for being in the wrong neighborhood, or for being in the right neighborhood on the wrong day, or apparently for existing [music] with insufficient caution.

[00:05:44]I'm talking about Memphis. Tennessee in the United [music] States of America.

[00:05:54]God bless America.

[00:05:57]Here in Africa, it's not a bed of roses either, but nobody is walking around with guns. [music] Isolated cases of theft do happen, of course. Someone once stole my neighbor's chicken, and we still talk about it at funerals, but to call Africa unsafe while ignoring your own backyard, which is statistically speaking on fire.

[00:06:20]Africans are aggressive.

[00:06:24]Look at these people. These are just random people I found outside. Very calm, very civilized, and very cultured.

[00:06:33]I bet you think one of these people is aggressive. Look at that man over there.

[00:06:38]Does he look aggressive to you? He's making roasted corn. Has anyone ever looked aggressive while roasting corn? I bet you will find aggressive people in every city, and every country, and every continent on Earth, including yours.

[00:06:54]Arguably, especially yours. If we were truly [music] aggressive, how on Earth would the British and other colonial powers have entrenched their presence here for decades?

[00:07:05]The mistake was that we were not aggressive [music] enough, and they absolutely took advantage of that. A lesson for the grandchildren. [music] Be more aggressive.

[00:07:17]Politely, but be more aggressive. Even today, do you think these visitors sitting here would stay if we were as dangerous as they claim? They look quite comfortable to me. Somebody bring them more tea.

[00:07:36]Africans are starving.

[00:07:39]We [snorts] are indeed starving. That's why we went to this big hotel yesterday and had a huge platter full of African savory dishes.

[00:07:49]Look at this, a farm full of thick plastic maize or corn as you call it.

[00:07:54]Look at these beans. They are not for eating. They [music] are purely decorative. Were you fooled by that image you saw in the news?

[00:08:03]"Help feed the starving children [music] in Africa." they said. Well, those so-called starving children were sitting next to this farm genuinely unsure what to cook for dinner.

[00:08:15]You are conned. I bet that money you donated lined someone's pockets [music] and that someone was not an African or starving. They were probably on a yacht. [music] The joke was on you. Next time, don't believe everything you see on Western media and maybe stop donating to the charity that has been recycling the same photograph of a sad child since 1987.

[00:08:41]Africa is small. The continent of Africa is so small that 54 sovereign nations comfortably call it home. 54 countries each with their own government, culture, [music] currency, cuisine, and very strong opinions about their neighbors.

[00:08:57]>> [music] >> So, how small is it? It's so small that America, China, most of Europe, >> [music] >> and India can all fit inside it with enough room left over for United Kingdom. 30 million square kilometers of this small continent, but on the map it looks small. The maps have been lying to you your [music] entire life with their little Europe sitting right in the middle, big and important-looking, and Africa squeezed down [music] at the bottom like an afterthought.

[00:09:30]And guess who made the maps?

[00:09:33]>> [music] >> The continent is mostly jungle. Now, This one I will accept.

[00:09:40]Africa is full of jungles. Big, beautiful, green jungles teeming with exotic wildlife and the rare plants and trees. Fine.

[00:09:49]You got us on this one.

[00:09:51]Here is an example of a jungle right next to my doorstep, which I walk past every day on the way to my house, which is not a hut, by the way, but it goes deeper than this. As the most diverse continent on the Earth, Africa is also home to magnificent deserts, ancient mountains, and sprawling savannas that look exactly like the set of The Lion King.

[00:10:15]And speaking of which, did you know that The Lion King setting was directly inspired by the Kenyan savannas? You've been watching African geography your whole life and calling it a cartoon. We also have another type of jungle, the concrete [music] jungle, full of tall skyscrapers, lush green trees, coffee shops, and people on their phones ignoring each other, just like everywhere else.

[00:10:42]You don't believe me? I dare you. No, I double dare you. Visit Nairobi, Kenya, and [music] come back and tell me if it's not a jungle.

[00:10:54]Wild animals roam the streets.

[00:10:57]Do animals roam the continent of Africa?

[00:10:59]Yes, obviously, it's Africa, but let's address the specific geography of your imagination. We use zebras and elephants as [music] taxis. You call Uber, I call a zebra.

[00:11:12]Much more reliable, honestly, and better fuel economy, too, [music] and they never cancel on you at the last minute.

[00:11:20]Instead of dogs and cats, we keep lions and hyenas as pets.

[00:11:25]Look at this cute lion in my house.

[00:11:27][music] Look at this street in my local town in Meru. Completely overrun with wildlife.

[00:11:35]A word of caution for anyone traveling to Africa, come wearing Adidas shoes.

[00:11:40]You need to run as fast as you can or the cheetahs will outrun you [music] which they definitely will because they can hit 120 km/h [music] and you in your tourist sandals simply cannot.

[00:11:55]There is no technology.

[00:11:57]In Africa, there are no TVs. We just stare at each other all day long.

[00:12:04]Which sounds awful but is actually quite good [music] for relationships. There are no phones. Who needs a smartphone to communicate? This is how we communicate in Africa.

[00:12:14]We climb hilltops and beat our drums really loud. If the message is not clear enough, you can also use smoke signals or blow a horn.

[00:12:23]Very efficient except in [music] the rain. Did someone mention electric cars and bicycles? Like this electric bicycle parked [music] in my apartment. Who needs it? I'm sure it's only here to add to the aesthetic [music] appeal of the place. Look at these cars. They are basically sculptures. [music] Very expensive, very functional sculptures that we definitely [music] do not ride to work every morning. Let's also ignore the fact that mobile money transfer was invented in Africa, >> [music] >> in Kenya to be particular, and has since been copied by everyone else who is now using the method we thought of it. I have not touched hard cash in months.

[00:13:04]You know where they are still fumbling with clumsy, germ-infested, old-fashioned cash?

[00:13:09]Europe and America.

[00:13:12]All Africans look the same.

[00:13:14]Dark-skinned.

[00:13:16]Africa is the most genetically diverse continent on planet Earth.

[00:13:21]>> [music] >> This is not my opinion. This is science.

[00:13:24]Peer-reviewed science.

[00:13:26]Don't you think it absurd to assume [music] everyone looks like, well, me?

[00:13:31]No offense to me. I'm delightful, but [music] I am one person. Even within my own family, there are people so pale you would swear there was a white ancestor with a very particular set of preferences [music] somewhere down the ancestral line, and nobody is saying anything about it at Christmas dinner. In the same breath, some of my relatives look like they just stepped off a boat from South Sudan, looking completely unbothered. In Kenya alone, there are over 40 tribes. There are estimated to be over 3,000 distinct [music] ethnic groups in Africa, inhabiting 54 countries. These [music] groups are extraordinarily diverse, with approximately 2,000 different languages and dialects spoken across the continent. The entire continent of Europe has about 200. Surely, [music] you can see how breathtakingly far-fetched it is to think we all look the same.

[00:14:30]Africans walk around naked. Who needs clothes? They are bulky, they need to be washed, they restrict proper air flow, and they are generally expensive when you think about it. Let's go to the streets and find some naked people.

[00:14:55]As you can see, not a single naked person anywhere.

[00:15:00]Every single one of them is fully clothed. Oh, wait.

[00:15:06]Maybe I'm not in Africa. Maybe this is the Matrix, and reality is not real.

[00:15:13]Now, where is Morpheus when you need him? I need to swallow that red pill and find out how deep the rabbit hole goes.

[00:15:21]Or maybe, just maybe, Africans wear clothes. But, that cannot be right.

[00:15:28]It does not fit the narrative. It's all a simulation, guys. These clothes you're seeing, they are not real. Move on.

[00:15:37]There is no snow in Africa. Snow? But, in the name of Mount Kenya and Lesotho are you talking about? Remember, it is always hot in Africa. That white stuff sitting very deliberately on top of Mount Kenya, Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain in Africa, by the way, which you have definitely heard of, the Rwenzoris, and even Lesotho in winter.

[00:15:59]I don't know what that is.

[00:16:00]It's white. It's cold. It's fluffy. Who the hell has been sprinkling cotton balls on top of all these mountains simultaneously? And did I say the word winter?

[00:16:10]Is winter a person? A villain? An ex?

[00:16:14]I don't know who winter is. If you see winter, tell her to go back to America. We don't need snow in Africa. It's not like we ski or anything. These people you can see skiing down a slope right now in Africa, the snow is not real. It does not snow in Africa, remember?

[00:16:38]There is no electricity.

[00:16:40]I'm tired of talking. This is a switch, a light switch [music] on a wall in Africa. If I turn it on, something extraordinary is going to happen.

[00:16:49]Something that apparently is not supposed to be possible here.

[00:16:54]Did I shock you?

[00:16:55]Oh, I'm sorry.

[00:16:56]Or >> [music] >> am I? No, I'm not.

[00:17:00]There are no malls. The quest to prove to you that there are malls in Africa has brought me here.

[00:17:07]I am in a mall. It just opened last week, which means this particular myth has an expiry date of approximately 7 [music] days ago. Let's go to another mall. Look at it. Beautiful, right? Escalators and everything. Let's see what is inside. I want to remind you that we are in a small Kenyan town right now. It's not even a city. Yet, here we are.

[00:17:30]Inside a big modern mall with all the conveniences of modern life. All the food you can eat. Every global brand you recognize. And every electronic device you can think of.

[00:17:44]Thank you so much for watching. And uh if you ever encounter an ignorant person on TV or heaven forbid in a position of actual authority, show them this video.

[00:17:54]My name is Kennedy. You can call me Afro Artista.

[00:17:58]>> [music] >> And this is me signing out.

[00:18:01]Peace.