Renowned media personality and radio presenter Kalekye Mumo on Sunday recalled an incident that distracted her while she was entertaining listeners during her five-hour show, Rush Hour on Kiss FM.
While reminiscing on her radio days on Sunday, Mumo narrated an incident when her sister called her on air with some unpleasant news. The radio presenter revealed that she hung up several times before picking up.
In a media interview, Mumo noted that she had instructed her sister not to call her while she was on air. She emphasised that she fully devoted her time and attention to her work.
"My family knew, that when I was at work, I would not take calls or respond to messages. This is a distraction and I will not deliver especially when I was alone," she stated.
During the interview, Mumo noted that she was informed that her father was rushed to the hospital after suffering a stroke.
This information left her confused about whether to leave the station or stay and go to the hospital later. She was also worried about her younger sister who had to drive in that mental state.
"There was a time I was doing a five-hour shift on my own, from 3 pm to 8 pm. My sister called me and told me Dad was having a stroke and she was taking him to the hospital and she didn't know whether we were going to make it," she stated.
She noted that her co-host Shaffie Weru was on leave and she was the only one in charge.
Despite the unfortunate news, Mumo did not leave the station and continued with the show and entertained her listeners.
Additionally, she did not inform anyone at the media house including the management about the news to avoid breaking down while on air.
"My family did tell me about the whole incident to avoid distracting me at work. That was the longest five hours of my life," she remarked.
Luckily her father recovered. This incident, Kalekye noted, was an example of how media personalities separate their personal and work life.
She advised anyone who wants to join the industry should be prepared to put on a brave face and know how to manoeuvre such difficult scenarios.
Mumo left Kiss FM in 2016 to pursue other ventures. She now doubles as a strategic communications marketer, media trainer, voice-over artist, actor, singer, life coach, influencer and CEO at KM Network.
