Yo Maps of Zambia ‘Rags to riches’ tale of success
…lessons for resilience

Amb. Anthony Mukwita

3rd May 25

The weekend has been long the parties have been many and so have the stories been.

However, one story really came to me as a ‘light bulb’, the story of Elton Mulenga aka Yo Maps who has taken the Zambian music industry by storm like the best thing that ever happened since Christmas.

I often pen International Relations and socio-economic politic stories but the Yo maps story as presented by one Kenny Tonga on Kenny T 1 on 1 was something that hit the g spot, fantastic!

A stiff diplomat and author like moi, a bonafide published author couldn’t ignore the Yo Maps chat with KT, even on the aftermath of the d£ath of ma’am Edith Nawakwi, Pope Francis and Cyber law stories in Zambia and beyond.

I watched the entire one hour 20 minutes over a glass of fermented grape, time evaporated like ether but it left an indelible mark on me as a story-teller because this is an inspirational human interest story of ‘rags to riches’.

An infant Bemba fella was raised by Lozi parents that did not have enough money to raise their own children after his biological parents unfortunately di£d while he was just a kid, he never knew his parents. One Zambia one nation.

Yo Maps marries one of the hottest chicks in town and sells laods of records in Zambia and beyond that defy his poverty stricken upbringing, he doesn’t deny but uses as fuel to become a better man. Choosing wealth over poverty!

Yo Maps rewards everyone around his space that believed in him and shows what many Zambians do not have ‘gratitude’ as his star continues to rise—inspirational in my view.

Kenny T, I have known for over two decades also casts aside conventional decorum of interviewing in Zambia and talks to Yo Maps in his own language Bemba therefore making the man come out in full comfortably.

We should stop the absurd thing of interviewing people in a third language when they can speak better and portray better in their mother tongue, we are all not English or French.

I have autographed a living President like Edgar Lungu, not been able to docu the current H.E HH yet but as a historian, Yo Maps would be a guy I would love to pen because he has inspirational DNA. He gives HOPE.

Dead parents, little or no opportunities, poverty etc. but rising above all the challenges and saying as long as I have my God and my ambition, ‘I can rise above all adversity and become the best among the rest.’ Great tale well done KT and Yo Maps for bringing as inspiration.

This is a best seller brewing in an African Pot of Yo Boy aged a spry 30.
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Amb Anthony Mukwita is a published author and international relations analyst whose books are available in Bookworld, Grey Matter, Takealot and many other online bookstores.