Big Ted: Los Angeles is just Nairobi with good PR
By Babu Tendu, January 22, 2026Thomas Kwaka Omolo, famously known as Big Ted, threw shade at Los Angeles, claiming that there is nothing special about the city.
In a candid one-on-one podcast interview with Dr Ofweneke, Ted stated that he got to make this conclusion after he first stepped into the United States and found out that things are not as they are portrayed in the media.
He described LA as a well-marketed version of Nairobi city and said that the first in the city is like nothing that has ever been seen before.
Further, the former Consul-General stated that the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame is just a street like any street in Nairobi with names of ‘former’ celebrities. He added that current celebrities like IShowSpeed are not even on the street.
“I leave Kenya, and I go to America to become the consul general, and it’s a whole story. I reached the states and found out LA is Nairobi with good PR. They have bad roads; the streets are dirty with dirt that you have never seen before,” he said.
“I found out that the Hollywood Walk of Fame is just a street with the names of people, just like Sakaja Street in town, and then it is marketed worldwide. Most of the people written on that street are not even celebrities. Ishowspeed, with 48 million subscribers, is not even on that street. The street has lost meaning.” Ted said.
Govt appointment
Big Ted was appointed to serve as Consul-General for Kenya’s Consulate in Los Angeles, United States of America (USA), by former President Uhuru Kenyatta, alongside 23 others, in April 2022.
Before then, he had served as deputy director of brand and strategy at State House from 2013 to 2015, when he was later appointed to become the director of brand and strategy at State House.
In the interview, he also stated that during his time in State House, he worked for a year without a salary before things were streamlined.
“In the Statehouse, we worked for one year without a salary. We won the election, we went in, and we were told, ‘Wewe fanya hii fanya hii,’ Ted revealed.