Chris Bitti, a man who has nothing left to prove

When I track him down, he’s just gotten out of the gym, working out, that’s kind of funny. This is his cane, the kind of thing that tickles his fancy when he’s not watching a movie or two or three. The problem is that he watches too many movies.

In his apartment in Riverside, he pressures the wary, introspective Bromids that if he were a superhero his name would be Shaka and his power would be mind control. “I don’t have anything left to prove.” But that’s the thing you say when you’re an invader, when the void becomes the ultimate conquest.

I love the arts. I am an artist. I’m a thinker. These two define me.

Visual arts, music, etc. By visual I mean computer graphics that are created and designed. I love music because that’s what I would be doing if I didn’t do this.

I’m actually a musician but you see, the world likes to put people in a box. If they know you for one thing, they want you to stay there. I believe that people are multidimensional, and I cannot be defined by my profession.

I’ve been an enterprise person, a digital transformation guy, and a musician – that’s the biggest part of who I am. I’ve worked with many TV stations but you wouldn’t know it was me. I’m a recording artist but we can talk about that another time (chuckle).

It started when I was a kid and I asked my mom to buy me some drums but she was very pro-school. My friends once told me, I might have something, and when I moved to South Africa, we just started singing with an old friend at school, and at beauty pageants and clubs. We ventured into jingles later because of our study of computer graphics.

With Citizen TV. We did a song of them for Citizen Live @9 and I did it very quickly in my apartment. It was a hit. Our names were always in the credits and that’s what opened the doors.

Once people discovered this side of me, some of them communicated better while others had a radical conversation to accommodate me. When I turned 40, I released my first song and Simba Corp gave me space and cars to shoot a music video.

What matters to me has become clearer. I realized I didn’t have much to prove, and it completely changed my perception. I’m just a man. I’m in a good place. I’ve got clarity.

I’m still building different things and businesses, but in a completely different way. In 2017, I had about 70 employees, so that would make me feel good, a kind of validation. But that doesn’t mean anything. It’s the quality of the work I do now that makes me happy, not the awards.

Recently I’ve been struggling with some philosophical questions. I ask myself, for example, to build this business, but what happens? It must have meaning and difference. What matters to me is reputation. I don’t want to get a job because I paid someone but because I’m good at what I do.

Funnily enough, I’m not married, I’m not divorced, and I don’t have children. It will happen when it happens. I don’t follow trends. My friends are all married. And there’s that pressure, but it’s not for lack of trying (chuckle).

Accountability. My mother is about 76 years old, and she said one thing to me: “I’m glad I raised you exactly the way I wanted to, so I know you’ll be okay.”

My father died 20 years ago in a Nairobi hospital, and his colleagues told me: “Just have 10% of the integrity your father had, and you will be great.” I’ve never forgotten that. This is what matters. I also spend a lot of time alone.

Would you believe me if I told you I watch a lot of movies? It’s not normal how many movies I watch, haha! Sometimes up to three a day, even while working. It makes me feel like I’m not under pressure, and as much as I can I go to the cinema, and I’ve always wanted to compose music for films. I want to stay in touch with what’s going on. I went to the movies twice this week. Poison Maybe I should go… haha!

impact. I spend a lot of time with SMEs and I am happy to ask them to do this and advise them. Many people are on the fence and frustrated. I like to be a helping hand. Also, I’ve been studying AI for 20 years, I don’t know why Eddie, but I was drawn to it. Since this is the norm now, I decided to just accept it and push it. I will help more companies use it. Real influence and distribution of courage.

I’m working on the album currently. The soundtrack of my life hasn’t changed. still The man By Alo Black. This is how I feel. I’m so happy and I don’t even know why.

electronics. Speakers, headphones, etc. And a little good smell.

Music because Saturday is my recording day. I don’t work much during the week; I work during the weekend because no clients call me. It’s a balanced time for me, and I hope I end up connecting with someone.

Recently, yes. There is a client who said to me: “Never solve the same problem twice.” It’s really about going deep. Don’t do things on the surface. Elon Musk talks about first principles. When I solve a problem, I do it in a way that there is no other way to do it.

I adapt very quickly. My mother made me understand that. She told me something I’ll never forget, “You say you want to build something huge so you can feel accomplished, but for me, you’ve already done it.”

Chris Senano. You need to meet him, actually you should meet him.