Aicy Stevens lands lead role in 'Jiji'

She is best known for her arrogant, scowling skit character Mama Ryan. But Aicy Stevens has always wanted to be an actor whose work transcends the boundaries of one-minute comedy skits on Instagram.

It is the kind of opportunity that her character on Jiji, the new youth drama, has given her.

In Jiji, directed by Enos Olik, Aicy plays Mwende, whom she describes as “the typical ghetto lady trying to leave the ghetto life and improve her life.”

She is an adventurous beauty, a slick charmer and a natural pickpocket — a valuable asset in her group of four young girls fighting to make ends meet in the streets of Jericho.

For the young actress in her first role on screen, this is just the beginning. “Expect to see much more from me on screen from now on,” says Aicy.

“I am very excited. It is a beautiful challenge because it is something I have been looking forward to. Being a youth drama, Jiji is a story that I hold dear to my heart. It is also relatable and I am sure our audience is going to love it,” she adds.

Aicy’s dream of gracing the big screen, a burning desire since childhood, has finally become a reality.

Her experience playing Mama Ryan honed her acting skills, which now allow her to fully embody the character of Mwende.  

Talking about how Mama Ryan came to be, she said that this was a random thought that came to mind as a result of doing many skits.

The reception from her fans was encouraging and gave her morale to come up with more ideas and that is why they built on it.

“It has been a beautiful experience full of teamwork. Nick is very creative, open-minded, and supportive. He has also helped me nurture my acting talent,” she says of Nick Kwach aka Baba Ryan. 

In the new show, Mwende is a go-getter; she is sassy, hardworking, a fashionista, a lover of the soft life and a no-nonsense character.

Her character arc is 360 degrees and this allows her to play with different emotions and personalities.

“When I got the call that I had bagged the role of Mwende, I had a mixture of emotions; I was both shocked and super excited. I cried because this role was something I had been praying for.

When asked about working with director Enos Olik, AIcy expressed immense respect. She highlighted Olik’s talent, dedication, and collaborative nature, particularly his attentiveness to actors’ input.

“I have learnt a lot from him, he is insanely talented and dedicated and he listens to actors. He is the kind of director one will always look forward to working with in future projects because he brings the best out of you,” she says.