Nearly six years after a gunshot injury abruptly halted his career and altered his everyday life, Felix Orinda, popularly known as DJ Evolve, is still piecing together a version of normal that looks very different from the life he once knew behind the decks in Nairobi’s nightlife scene.
What now defines his days is not performance schedules or club appearances, but therapy routines, gradual physical gains and a slow return of abilities that were once taken for granted. His recovery has unfolded in small, steady steps, measured in movement, speech, and endurance rather than applause or crowds.
“You have to learn life again,” he says quietly.
The turning point in his life traces back to January 2020, when a shooting incident at B-Club in Nairobi left him with severe injuries to his neck and spine. The attack, involving Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, resulted in partial paralysis and marked the beginning of a long medical journey that continues to this day.
CCTV footage from the nightclub later showed Babu allegedly firing at the DJ during a confrontation, an incident that quickly drew national attention and led to serious criminal charges. The MP was charged with attempted murder and firearm-related offences, though the attempted murder charge was later withdrawn after reconciliation efforts between the two families.
In 2023, a Nairobi court eventually cleared the MP, ruling that the prosecution had not presented sufficient evidence and pointing to gaps in the investigation process.
Away from the legal process and public debate, DJ Evolve has spent years focused on recovery, a journey far removed from courtrooms and headlines.
At one point during his hospital treatment, he lost his ability to speak clearly, an experience that marked one of the most difficult phases of his healing.
“I just woke up one day and found myself whispering,” he recalls. “I thought I was whispering, but to the other people, it sounded totally different.”
The change in his speech made communication difficult and emotionally draining.
“When you’re in a position where you can’t do anything, you can’t communicate what you want to be done, and it just comes with so many things.”
Despite the setbacks, small improvements slowly began to appear. Eating returned first, followed by gradual recovery of his voice and basic body control.
“Step by step, I started feeding again. After some time, I got my voice back.”
Today, his recovery continues at home, where therapy sessions have become part of his daily routine. Physiotherapists and occupational therapists work with him regularly, helping him rebuild strength, coordination and mobility.
“I couldn’t sit like this before,” he says. “They trained me to strengthen my diaphragm so that I can be able to breathe well.”
His progress is visible in small but meaningful changes, including improved hand movement and returning sensation in parts of his feet. Even pain, once absent due to nerve damage, has begun to return in some areas, something he now sees as part of healing.
“The tiniest win comes after a very long time,” the DJ noted. “If you try and put a timeframe to it, you might end up getting depressed.”
His therapy schedule is demanding, at times involving multiple sessions in a single day. The process is physically exhausting and often painful, but necessary for progress.
“But the physio pain, that one, there is no other way,” he says. “You just have to take it.”
Beyond medical rehabilitation, he has also turned to learning new skills. He spends time studying coding, reading and taking online courses as part of his effort to rebuild his life beyond music.
“DJing is like riding a bike,” he says. “When you get it properly, that’s it.”
He hopes to eventually merge his long-standing passion for music with the new skills he has gained during recovery, creating a different path shaped by both experience and adaptation.
Faith has remained a steady anchor throughout his recovery journey.
“Most of my strength has come from God,” he says. “When there’s nothing else to do but be strong, you actually get the strength.”
He also speaks about forgiveness as a key part of his emotional healing, saying it helped him accept what had happened and focus on moving forward.
“When I decided to embrace what has happened and figure out solutions from where I’m at, I started feeling alive again.”
In previous remarks, Embakasi East MP said he embraced restorative justice following the incident and disclosed that he has spent close to Sh70 million on DJ Evolve’s treatment, rehabilitation and living costs since 2020. He also noted that monthly care expenses currently stand at about Sh500,000, covering nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapy, and added that he secured an apartment for him while continuing to support his medical needs.
For DJ Evolve, however, recovery has become more than medical treatment or financial support. It is now about adapting to a life rebuilt in stages, shaped by both loss and endurance.
He reflects on earlier challenges in his life, including financial struggles and surviving the 2007/08 post-election violence, experiences that now form part of a broader story of resilience.
“I discovered so much about myself,” he says. “How resilient I am, how strong I am.”
He also uses his experience to reflect on the wider consequences of gun violence, especially when similar incidents appear in public discussions today.
“They don’t know the effects of living with bullet wounds,” he stressed. “Before you pull that trigger, my brother, think of all those things.”
Even as recovery continues slowly, he now focuses less on what was lost and more on what is still possible. Each small improvement, each regained ability, becomes part of a longer journey toward rebuilding a life once interrupted but not completely defined by tragedy.