DO YOU KNOW VANESSA MDEE A.K.A VEE WHO SHE IS?

Vanessa Hau Mdee, a.k.a. Vee, was born in Tanzania on 7 June 1988. The pint-sized urban beat connoisseur had the opportunity to travel the world at a young age, growing up in New York, Paris, Nairobi and Arusha. Vanessa quickly became familiar with many different forms of creative and performing arts. Although she studied law at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Vanessa admits it was not her smartest move. Entertainment was already in her blood… Since her VJ search win in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in 2007, Vanessa has managed to win the hearts of many. At just 19 years of age Vanessa walked away victorious by becoming Tanzania's first ever MTV VJ, linking up with VJs Carol and Kule to host The Coca Cola Chart Express…At the time, Vanessa admits she was still pretty 'timid and insecure' but no one could tell: watching her on-screen energy you'd think she had been doing it for years.

A year after winning the MTV Base VJ search, and Vanessa had established herself as an entertainment phenomenon in Tanzania and around the continent, hosting shows in Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Mozambique, Angola, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, the United States and Brazil( where she caught the Samba Fever with MTV and Smirnoff at the Carnival). Life in the fast lane was fun, but Vanessa, she found it hard to leave her family in the small town of Arusha, North Tanzania to make a permanent move to Dar es Salaam. But she quickly came to terms with her new life and career.

In 2008 Vanessa, worked with The MTV Staying Alive Foundation on a project close to her heart. She got to visit the Uwanja wa Fisi with the then Staying Alive Foundation Special Ambassador Kelly Rowland. Ever since, the activist in Vee has remained solid, she regularly goes back and takes part in the activities with the Youth Groups who try to make a change and be the change in their societies through skits, music and dance. She also joined Malaria No More in their Z!nduka Campaign, a campaign aimed at the eradication of malaria.

In early 2009 Vanessa hosted Senses, Sounds and Wisdom a show on the Annual Sauti Za Busara International Music Festival with Zantel where she got to put her urban cultural funk to the test, the results being a beautiful journey through Swahili Culture, Vee-style.

Vanessa's fashion sense has made her the go-to girl at every MAMA ( MTV AFRICA MUSIC AWARD) hosting the red carpet to Africa's most stylish night out 3 years in a row. The self-confessed shoe addition is also known for her constantly changing hairstyles - with more transformations to her name than Cher!

Vanessa's great musical ear got her a gig on Tanzanian radio, and she became the host of 102.6 Choice FM's The Hitlist - a brand that Vanessa has made her own. Vanessa's eclectic sounds and love for RnB and Hip Hop with a hint of Pop is Dar es Salaam's portal to all things COOL! Along with her pan African weekly MTV show, Base Select 10 and daily radio gig, Vanessa still keeps at it: blogging as a roving reporter on behalf of MTV Staying Alive and UNAIDS on her Dynamites Mission website as part of her belief in a HIV free world. She was also MTV's voice at the 2011 UNAIDS Mali Youth Summit in Bamako and thereafter the High Level meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, The International Conference on HIV and STI's in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and the formation of a STANDWIDTH which she co-founded along with MK Asante under the UNAIDS umbrella.