Month: May 2012

I know that this news is a little stale but i just have to reiterate!

Jimmy Gait issued a 100 hundred thousand shilling challenge to dancers who have confidence i their abilities. The gospel maestro has called out any dancers who feel that they can step up to the dance moves in his spanking new video “Oleey Oleey”.

This is a chance not just for young up and coming dancers but also hungry dance crews with a business sense and also for dancers looking for an opportunity to get their names heard.

Whatever your reason, just get down to mastering the video choreography and look forward to a big pay day.

Once more, uncle Chim is looking out for you. Check it out on this article right here

We always understand celebs glamorous world that we all think it’s the perfect life, but this guys live a normal life like us when they are off the paparazzi’s radar.

CMB Prezzo is one of the top entertainers in Africa but if you see when he’s sleeping, you will understand that he’s just a normal person with normal habits.

Check this video and comment about it

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Kiss FM presenter who also happens to be Kenya’s queen of radio Caroline Mutoko is one of the best female role models in the country. She has been involved in fighting for female rights especially the girl child who has been neglected by the society.

The radio queen was among the guests who were invited at Kenya Methodist University where the centre for the Practice of Direct Democracy had organized a discussion forum aiming at motivating University Students, main topic being leadership.

The Kiss 100 presenter told the students that laziness should be thrown out and that they should be knowledge seekers. The diva also emphasized that young people should respect their bodies for them to gain respect. Mutoko told them that leaders lead from where they are so they shouldn’t expect to lead anywhere as long as they have not shown those qualities where they are now.

The diva gave the students examples of great people such as Michael Jackson, Michael Jordan amongst others.

Talented diva Size 8 is one of the best female artistes that we have in Kenya and also happens to be the best performer in the industry.

We came across one of her live performances where she made the whole crowd want to jump on stage. The diva managed to involve her fans such that they all felt that they were part of the performance.

This lady knows how to dance, and believe it or not she is truly flexible. You have to check her shaking her booty then you will understand why she’s flexible.

Watch this sexy performance by one of the best female artiste in the country

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Last year, there were raunchy pictures of Avril doing the rounds on the net.

 The sultry songstress came out top strongly deny that the pictures were actually of her. She claimed that they were photoshopped. Whether this was true or false, all that we can say is that she has proved her detractors wrong by not just ignoring them but by growing from strength to strength.
Shaffie Weru, one of Kenya’s foremost events MCs has had his fair share of sagas. At some point Kenyans would derisively refer to his life as a soap opera. But he has managed to find a silver lining in this cloud and he’s turned the controversy into a cash cow.
In comes K’Cous (of Camp Mulla). This stellar rapper and prodigious producer recently put a song in praise of weed and it has kicked up a ruckus. Are his actions morally reprehensible? Maybe but what i am  certain of is that it is not your place to judge him. correct him? Aye but judge? let’s all get off our high horses.
Artists are a reflection of society. K’Cous is in Britain where the population is free spirited and more likely to accept this. He made the error of posting such a video for a Kenyan audience. It was a simple error in judgement. Nothing more. He wasn’t promoting the use of drugs and he wasn’t trying to mislead the youth. His was merely an excercise in self expression.

All things said and done, K’Cous is a teenager. He did a song that i thought and indeed, i still think is awesome. It was a song. Nothing more. Once the song is done, i move on with my life. I do not pick up bhangi and smoke it as a result of hearing the song. In the self same way, playing Call of Duty doesn’t make me shoot my neighbour in the head. Some of the people beating him down are adults. adults whom i feel are quick to focus on the negatives in someone else than confront their demons.

You want to wax lyric about morality and the Bible? Jesus said that he without sin shall cast the first stone. If you are genuine about correcting the lad, do so without all the shenanigans i am seeing on twitter.

And please, let’s not confuse entertainers for role models. Role models are our parents. Our elder siblings, not politicians either.
This is my humble opinion.

The dance style may have originated early in the 2000s in Ghana, but the Azonto dance is only taking root across the globe now, with the recent release of the both the Azonto remix by DJ Black of Ghana’s Joy FM as well as the song by Fuse ODG which features Tiffany.

The Azonto dance has been featured in a wide commercial array of lyrics and videos such Yenko Nkoaa by Eduwoji and Wadi Misika by the Vybe Squad but was most successfully made viral by Ghana’s football legend Asamoah Gyan who used to Azonto dance during celebrations of Ghana Black Star wins.

The dance became so famous from late last December, spreading as wide as Australia and New Zealand and can we finally say that it will take root in Kenya? The Fuse ODG version is already increasingly getting airplay on Kenyan radio stations and it is certainly only a matter of time before it breaks into the entertainment scene.

Want to know how to do the Azonto Dance? One FM’s Marcus Olang already challenegd his workmates to do a short jig of the Azonto dance at their offices sometime yeaterday. Have a look at the product and tell us if you can Azonto dance? The original dance clip is below the video…

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Earlier today, we were humbled by a visit from one of the best poets who also happens to be a professional actor and a very good beat boxer. Talk about being multi-talented. This guy comes with the whole package. Did I mention that he is also into music?

Artist Checkmate came to the Ghafla! offices to shoot a series of beat box videos. These series of videos will be exclusively launched right here at Ghafla! as soon as possible, together with his interview with one of our writers.

For those who are not familiar with beat boxing, this is the art of creating or imitating music beats of a certain track, by using only the mouth and hands. If you happen to listen and watch a good beat boxer such as Checkmate, you wouldn’t believe the quality of sound that can actually come out of the mouth.

Checkmate will soon be dropping his beat box album which will be fused with some elements of music. Poetic music to be precise, so you know for sure that there will be some really deep lyrics involved, such as the ones in this song that he did a while back in collaboration with other spoken word artists, titled R.I.P (check it out).

Below a taste of good beat boxing though not from Checkmate, just to give you an idea of what to expect in the coming series of his freestyles.

Kenya’s leading afro fusion boy band Sauti Sol are set to perform at the Czech Republic’s BIGGEST music festival of the year, the Colours of Ostrava from the 12th to the 17th of July 2012.

Sauti Sol are set to perform alongside other established artistes from across the globe including America’s Alanis Morisette, Sea and Air and Janelle Monáe.

The group has been very active this year on the international circuit, with a variety of acclaimed appearances at the South by South West Festival in Austin Texas USA and at the Festival on the Niger in Mali earlier this year.

Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech republic and the festival is considered as one of Central Europes largest gatherings of artistes, music lovers and producers. Colours of Ostrava will be celebrating its 11th anniversary this year and features about 16 different performance stages which include 4 big open air stages, around 6 indoor stages and a cinema. The largest of these can hold up to 15,000 fans.

Other performers scheduled to appear at the 2012 Colours of Ostrava Festival include:

Björk, Banco de Gaia, Celso Piña, Hjaltalín, Portico Quartet,,Bobby McFerrin, The Flaming Lips, ZAZ, , Antony and the Johnsons with Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra, Rufus Wainwright and his Band, Animal Collective, Parov Stelar Band, Kronos Quartet, Pohjonen, Kosminen, Fink, Hugh Masekela, Ibrahim Maalouf, Staff Benda Bilili, Orquesta Típica Fernández Fierro, Tamikrest, Katzenjammer, Quique Neira, Gangpol & Mit, Ewert and The Two Dragons, GaBlé, R.U.T.A., The Movement of Utopia, Transcendence and Anarchy aka The Reactionary Terrorist-Artistic Union, Acollective, Shtetl Superstars, Barons Of Tang, Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba, Euzen, Dánjal, Árstíðir, Rubik, Lindigo, Ensemble Yaman, Sea and Air, The Creole Choir of Cuba.

 

One of the best bands that Kenya has ever seen is once again working on a new awesome track. This track will be entirely about Kenya, and for Kenya. One of those extremely patriotic songs and guess what? You get to be part of it.

As humble as Sauti Sol artists are, they have just humbly requested their fans to contribute to the lyrics that will be on the Kenyan song.

Earlier today, Sauti Sol tweeted,

I know you can’t get to the link so here it is. Your chance to be part of a soon to be legendary Kenyan song starts now. Legoooo.

It is about that time of the month when the ‘song/video of the month’ is named. Many times, most people have not agreed with us and some actually never do. Nevertheless, I am confident that this time you will agree and if not, you will have very little basis for your argument.

The track and its video was launched just this month and it is already one of the most requested and loved videos. Daddy owen’s song, ‘Mbona’ has proved to be more than we had expected of it. Not only is it emotional and sympathetic, it is also really good music when you look at it from the vocals and production point of view.

The song is about the neglect and abuse of those that are disabled. Daddy Owen uses the catchy phrase, “I choose not to place ‘diss’ in my ‘ability’, ” which gives a whole new meaning and perception to the word.

The video is also great and one of the reasons why it is the most liked song on YouTube.

Check it out.

The sassy, beautiful and talented Ogopa Deejays singer Marya escaped death narrowly from the

Moi Avenue blast that occurred on Monday 28^th at around noon.

The ‘Sishiki simu’ singer confirmed that she wasn’t hurt but her pal was. This incident left the singer without her car windows.

The blast wounded more than 30 people who were rushed to Kenyatta National hospital. 

Check Mary’a tweet to her fans

The singer is wishing all the injured a quick recovery.

The talented, African Bantu is back in the country. Bamboo kicks of his Kenyan tour with his new single ‘Mrembo’ produced by Jobless Corner. On the single he features

J Ellah who has a very distinct vocals, he has been making himself known as an artist to look out for in the Kenyan music industry this year.

“Mrembo” is a fast paced groove that will no doubt keep everyone dancing at “full speed”. This recording breaks down many walls. It’s a bridge from ancient musical traditions to modern music culture, from Folk to Genge to Dance Hall.

This music wakes you up. It’s refreshingly new without a hint of nostalgia. I will definitely love to see the African Bantu performing the song live on stage.

Listen to the first verse of Bantu’s new single down her>>>>>

Nigerian beauty queen Goldie got a rude shock when Prezzo told her that she wasn’t the first lady in his life. The Nigerian could not believe that Kenya’s other President CMB Prezzo could put a brave face after all they have been doing together and say that they are only good friends.

Goldie sat on Prezzo’s bed with tears streaming down her face screaming over and over again saying “just good friends, just good friends. “ While shaking her head.

Goldie/Prezzo love drama started over when the Nigerian queen complained because Prezzo smoked a cigarette and this made the Kenyan bad boy feel disrespected. Kenya’s king of bling warned her that she shouldn’t mistake his kindness for weakness because he’s not weak.

The best intriguing part was that the South African representative, Barbz who also happens to be rivals with Prezzo implied that Goldie was to blame for Prezzo being harsh to her because the Nigerian ignored him yesterday for most of the time.

I hope Prezzo will reconcile with the Nigerian beauty or else he might get the shock of his life if his nominated for eviction because the BBA Nigerian fans are angry with him for breaking their diva’s heart.

Watch the video of Prezzo telling Goldie that theyare just good friends down here>>>>>>

After over 2 years of mixing and getting the party started at the Asmara Lounge in Nairobi’s Pangani area, DJ 2One2 is hanging his gloves and leaving the club.

In a tweet he gave just moments ago, the decks maestro said:

‘my Era at @AsmaraLounge comes to an end after 2 amazing years. Proud of what we achieved together’

On Facebook he posted:

‘Its an end of an Era for me at Asmara Lounge — I am very proud of what we have achieved, moments shared and above all blessed for the people I met. Yes you and you and you – I wish Asmara all the best and for me I pray that the future gets brighter’

Asmara Lounge is a popular club where Kenyan artiste Nonini usually organizes Kenya Night events every last Friday of the month.

Keep it Ghafla! for more on this breaking news.

Once upon a rhyme Collo declared himself the king of all matters rap.

And he was thanked for this contribution to the Kenyan entertainment scene with missive and lyrical barbs. Some came close to land that TKO but some how he always managed to stay on his feet and land some awesome lyrical jabs of his own.

That was then, when the Kenyan hiphop scene wasn’t as established. Today there are a gang’a rappers that can credibley stake claim to that title without a fear. These rappers would include:

Octopizzo. This lad has been consistent on his come-up. And he has the lyrical content to grab the crown. He has tthe punchlines and the witty one-liners to defend his claim.

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Juliani. Aye, i don’t care that he’s a gospel artist, all i care for is the fact that the talent is there and so are the witty one liners and the kray wordplay. If he wanted to, he could challenge for the throne but he wouldn’t. He serves a higher calling.

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There is Kaka Sungura. Rabbit has given us hit after hit consistently and they have some of the baddest lyrics ever heard on a Kenyan track. This guy just needs to produce more songs faster and i can see him challenging for the throne. Afterall, there has to be a reason behind Lonely Island contacting no one else to feature on their track. And just so you know, it is the Kenyan video &/or a video featuring a Kenyan that has the highest hits.

Coola Gang. Perhaps it’s unfair of me to feature groups in this peice given that there is strength in numbers but i would be doing this list a world of injustice by not featuring these guy. Kapella, Shukid, Taffe, Kevin Grands and Greg are mad talented. And if your first reaction when i mentioned these guys was who? Then you my friend are an ostrich. Get your head out of the sand.

Holy Dave can actually claim the throne but he needs to stop featuring on other people’s tracks so much and get out his own material. But then again, there’s that little issue of Christian humility that would be a hinderance. Btw i really want to hear a collabo from Holy Dave and Juliani. The best of English Christian rhymes meets the best of sheng rhymes. This would be a madness!

Abass needs to keep churning out stuff religiously or risk slipping into obscurity. This guy as we speak is the foremost contender but he hasn’t been as consistent as i’d like. The cool kids might just surpass him real soon.

And finally Camp Mulla. These guys are the guys to watch. Shappaman, Taio Tripper and K’Cous can take that crown and run with it and i dare say that they won’t be return it anytime soon. With the likes of these three, they have the lyrical content, the punch lines and the flow to do so.

So now it’s over to you the reader, who do you think has what it takes to be the king of Kenyan rap?

 

Relatively new artiste KIM dropped his first ever music video ‘Rafiki’ last week.

Rafiki is Kim’s first single produced by BENJA/CLEMO for CALIF RECORDS. The Kenyan Singer/Songwriter has made an attempt to fuse the predominant genre in Kenya, genge some contemporary sounds and beats…

The Video is Directed by: LUCH & PARARO, Edited and produced by : LUCH. and the Song is Written by: KIM (@kimmgenge), The Arrangement is done by : ALPHA MSANII & BENJA, Mixed and Produced by : BENJA & CLEMO and finally Mastered by: CLEMO

Checkout the video to ‘Rafiki’ here…

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Introducing a brand new feature on Ghafla!, the ‘Where did they go?’ series seeks to look at Kenyan artistes who made it big at some point in their career but left the scene just as abruptly. We’d like you to comment after the article with your remarks, discoveries or questions and when the week is over, we will proceed with a follow up piece.

This week we ask, where did Henrie Mutuku go?

Remember the gospel artiste who splashed onto the local music screen with her sweet and sultry vocals and even went ahead to win a KORA award back in 2002 alongside the established Eric Wainaina?

Henrie started out steadily as a background vocal artiste for other gospel musicians such as Pete Odera then featured in a compilation album titled ‘Rebirth’ in the same year that she won the KORA award.

Her album ‘Simama’ saw her collab with industry greats such as Roughtone and R.K, as her other song of the album ‘Manzi wa Maana’ became a massive success.

The following year she won 2 Kisima Awards for Best Female Artiste and Best Contemporary Gospel Artiste.

Check out her video ‘Nakuhitaji’ below…

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What do you think? Where did Henrie Mutuku go?

Sensational drama series Changes actor, X FM radio presenter and former Studio 53 host Fareed Khimani is the new Brand Ambassador for Heineken Kenya.

His contract with the Dutch beer company will last for a year. Heineken is the official sponsor of UEFA Champions League and Fareed says that it’s an honour to be their ambassador.

”It’s a great partnership. Idont know why Kwach got the deal but i know why i did,” Fareed said. He will be partnering with Easy FM presenter Edward Kwach in promoting Heineken beer in Kenya. The two radio presenters are expected to appear in several Heineken promotions this year

Alternative music in Kenya is just about to get a massive upgrade with the imminent new release of Kagwe Mungai’s latest offering adequately titled ‘It Only Gets Better’.

While revealing what the cover art for his mixtape will be (front cover shown above, back cover below), the singer/songwriter and producer should feature some unique sounds and mixes, with amazing tracks such as ‘When We Were Kings’ and ‘Cure For This’.

The mixtape is expected to drop within the next three days. Keep it Ghafla! and we’ll keep you posted!

When Sub-Saharan records were producing Camp Mulla’s first hit song ‘Party don’t stop’ they had to include King wa rap, Collo to

feature in the song, and this time round the same stable is introducing rapper AJ in his new song ‘Soaring high’ featuring the self proclaimed king wa rap.

AJ has got real talent and chances are he’s going to be the next big rapper in the music industry. Collo continues to prove that he deserve the ‘’Mfalme’’ title because he killed the song with his wonderful lyrics.

This song will definitely be a hit on our radio and TV stations. Sub-Saharan Records are doing wonders when picking their artistes.

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Got my mitts on this track by Hez…

And he’s trying to be different by branching out to do a house influenced track. Well, Bamzigi has already trail-blazed that area so to speak but it has thus far been vastly underrated.

Hez has courageously ventured into this under utilised genre and i must say that i quite like the effort. Is there room for improvement? Aye sure but it says alot about the lads mettle that he’s willing to be different.

Anyway, without further ado, here’s the track titled “Usikazie Ngoma”.

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People prefer a live band performance than a play back one. International artistes like Jay Z and Lil Wayne have even adopted the half live music production.

A young group of Kenyan artistes called The Live Legends has mastered this art, and they are introducing it in the Kenyan music industry.

The group consists of Scott the Storch burns it up with the electric violin who brings in all the instrumentals and producer Kelvin the trigger master who recreates the studio production live on stage.

If you can watch how they have created a sweet track for Madtraxx song ‘Skamaress’, then you would wish that every artiste in the country could tap their services.

We are all gifted but this crew is more than gifted.

Check out the cool ‘Skamaress’ track by The Legends

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The digital era has grossly altered not just the music industry, but the world as a whole. In order for Kenyan artistes to be able to compete against the increasing globalization of the world, they have to look at what international artistes are doing right and not just emulate those manouevers but also to maximize on the benefits.

These days its easy enough for even the newest of artists to work on their computers, come up with a tune or a track and distribute it on the internet in a matter of minutes. Your song may be of a certain quality above the rest but then your challenge may be ways of maximising your impact and getting your song out there.

One of the most effective ways of doing this would be to turn to licensing your music. Case in point, most recently Camp Mulla licensed their song to Safaricom for an estimated fee of about Kshs.4million. Now whether or not that amount was the exact figure, whats clear is that the 2012 BET Awards nominees made a killing on the deal. Whether on radio or on television, when its about Safaricom’s data packages, all you hear is ‘Party Don’t Stop’ in the background.

In the Kenyan music industry (as well as the world over), all an artiste wants is a way of getting his or her name out there to the masses. Exposure. Its like a golden boot of the industry and once people get to know about you, then you’re more than halfway there to success. You write and record your music in essence so that others may listen to and enjoy it, and if you’re lucky, you can make a living off that if you do it right adn consistently.

Getting your song, or your music in general licensed is an almost certain way to success because the music would ultimately ‘sell itself’ as it is featured on whatever product that is. Picture getting your song on a 15 second clip of say Brookside milk, a product consumed widely enough in Kenya and throughout the region. This could open up countless more avenues for your career than you expected.

Once your music is licensed then your portfolio is boosted as you may get more established managers and producers to help you take your music to the next level. This is especially more so if you’re not signed to any of the leading recording labels in the country. It would be a major achievement for you and your music. Need I stress how much money you would be making in the process? 

Ladies and gentlemen, it is our pleasure (#TeamGhafla) to give you… *drum roll*

Man Wazimu’s hit “Emergency Pill”. Yes ladies and gentlemen, this song promises all the highlights offered by Jackiwa’s “Life History” and more! While it doesn’t boast the same awesome choreography, it has a message& great lyrics.

Check out the next big thing here:
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So, last week I let you know about Octopizzo’s concert at the Moi University Chepkoilel that was held on Thursday (read the article). Well, turns out that the show was great just as we had predicted.

Octopizzo himself was confident that the show would be awesome and he was right. “This event was one of my best. The Crowd was just the best. I LOVE ELDORET!” Octopizzo said.

We managed to get some of the photos of the concert. Check them out.

Attention all hiphop heads, Ksouth fans and all round music lovers!

Kenya’s prodigal son is back according to word (courtesy of ThisIsCreme). And he’s not coming back home empty handed, he has come bearing a token: a warning to all of Kenya’s hiphop emcees.

“Kenya here we come baby!! Mceez better eat their breakfast,cuz Im coming for that lunch and dinner!!! Lol… Here we go!!!”

And for the rest of us, he has promised to come back with a gang’a beats and new music that he guarantees will leave the entertainment scene shook!

I for one can’t wait but because it’ll be a while, Uncle Chim has something for all the Bamboo fans out there:

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Talented music producer Provoke has managed to bring three different artistes who do different kind of music in a song. The producer managed to fuse Mzuka, hip hop and reggae in one mad music production.

If you thought that only Jamaicans can do reggae, then your assumption is very wrong because Kenya’s Marvin has proven that he is a force to recorn with in this new single ‘We no need front door’ featuring Kenya’s hip hop first lady Xtatic and the pioneer of Mzuka music style Bamzigi.

Bamzigi shows us that he still got the hip hop flow, Marvin will be the next Kenya’s Mavado and as usual Xtatic killed the song with her mad hip hop lyrics.

Listen to the song down here>>>>>>