Month: August 2012

Trevor Gitonga is a man (or is it boy?!) of many talents. He is mostly recognized as an actor, but what most people don’t know is that he is also an emcee, songwriter and public speaker.

Trevor is most famously known for his role in the Jinna Mutune production, Leo. The critically acclaimed movie was backed by Pastor Julian Kyula, businessman Bernard Wambugu and Capital FM owner and DJ, Chris Kirubi.

Looks like the young star has decided to venture into the musical world. He has released a single with Stella Kagendo. You can check out his debut single, Pedal to the Medal, below.

With Rabbit qualifying to be among the top ten lyrically lethal rappers in Kenya, it only makes sense if his lyrics are actually hot and worth reading and listening to.

Very few lyricists take the time to sit and think about the lyrics they are about to put in a song and the impact that they will have on their listeners. Rabbit aka Kaka Sungura aka Story Teller, happens to be one of the few. The depth of his lyrics match that of a poet and that is undeniable with his latest ‘Swahili Shakespeare’ out there.

It is composition like this that makes you look for the lyrics everywhere and anywhere. Well, search no more. Rabbit has made all his punch lines and favorite lines from his songs available on his new facebook page titled ‘RABBIT KAKA SUNGURA QUOTES’. Get them here.

You can also sing along to his lyrics on our lyrics page right here. I’m sure you will enjoy.

With Rabbit qualifying to be among the top ten lyrically lethal rappers in Kenya, it only makes sense if his lyrics are actually hot and worth reading and listening to.

Very few lyricists take the time to sit and think about the lyrics they are about to put in a song and the impact that they will have on their listeners. Rabbit aka Kaka Sungura aka Story Teller, happens to be one of the few. The depth of his lyrics match that of a poet and that is undeniable with his latest ‘Swahili Shakespeare’ out there.

It is composition like this that makes you look for the lyrics everywhere and anywhere. Well, search no more. Rabbit has made all his punch lines and favorite lines from his songs available on his new facebook page titled ‘RABBIT KAKA SUNGURA QUOTES’. Get them here.

You can also sing along to his lyrics on our lyrics page right here. I’m sure you will enjoy.

I don’t know if you guys miss the Kalamashaka sound as a trio as much as I do. Old is gold and this applies to music all so well. Hip hop from back in the days when it was still at its junior years in Kenya was worth spending the whole day listening to.

Kama, Johnny and Roba made Kenyan hip hop, up until crank and all other crazy music influenced and corrupted the African sound, but then again, change is inevitable. That much I can accept.

This however will not stop us from celebrating some of the best songs that came from this legendary hip hop group that inspired most of the present day rappers and it seems that someone else out there agrees with me. A series of old legendary music from Kalamashaka has been uploaded to YouTube and is now available for everyone.

To get you started, here is one of their best tracks from back then, ‘Tahidi’.

I don’t know if you guys miss the Kalamashaka sound as a trio as much as I do. Old is gold and this applies to music all so well. Hip hop from back in the days when it was still at its junior years in Kenya was worth spending the whole day listening to.

Kama, Johnny and Roba made Kenyan hip hop, up until crank and all other crazy music influenced and corrupted the African sound, but then again, change is inevitable. That much I can accept.

This however will not stop us from celebrating some of the best songs that came from this legendary hip hop group that inspired most of the present day rappers and it seems that someone else out there agrees with me. A series of old legendary music from Kalamashaka has been uploaded to YouTube and is now available for everyone.

To get you started, here is one of their best tracks from back then, ‘Tahidi’.

Man Wazimu did a song a while back and the video just went viral. The reasons for the ’emergency pills’ video going viral is still unclear, but we would like to think that it is because of it’s uniqueness.

Although the song and the video were both criticized on YouTube and mercilessly put down, Man Wazimu lived up to his name and pressed on, dishing out more songs despite the number of haters on his YouTube channel. I have to say that I really admire this guy’s devotion to his music. Pretty strong too.

Amid all the hate and high peach vocals, Man Wazimu released his album and is now on sale at various shopping centres country wide. The album is titled ‘My Say’ and is available at Leisure Village, Nakumatt Lifestyle and King’s Highway Accra Plaza.

Meanwhile, get a load of ‘Emergency Pills’ below.

Man Wazimu did a song a while back and the video just went viral. The reasons for the ’emergency pills’ video going viral is still unclear, but we would like to think that it is because of it’s uniqueness.

Although the song and the video were both criticized on YouTube and mercilessly put down, Man Wazimu lived up to his name and pressed on, dishing out more songs despite the number of haters on his YouTube channel. I have to say that I really admire this guy’s devotion to his music. Pretty strong too.

Amid all the hate and high peach vocals, Man Wazimu released his album and is now on sale at various shopping centres country wide. The album is titled ‘My Say’ and is available at Leisure Village, Nakumatt Lifestyle and King’s Highway Accra Plaza.

Meanwhile, get a load of ‘Emergency Pills’ below.

When Abbas returned, we expected some hot stuff from him. Yesterday, he gave us some hot stuff, but not what he expected. The rapper called out a fellow rapper, K-Nel, in his very first post-European tour beef.

Interesting is that Abbas’ first performance when he arrived in the country was the Hip Hop Slam Down, which organized by K-Nel himself. Through his Facebook, Abbas called K-Nel a conman for giving fake deals to other artistes.

We expected serious effects after the accusations but looks like K-Nel is going to be the better man and take the high road. He has not addressed Abbas over the issue directly. He says he is just going to concentrate on his video launch, which will take place later this week.

Here are some of the messages he posted online with regard to the issue:

“I LOVE THE NEGATIVE TALK, THE CONTROVERSY SOME FEW HEADS ARE PERPETRATING. AM RELEASING AN OFFIAL VIDEO IN LESS THAN 48 HOURS“

“In my #anglohili World we strongly don’t entertain Controversy. Silence is a lethal killer weapon. Let him fight his own war.“

 “Before I call it a night, I wanna Thank all those who Been texting me positive messages The Whole Day, ma #anglohili Fans. Am so inspiredddddd!“

Jaguar’s Matapeli is so popular that he doesn’t have to do a remix himself. Other people are. The electro fever that is sweeping the music industry isn’t going to leave the Kigeugeu follow-up behind.

Looks like Jaguar’s video for his latest single, Matapeli, is proving to be just as popular as his smash hit, Kigeugeu. The song has just short of 50,000 views on YouTube less than a month after its release. And that is not counting the thousands of views it’s getting on other people’s channels.

Red La Familia’s DJ Abcentii has released an “official” house remix of the Jaguar track. I guess “official” means Jaguar, who is currently on the Niko Na Safaricom Live Tour approves. Check out the house remix below.
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With so much mineral water news, we almost forgot that Chiwawa is a music artiste. Well, that is not all he is concentrating on. As he makes his big splash into business, he is also reviving his music career.

Imejipa is Chiwawa’s latest single, and the video is highly anticipated. The beat was provided by the guys from SNL. Yes, they don’t only make music from news clips. The video was shot by Tattuah Films, the guys who did Rabbit’s Swahili Shakespeare.

The girl who appears in the video is not the actual one who features on the song. The original singer, Faith, died and her sister, Stacy Samba, appears on the clip. The video was shot in Karen and the KICC rooftop. Check out photos from the shoot below.

Remember Shinde of Tattuu? She is back. She was a member of the singing trio, Tatuu, which broke up a few years ago.

She will perform at The Louis Leakey Auditorium on the 4th of September. The show titled Up Close and Personal will take place between 8:00 and 11:00 p.m.

The singer has now gone solo and is ready to re-enter the local music scene. And this will not be a one-off show. The singer has actually recorded an album to accompany her grand comeback.

At the Up Close and Personal gig, she will be accompanied by Aaron Rimbui and–guess who–her colleagues from Tattuu. It will be exciting to see the Kipawa Music-managed artiste return and take on the industry alone.

Tattuu was a trio made up of Angela “Rabbo” Ndambuki, Debbie Asila and Angela “Shinde” Mwandanda. Besides music, Shinde has also performed as an actor. She appeared on last year’s Village Christmas stage play at Mavuno.

The battle still goes on even after most of the rappers have been kicked out for failing to match up with the obviously hotter rappers.

Few have made it this far and only one will walk away with the huge price money on Saturday. It’s getting hotter by the day. Check out some of the photos from the latest battle.

Cypreezy going head to head with Ojiji

 

Their authentic sound

They draw inspiration from the forefathers of African music. Bien, Mudigi, Polycarp and Chimano draw their inspiration from Daudi Kabaka, Fadhili Williams and the like. And they STILL manage to remain cool. How they do it is their secret.

Their live performances are proper

You will have no shouting on stage at a Sauti Sol concert. These guys know that their fans and sponsors pay a lot of money to have them perform, and they deliver straight value for money. No jokes!

 

They got a fine business sense

The model that they have pursued for producing music is optimal for business. They record an entire album, then launch it with grand fanfare, launch a hot single to whet fans’ appetite, then continue to release songs one by one to the local radio stations. This tactic increases their music sales, and at the same time keeps them in demand for shows over a long period.

 

They tour like mad

To follow through where the last point left off, Sauti Sol are quite special when it comes to planning their tours within Kenya and abroad. Never has a Kenyan band proceeded to conquer the world circuit again and again with such ruthless efficiency. The team at Penya Africa are doing a stellar job. Keep on keeping on.

 

They have cross demographic appeal

Whether you are from the hilly valleys of Kakamega, or from the concrete jungle in Nairobi, Sauti Sol don’t leave you feeling alienated. Why? They sing in fluent English, Kiswahili and their native Luhya dialect. That’s a rare triple threat that you don’t get from many Nairobi bands, ESPECIALLY those from suburbia.

 

They have cross border appeal

These guys top charts from Kenya to the Netherlands. They also have mzungu fans screaming their name at international festivals such as South by South West in Austin, Texas. But don’t take my word for it, just take a look at the video below this article for their spellbinding performance of ‘Awinja’ at SXSW earlier this year:

You definitely know that Abbas is back in full throttle when you hear that he is involved in yet another beef. Come to think of it, Abbas should be named the undisputed king of beef. This guy has battled them all and has come out unscathed in most, and he still stands.

This time though, his beef with this rapper is acceptable and actually, we can even support this. Apparently, Abbas has had it with this con men who call themselves producers and promoters and has once and for all waged war on one of them. K Nel didn’t see this coming.

K-Nel

 

K Nel from Anglohili, who is also a rapper, has been accused by Abbas for conning artistes with fake deals. Abbas made it clear through his facebook account by posting,

“Reality check: It has come to my attention that the music industry has been invaded by individuals who are eventually destroying it by doing bad business and violating artists’ rights. This individual called K-Nel Anglohili is going round town giving artists fake deals. Word to all my fellow artists… brake that circle… I am hip hop so I must protect me.”

This might just be the beginning of a series of rap battles so prepare for more lyrical display of art.

Turns out, Chiwawa’s “new” mineral water brand is not as new as we thought it was. Apparently, Minerva has been around for about a year. It was one of the ventures Chiwawa undertook when he became a dad.

The mineral water has been sold around the Rongai and Karen area for the duration it has been on the market. In fact, Chiwawa’s hiatus in music can be blamed on the time he took out to strategize this business plan.

Chiwawa does not only sell Minerva through the bottles, he also does refills for home water dispensers. The next plan is to have Minerva spread from Rongai and Karen to the whole of Nairobi. Check out more photos below.

Prezzo has not been too happy lately and I feel him completely. What Goldie is doing is just cruel. I mean, dude travelled all the way to Nigeria just to talk to this lady and set things straight and she is not impressed?

Prezzo is right. This is indeed messed up. Ever since he has been in Nigeria, he has pulled all strings possible to see and talk to Goldie, but all in vain. Goldie knows perfectly well that Prezzo is there for her (who doesn’t), and yet she has completely avoided the poor guy. According to Prezzo, Goldie has ignored all his calls. I can only hope that he hadn’t bought the ring yet. This is what happens when you fall in-love on International Television. Keagan has the full notes on this.

Amid all this, Prezzo still believes that they will end up together and he is not about to give up on their love. I really wish you the best on this Prezzo. I really do.

When it comes to laying down bars, this rapper knows not play. He goes straight for the kill, which in this matter, is the rap game.

Lon’ Jon is a respected and acknowledged Kenyan rapper who has been around for a quite a while now. It comes a time though, when the fans start questioning the relevance of an artiste, and with this new song, Lon’ Jon has just put them all down with his new track ‘Go get it’.

I love the old school hip hop beats and the aggressive flow that he has maintained through out the song. Others may think of this to be too much influenced by the Western music but personally, I really think that you can never say no to change for so long.

Check out his latest track, ‘Go get it’.

Joyce Omondi is the new kid on the block in the Gospel industry and from the look of things she’s gonna give Kambua a run for her money in the world of afro-fused gospel music.

According to her twitter handle, @JoyceOmondi, Joyce is a budding musician who is expected to cause ripples in the gospel music scene with her style of singing. Joyce also hosts Rauka on Citizen TV alongside Njugush on Sundays.

Her single “Conquerer” debuted yesterday and is already getting hits on YouTube. She explains that “Conquerer” both her personal testimony of God’s faithfulness, and also her expression of hope for the future — that the best it yet to come!

We at Ghafla! wish her all the best in her musical career.

Check out the video, done by J Blessings…

Nonini had previously announced that he is coming up with a plan to help artistes who had been bombarding him with requests to join his Pro Habo label (check it out here). He had also promised that he would do something to help them, and he has kept his promise.

Today, the rapper and radio presenter has announced that he is on the lookout for fresh talent. “Send me your 8-bars acapella freestyle of yourself in mp3 format. Be as creative as you wanna be,” announced Nonini through his Facebook.

You don’t have to be a rapper to take up the challenge, even singers are allowed. Both rappers and singers have to maintain the 8-bar rule. “If you don’t know what 8-bars is, then this is not for you,” he says.

If you are an unsigned upcoming artiste, then this might be your big break. Just show your creativity, record and send it to prohabo@noninimusic.com.

Nonini will be solving your relationship issues on his breakfast show with yet another public figure. This week, he invites celebrated singer, Amani.

If you have relationship issues, send an email to nonini@1fm.co.ke and you can have two celebrities sort you out. Nonini introduced the new segment on his breakfast show less than a month after he started hosting the 1FM’s Breakfast Show on 97.1FM.

Last week, Nonini solved relationship issues together with singer, Lady Bee. How it works is: a celebrity co-hosts the segment everyday with Nonini, reading out emails sent by listeners experiencing relationship problems.

 

The Azonto dance sensation has smashed into clubs in Nairobi. The Florida Night Club aka The Maddhouse will be presenting the dance every month. Azonto has its roots in Ghana is a major hit in West Africa.

Unveiled officially last week, the dance is anticipated to give Kenyans a feel of West African. This comes at a time when Nigerian music has rented the airwaves with off the hook jams from the likes of D’banj, 2Face, P-Square, Davido among others.

Organizers of what has come to be known as “The Azonto Experience” already have plans of bringing on board artistes from West Africa to ensure the event is a force to reckon with in the Kenyan entertainment scene.

DJ Burn, who is one of the organizers, says, “West African music is the music to watch out for, people across the world are yearning for something new, and that void is being filled by African music.”

The Azonto Experience is expected to bring a new twist to the music scene in Kenya and the entire East Africa region as a whole.

Let’s watch them do the Azonto…

ReverbNation.com is a web site, launched in 2006, that focuses on the independent music industry. It aims to provide a central site for musicians, producers, and venues to collaborate and communicate.

ReverbNation provides a widget that allows its members to place content on web pages. This TuneWidget is a feature that links back to additional content, such as music recommended by the band who created the widget.

Upcoming Kenyan artists have flocked to this website as some sort of saviour, given that it allows them to distribute their music at almost no cost. Many normal Kenyan citizens can attest to how they have been littered with alerts on their Facebook and Twitter profiles from celebrities egging them on to listen to music on the ‘Reverb Widget.’ However, as excited as artists may be about Reverb, there is one major flaw in the website: THE FANS ARE NOT ON THERE.

Lets look at the numbers:

A feature called Band Equity measures popularity based on four metrics of its service: reach, influence, access, and recency with the top 100 of each genre being recognized.

When we look at the artists with the highest Band Equity in Kenya, we come up with these figures:

1. Nonini – 1,208 Reverbnation Fans
2. Avril – 576 Reverbnation Fans
3. Wahu – 250 Reverbnation Fans

In “internet terms,” that is a really small number of fans to have after having a profile up for more than a year. Perhaps it’s time for local artists to look for websites that will promote them better… ( *cough* Ghafla *cough* )

Though his music may not be so mainstream, he is definitely recognised as one of the most talented rappers in Kenya. This guy qualifies to be a poet and he know it too, thus the alias, Kitu Sewer The Poet.

He showed up in support of his fellow rappers, Autopilots which constitutes of rappers Losh Mzuqa, MC Kenzie and Yobbz, in their latest collaboration that possesses more bars than a jail house.

Their song which has just been launched is titled ‘Ma-night runners’ and the video for the song is currently on the works. ‘Ma-night runners’ is all about the nocturnal business that provide a living for most people. This will prove to be very interesting to the ‘hustlers’.

Have a listen to the new track below. I know you will enjoy it. I know I did.

Rapper and radio presenter knows what it’s like being an upcoming artiste with no support from producers, radio DJs and established artistes. In his position as studio owner and radio presenter, he interacts with a lot of artistes in need of studio time and airplay.

“Every day, I get messages kutoka vijana who are aspiring musicians don’t have means or ways of getting into the studio kuonyesha kipaji chao due to finances au lack of connections, breakthrough or one reason or the other.

Honestly ma-message mimi hu-get ni overwhelming Prohabo simply cannot sign everyone. But I have some good news. If you have been inboxing unataka record deal, utafurahia in a few days. But catch is, YOU HAVE TO PROVE WORTHY OF MY TIME! Bado Strategy ndio jina ya hii mchezo haijawai change!“

Looks like unlike a lot of radio presenter who never even look at tracks sent to them, Nonini is actually going to give an equal chance to everyone and pick the best for Pro Habo Records. Let’s wait and see. The next big thing in the industry might come out of this.

Rapper and entrepreneur, Octopizzo has come up with a new initiative that is set to benefit music artistes.

“Forgotten Fridays is a monthly workshop that builds on creative tools and knowledge between music perfomance to create a strong and intuitive connection between musicians and their music or musical instruments, which in turn will encourage fluidity and ingenuity in music production, music management and overall music perfomance.

Each work will be built around a different theme to be selected by the participants that is built on peer-to-peer sharing and will end in an open mic session at the foyer; open to the artistes.”

The workshops will be facilitated by Octopizzo himself with the help of selected participants. For those interested, the next workshop will take place on the 21st of September at the Sarakasi Dome in Ngara.