We are currently seeing a wave of sexual eruption in the music industry. Almost every new artiste is pumped with the belief that producing sexual content is the only way to sell. It has been argued that there is no room for niceties, euphemisms or vulnerability in this industry – you’re either tough and confident or you get fed to the piranhas.
Well, that might be true but still you have to go about your business in an ‘artistic’ manner if you want your craft to be adored. Otherwise you’ll just look like the ‘pombe bangi’ kind of attention seeking wannabes. So who are the guys that have taken the taboo-breaking spirit to heart and entertained us with exciting filth? Here is my top 10 list in which i have also included duos and groups.
10. Wakimbizi
Let’s start with the group that enjoyed using the parabole aspect of literature in with their outrageous lyricism. We all sang along despite knowing how dirty the hidden meanings of their bars were. They told us the story of ladies and their love for ‘John’ and how that ‘John’ chap still delivers despite having one non-seeing eye. They sang about failed blind dates and sugar mummies. And with all those complexities, no one repelled their music. We all enjoyed. Hats off for Wakimbizi
9. Flexx
The dreadlocked Calif pon never shied away from showing his appreciation towards female anatomy. While our parents kept believing ‘nyundo’ was a song about carpenters, we were all aware it was about the ‘shuma’ and subsequent bedroom proceedings. Flexx enjoyed singing about getting laid. He thrived in that arena. Sometimes he disguised the themes but most of the time he just served his musical dessert raw . We all remember that ‘Amejibeba’ video where he followed a chic throughout the whole shoot while telling her how he and other men wanted to smash her. Goddamn
8. Circuit and Joel
They are the guys who brought as ‘Manyake’, one of Kenya’s all-time dopest anthems. Actually the song was called ‘Juala’ since its purpose was to spread the message of condom use. But we all renamed it Manyake- all sizes, Kids everywhere were jamming along while parents watched helplessly with undisguised grimaces.
7. Madtraxx
Whenever you get the memo about a new Madtraxx jam, don’t expect to be serenaded by sweet loving verses and romantic haikus. In last year’s club banger, ‘Nyongwa’, Madtraxx lets us fill in the blanks when he says, “Tukifika home ntakupiga mi…. Tuanze kwa kitanda tumalizie kwa ki……”. Just like that, he’s telling a girl how he’ll smash the ish out of her when he takes her home. And that’s not it. He has also sang about taking groupies to washrooms and turning them around
6. Kenrazy
I am always anti-Kenrazy but when it comes to obscene lyrics, he’s one of the top dogs. When a guy sings about girls asking him to ‘rudia’ or touch them ‘kwa m*titi’ then you clearly get the message that he’s no saint. Kenrazy has relied on raunchy lyrics to keep himself relevant and in a way, he has managed to do so. In all his tracks, those ‘unholy’ little lines are the ones that stick to our heads
5. Walanguzi
When artistes sing about masturbation on a whole four minute track, it can only mean one thing. They are ratchet AF. In ‘Napenda vaseline’, the duo rapped and rhymed about the joys of fapping. The only bad thing is that they couldn’t secure an endorsement deal with the jelly manufacturer. In ‘Eastlands Anthem’ and ‘Crazy’ the two also rapped about having man-tools the sizes of anacondas. Hmmmmm….Okay
4. Jua Cali
Of course this list can’t be complete without Bab Yao Jua Cali. From ‘Kiasi’ to ‘kamata Dame’ the genge king laid down a string of dirty lyrics coated with lurid detail. Even though his has toned down his raw content in recent years, Jua Cali will still go down in 254 history as one of the most daring artistes.
3. Ken Wa Maria
The ‘Fundamentals’ crooner is just about as dirty as a whore’s mouth. Ask any Kamba chap to translate for you any of Mr. Wa maria’s vernacular songs and you’ll call ‘Holy Moses.’ Oh yes his videos are simple and poorly edited like those of Mr. Nice in 2002 but the lyrics hard-hitting and direct. The guy doesn’t draw triangles in the sand. Neither does he go round in circles. He just says something dirty, repeats it a couple of times in a song and that’s it – a hit.
2. Bobby Mapesa
A true Don when it came to spoiling society. Hahhaaaa. To him, no kind of nastiness was too nasty. When our teachers taught us ABC (Avoid bad Company), that’s not what they meant. They meant ABC (Avoid Bobby’s Company). When our Kenyan society was still so conservative, the guy was releasing songs like ‘Naskia Utam’ and ‘Kamoja Tui’. Everyone loved him for that and it’s only when he stopped being R18, that his career started going downhill. Maybe it’s too late for him to go back to his true ways. All In all he made his mark.
1.Nonini
Who else in the first spot but the Godfather himself Nonini- the master of profanity and sexual innuendo. He’s the artiste that received the most backlash for his dirty lyrics. He drew fire for peppering his lyrics with gleefully immoral phrases. However, that was only an obstacle that never slowed him down. Our parents hated him and so did out pastors. The controversy that rained on him also propelled him further into stardom.
Nonini’s explicit songs are too many that it’s challenging to list them all. Funny thing is that he was never slapped with a serious ban anywhere. Perhaps everyone realized that what he was rapping about was what we all badly wanted to hear but couldn’t admit.
