A few years back,the biggest names on the local Gospel scene weren’t Willy Paul. Or Bahati. But today,very few years later,the superstars have fallen out of favor…
Juliani,Jimmy Gait,Ringtone,Holy Dave,Eko Didda….these were some of the huge names that rocked the world of Gospel for years…with huge hits,catchy tunes and and ever-expanding favor with the public.
But somehow,all that ebbed away sooner than it started…
The same people who drove us wild with music we’d dance to for months are nor the same people struggling to make an edge…struggling to be seen and heard again. Struggling to rise again…in a cutthroat industry that has since forgotten them. And embraced some other more sizzling,younger stars.
Others,tired of the competition and the imminent loss to the new breed of rock stars,actually opted out of music altogether…to do productions and other related businesses. I am talking
Gospel music,unlike any other genre of music in Kenya,is the most competitive and lucrative Industry right now…Many young men and women,daily,are dreaming of becoming Gospel Superstars overnight,spending night’s in studios recording what they hope will be the next big hit,aligning themselves to Churches they hope will catapult them to the stardom they so aspire for and forming alliances with connected Gospel cells that they hope will push their dream.
Even local dance groups are all Gospel oriented. Everyone seem to want a piece of the yummy pie. A faster as they can. And as big a piece as they can possibly get.
But where did these former rock stars of yore go to? Want happened to them? To their allure? And their almost unassailable star power?
EKO DYDDA
He was once the star of of Gospel Hiphop. With his unique swag,great lyricism,witty lyrics,wonderful punchlines and special style of rap,Eko was quite the force to reckon with. He had an awesome flow and his word play was unrivalled. His songs,too,were quite the hits..rocking the airwaves Sunday to Sunday and driving young people wild. And then…the downfall came. The music stopped coming,the witty lyrics ebbed away…the star was wiped out. And the new releases didn’t quite resonate. He seemed to have given up,too. And gradually released less and less music…And,to date,are still waiting for an Eko Dydda revival. Patiently….
RINGTONE
He has never been that big,quite frankly but still,Ringtone has been quite a heavyweight for a minute now. Coupled with his tales of bottomless wealth and his little,childish scandals that never seemed to go away,Ringtone was constant tabloid fodder. A poor lyricist and an even poorer singer,Ringtone seemed to have locked it. And achieved the highest levels of superstardom. He did numerous school tours and his songs,though sometimes dumb and outright empty,still topped the charts. But then the flood came…and swept away the glory. And the favor. Ringtone became a nobody and the only way he’d remain at the top is by manufacturing scandals and picking beefs with secular artistes. Oh,the struggle. Sure,money CANNOT do everything.
JULIANI
He was once hailed as the Second Coming. No Gospel artiste shook the Gosple music industry quite as much as this insanely talented wordsmith did. He had a flow we’d never heard before…his songwriting skills were unparalleled and his creative word play actually spawned then likes of Eko Dydda. All of his songs,though predominately Hip-hop,shot to the top of the charts. And he was everything to everyone. But it was his stage performances that really cemented his place as the KING. Not of Gospel music. But of ALL Music. But then again,the same plague that ate up his contemporaries caught up with him. He was sucked into a life of NGOs and projects and agriculture and endless activism. He veered from the Word. And focused more on the socio-political environment. Activism ate him away. Piece by piece. Bit by bit…he stopped rocking the airwaves. And stopped being in the news. His ONLY salvation was his marriage to that blithe damsel,Brenda. Still,it couldn’t save face. Or keep a brother forever at the top. Still,he’s winning. Which is good.
JIMMY GAIT
Now this is the perfect example of a sensation. Jimmy was the greatest musical sensation that rocked this country. He came around with that 2008 super hit Muhadhara and immediately,a star was born. He became huge. Very very very huge. He was the superstar per excellence. And he swam in deep waters of flowing cash. Hit after hit,Jimmy took us away. And rose so fast,so high that we were afraid he’d collapse on us. He was sought-after from corner to corner. And even his fellow artistes were in awe of him. Still,nobody is exempt from the ruthless bites of the bug. And Jimmy was soon bit. And at once,his star stopped shining. The lights dimmed. The allure faded away…the hit songs hit a snag. And the charisma rusted. He faded away…And seemed to go go go. Never to return. Ever again. Oh,what a sweet voice he had. Sob Sob.
HOLY DAVE
Not exactly talented,or even sensational,Holy Dave still was quite the rock star! He was one of Gospel music’s biggest hip hop stars. And with that Niko Na Reason collabo,Holy Dave rose to the highest peaks of the industry. And stayed there…Despite his obviously bland music. And sometimes weak lyricism,the industry was fair to him. And he never felt better. But soon enough,better acts were invented and this not-so-good rapper had to be toppled. And tossed out of the foggy window. And sure enough,that’s exactly what happened. And the boy,just like that,was forgotten. Forever. He now lectures business management. Yup,good luck bro.
MOG
This was the biggest music group that Gospel music ever had. They won EACH and EVERY award they ever got nominated for. And I mean,EACH and EVERY Award. They drove girls crazy,had insane stage performances,dropped hit after hit,could dance and scintillate and were really the Anointed Ones. Plus they were all boys…rough,diamond boys. Surely,they drove the ladies wild. But no,the driving didn’t last that long. Not the allure. Daily,they were engulfed in a string of scandals some of which were as dirty as rape and alcoholism. They tried,frantically,to fight off the scandals and even to re-invent themselves and find a whole new footing. Still,it never worked. Their time was up. And the gods had had enough of this scandalous trio. Soon enough,just like their compatriots,this sexy threesome was wiped away. And stashed into cold,dark corners. From where they’d never shine again. No matter how much they tried. Ouch.
EMMY KOSGEI
Let’s face it,Emmy is the only Kenyan artiste-Gospel or otherwise- who managed to make our former First Lady the constantly grumpy Lucy Kibaki get up and dance her gloomy self silly at the Uhuru Park stadium during a national function. Emmy’s song Taunet Nelel was so huge so that it almost became our default national anthem. We danced along to that song so much so that our feet were limp and our voices were gruff. Emmy rose above the ranks,hobnobbed with the greatest and mightiest and did so many shows,we thought she’d never stop. Emmy was a phenomena that captivated us so much there were even rumors of her having some romantic dalliance with a very powerful politician. But after Taunet,came the almost predictable downfall. Nothing she released after that quite topped the Taunet fame. She tried to follow it up…But no,it didn’t happen. And,tired of now-evading glory,she decided marriage would do her good. And got married to that endowed Nigerian widower. And,immediately,her story was over. Kabisa! And to tell you just how much Emmy has fallen out of the public’s favor,you should have seen the reception she got at the Groove Awards a couple weekends ago. It was colder than a terrorist’s heart. Colder.
MR. SEED
Now,even before this boy blew up big,he faded away. That fast. After that Papa God Oh that he did with MOG,and really made his name,Mr. Seed must have thought that the glory,fame and fortunes would never leave his door. Wrong. His star faded even before it shone. And nothing he did would save face. No song he dropped would hit the apex. The story was over…even before it began. Oh,the vagaries of fame.
Well,some veterans have somehow managed to still rock on,sing on and soldier on…Still releasing hits and still remaining just just relevant but also winning. Daddy Owen has perfected the art of longevity. Esther Wahome,too,her below-average music notwithstanding,has also managed to not go away…No matter how much she deserves to have gone,anyway.
And if you ain’t in this list,do re,ember tat the cruel hand of oblivion can come calling anytime. And that it can call anyone. Watch out! Before you’re ruthlessly grabbed by the collar and relegated to the backseats…Never to shine again. Or be heard. Or seen.
Okay,DK Kwenye Beat?!?
