CABU GAH DIARIES: 6 Kenyan Singers Who Should Sing More And More And More Because They’re So Damn Talented. And Have Such Beautiful Voices.
It’s sad that the MOST gifted ones are the ones who sing less and less and the ones with the most unbearable voices are the ones ruling the airwaves. It can all be blamed on the current music market culture,love for bubblegum pop,catchy tunes and our inclination to superficial music as opposed to deep,quality vocals and compositions.
Most of our most popular pop stars today (Gospel or secular) are NOT the most gifted… They’re only at the top,they’re only visible and only still dropping ‘hits’ because of our pathetic DJ favoritism culture,love for cheesy art and gorgeous ‘singers’ as opposed to real talent and actual musicians.
I can’t even tell you any Ogopa Deejays female singer that I consider gifted or talented or that I would die to hear them sing LIVE… But they’re all the rage,they’re the ‘Best’ we have and some have even won continental Awards even when it was absolutely clear they wouldn’t win one in ACTUAL music industries.
And from other local labels too….
Sad thing is that,some of our BEST FEMALE singers,with rich beautiful voices to die for,singers who can ACTUALLY compose music,singers who can harmonize like an Italian Opera diva and singers who croon like angels,singers who can really hit the highest notes and evoke the strongest of emotions ARE NOT so popular,they don’t release songs that often and they’re not as talked about-or blogged about – as these other barely-talented sex twats we see on the newspapers daily.
Well… Here are 6 of some of the BEST Kenyan female singers… With angelic voices and ordained vocals. If only they sang more… If only they recorded more… If only they released more new music and only if they were as sought-after as our other female ‘artists’.
1. SARA MITARU
She’s one of the most gifted musicians Kenya has. Sara is NOT just a singer… But a musician; the whole package. The girl does not just sing.. She can hit the notes,go low,evoke emotions,belt a tune,compose,entertain and still inspire. You should watch her at a Live Concert. She’s like Kenya’s version of Tracy Chapman. Or Amy Winehouse. From the gingerly Make Way to the saccharine Bien-Aime assisted You Said to the pleasurable collaboration with Nigerian singer Bez in Keep Me From You. Sara is a force in herself. She can sing.. Very well,very sweetly,very powerfully and very amazingly. Trouble is,she doesn’t sing so often. We don’t even know what happened to her. And we never hear her stuff on radio! Heck,she only has like two videos on YouTube! And ONLY one song on Mdundo.com! How very sad! And what a rich voice!
2. MERCY MASIKA
I’ve said it before. And I will say it again… Mercy Masika is the MOST GIFTED singer in Kenya! Male or female. Gospel or secular. Young or old. No one comes close to this daughter of a Bishop. I’ve never heard a more powerful voice. Never heard better music. And never loved a singer more. Mercy is sent straight from heaven. Her ‘Mwema’ hit song is still the BIGGEST song in the Country. Close to 10 months after its release! Mercy is the Queen. She always will be. And at the 2015 GROOVE AWARDS,Mercy showed the world why she’s the Queen of the stage! But sadly,we don’t hear this amazing voice as often as we wish we would. We don’t see her at Concerts as frequently as we pray we would. We don’t see her topping the ‘Gospel music’ charts every Sunday. How can someone who sings like an Angel of God be so hard to find? Or listen to!!? It’s painful.
3. SANAIPEI TANDE
Thank God she broke away from that hastily-cobbled ‘Sema’ pop group. She won some ‘Coca Cola’ search some maaaany years ago. And then teamed up with some other forgotten ‘singers’ to form ‘Sema’… The trio that brought you hits like ‘Leta Wimbo’ and blah blah blah. And then they broke up! Yeeeaaayy! Now we could listen to Sanaipei Tande sing alone! We could have her all to ourselves! Oh! What a pleasure! Sanaipei is a composer extraordinaire. You can tell she’s a pro in beautiful songs like ‘Mfalme wa Mapenzi’ (if you ignore the racy video),melancholic breakup anthems like ‘Najuta’ and ‘Ankula Huu’ and her recent humanitarian anthem Niokoe. She also singlehandedly made Juacali’s early hit ‘Kwaheri’ the smash hit it was with that bombastic chorus and sweet voice. Sana is NOT just a super gifted singer. But a songwriting genius too. Her compositions consist of all elements that make a great song… And sang with that voice,she’s easily our Lady Jay Dee. It’s a shame that her radio career reduced her from the amazing singer she should have been to a behind-the-mic radio rambler. Man!
(Click Next Page For The Rest Three Super Singers)
4. AMINA
Another super-awesome talent that was snuffed up by radio. And a marriage. We didn’t know Amina could sing until she dropped that Jay A collabo ‘On Me’. We didn’t even know her by the way. And immediately,after that song dropped,a star was born; Not Jay A. But Amina. She did the chorus in a way that ONLY a seasoned Los Angeles back-up singer could do. We even thought the song was international… Yes,they both had a very foreign vibe. And it worked like magic. Again she teamed up with Octopizzo on his jam ‘Swag’ and yet again,this gorgeous gorgeous beauty never disappointed. She did that chorus like her life depended on it. And you could tell she was a singer by the way she chopped it up. And dropped it like it’s hot. But then again, just like Sana,radio came calling. And a sister dropped her studio career for the radio booth. Things were made worse by her marriage… Don’t get me wrong… Marriage is a good thing… But ONLY Beyonce gets better AFTER marriage. Only Beyonce. Didn’t British singer Adele get married too? It never ends well… For gifted singers. Oh crap!
5. AMILEENA
We knew her from TPF. We are not even sure who won the season she was in… But she certainly did make an impact. And was among the final 4…or so. Amileena started small in Mombasa… Working as a hotel waitress to end up on TPF and blowing the nation away. From the start,she was one of the MOST gifted singers on that competition. She was a fan favorite and judges adored her. She was accused of showing off her voice too much time and again… And exaggerating her highs (melisma) but still,she was legitimately talented. And even after TPF,Amileena continued to be seen. And heard. She teamed up with various singers under some local record label and she outshone them all. Amileena has a powerful powerful voice… She can croon. And she can carry a tune to its last drop. She is dangerously gifted and has the chops of Brenda Fassie. She’s also bombastic and boisterous which adds to the flair. Too bad she doesn’t sing often. Too bad no one knows what happened to this poor sister. Oh Lord! Can this sister sing!
6. EUNICE NJERI
Humble,sweet,adorable,spiritual,committed,unassuming,buoyant and charming are some of the few adjectives that can vest describe this sweet soul. She’s born again. And very much so. Eunice,though diminutive,has the MOST POWERFUL voice of this generation. She can boom into a song. And shake walls with her amazing verses and choruses. She can not only compose super sweet sings but also sing them in a way you haven’t heard before. Purely purely gifted is Eunice Njeri. She also has perfect diction. And an outstanding command of the Swahili language. She is a gem. And a musical treasure. Even after we lost The Great Angela Chibalonza, we knew that Eunice would carry on Angela’s work. And truly,she is the new Chibalonza. And we all know Chibalonza was one of a kind. Her song ‘Nimekubali’ is already a Gospel classic. And her earlier ageless hits ‘Bwana Yesu’ and her Billy Frank duet ‘Umeniweza’ speak for themselves. Behold,the Queen Of Voices!
Can someone bring some of these girls BACK into this Industry??! And for those that are still kicking it and recording,could you please release more music? Please??! We need You! In an industry so full of crap and lame raps and horrible voices and pathetic songwriting and shoddy rhymes,we need you!
