Bahati The Lucky One: Why The Gospel Wonder Boy Owes Willy Paul So Much For The Record He Set In The Groove Awards
To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of honest friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived and much more, could all be summed up as success.
And to someone like Bahati, the gospel wonder boy who has continued to wow many a people thanks to his music coupled with his social background which has earned him enough empathy and sympathy from gospel music fans, this is exactly what many would think he has achieved.
But alas! Bahati’s story is more than just the above. Following his sweep of trophies at the just concluded Safaricom Grove awards, Bahati stunned many with the manner in which he managed to topple many an artiste to grab four major awards, setting an unmatched record in the decade old awards given to gospel participants in different categories.
Bahati with his adopted kids receiving the awards over the weekend
Many think Bahati is successful but I would tell you for free this boy is lucky, just like his name suggests.
Scooping four major awards is no mean feat brethren but this must be attributed to his fans and more importantly, his friend-cum-foe-cum-friend Willy Paul Msafi.
It was at the beginning of this year that social media enthusiasts were treated to a flurry of Facebook posts that Bahati put up to accuse Willy Paul for being a thief. In the post that contained more than 500 characters, Bahati spit his fury at his compatriot, accusing him of colluding with producer Teddy B, another man who scooped an award for the best audio producer, to steal his unreleased songs.
Bahati went on to accuse Willy Paul of bringing an unnecessary competition in the industry when he said that he(Willy Paul) releases songs every time he (Bahati) releases his. He also mentioned quite a number of songs he allegedly stole from him and changed a few things before releasing them.
Well, Willy Paul responded by releasing one of the songs he allegedly stole from Bahati.
Bahati’s unforgiving followers who have always admired the youngster joined the bandwagon and badly brought down Willy Paul with scathing attacks on not only his music but also his character. While very few stood by him, the controversial singer was on the spotlight for the better part of that month. His legacy and music were dealt a major blow.
Then came the famous and viral Ghafla! Kenya expose! This was one of the most exciting exposes of 2015. We told the world how Willy Paul neglected his biological mother in Mathare slums as he flaunted another woman he called mother in the public. It was one of the most heartbreaking things a well-off son would do to an ailing mother.
These two incidences greatly gave Bahati the chance to remain the perfect and less controversial boy; the cool and philanthropic boy who has adopted three kids from a children’s home having grown there as one.
And for Bahati he knew it very well that his probability of success is directly proportional to the belief and execution of his abilities. And by this he perfectly crafted the hit single Barua, a song that catapulted him further into the limelight.
Bahati and Willy Paul make peace after the former accused the latter of stealing his songs
The only sure person to give Bahati a stiff run for the Groove Awards was Willy Paul. But the last nail on his coffin had been hammered when the two aforementioned incidences rocked his otherwise controversial gospel life.
Jacob Gelt Dekker once said: Have lots of courage, most of all to forget yourself and break out of your box.
This is exactly what Bahati did. Having the courage to tell the world what he had been harbouring concerning his fellow singer Willy Paul. And this perfectly worked in his favour as Willy Paul succumbed to the accusations and lost the confidence of the voters.
I really cannot give you the formula for success. But I can give you the formula for failure. It is this: try to please everyone. By allegedly stealing Bahati’s songs, Willy Paul was trying to please us. And for sure when the truth came out, he failed. By flaunting another woman and neglecting his biological mother to please Kenyans, Willy Paul dug his own grave.
Bahati is greatly indebted to Willy Paul. I understand they buried the hatchet the day the Grove awards were launched. This is a better chance for Bahati to invite Willy Paul for a cup of tea. I understand Willy Paul won nothing. While an irritated Willy Paul fan argued in a matatu I was travelling in that the Groove Awards voting process is flawed and there is no way Willy Paul would win with all the controversies, we should accept that Bahati has done tremendously well to scoop the awards. Willy Paul has been exceptional too. Were it not for all this, he would have been among those who scooped something.
Bahati’s was lucky. Success came a distant further. And Willy Paul played a big role in ensuring he (Bahati) scooped four major awards on Saturday night.
