In January 2017, just a year after graduating from law school, Afro-pop singer, songwriter, and performer Charisma was pressured by his group, Le Band, to shoot the video for their first hit song, “Number 1.” However, Charisma (Fidel Eli Shammah), who wrote the song, was hesitant from the beginning. Having started making music in 2014 alongside his friends Ken Mwendwa (Man with the Bass), Joel Maina, and Abel Kiptanui while still in university, none of their previous songs had gained significant attention. The “Sina Noma” singer had become disillusioned.
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“The boys told me the video budget was Sh120,000, meaning each of us had to contribute Sh40,000. I said no. We had done several songs before, none of which had succeeded, so I didn’t understand why they thought ‘Number 1’ would be different. On top of that, the budget was five times higher than any video we’d ever done,” Charisma recalls.
There was another issue too. “We were all students. I was living with my parents, and to raise the money, I would have had to borrow from them, which was tough because we were already at odds over my decision to pursue music instead of law.”
Despite his reservations, his bandmates convinced him to go ahead. “Deep down, I still wasn’t on board. Our previous videos only garnered about 400 views on YouTube. Nonetheless, we filmed the video, but there was a lot of drama. We got short-changed by the producer, and the videographer was difficult to work with. It was chaotic.”
To their surprise, the video went viral upon release, skyrocketing them to fame. “That song changed my life. Suddenly, we were stars, getting interviews on TV and booking performances. Our first big paycheck was Sh100,000, which was a lot for us compared to the Sh5,000 we used to get.”
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As the song gained more airplay, Le Band’s popularity surged. “In 2017, I don’t think any other artist was booked more than Le Band. Back then, there were three major bands: Sauti Sol, H_art The Band, and us. But Sauti Sol and H_art were expensive, so people chose us if they had a smaller budget,” Charisma shares.
With their newfound fame, the group attracted a large female fan base. “That year, we made good money, but the problem was we were young, still in school, and earning decent cash. The hype around us, especially from women, was intense. We had a big song, and we were constantly on TV.”
So, what did they do with their new fame and money? “We wasted it on women. We’d get paid for club appearances, then spend the money buying bottles for random women and paying for their rides home. We did this repeatedly. Then, when it came time to shoot another video, we had no money left, so we’d have to do another gig just to fund the next video. We weren’t saving.”
Reflecting on those days, Charisma admits they lacked financial wisdom. “We were making a lot of money, but we didn’t know how to manage it. We were also caught up in the fast-paced life of fame and entertainment.”
