Tag: David Kingsley Opinion

Khaligraph Jones has no competitor in Kenya

Posted on by David Kingsley

As I was watching Khaligraph Jones’ new banger Leave Me Alone, I kept thinking how he’s way ahead of his peers and how long it will take them to catch up.

Also read: Khaligraph’s performance fee has shot to 1 million bob per show and it’s totally okay

In my opinion, the rapper whose real name is Brian Ouko Omollo is playing in the big leagues. His rivals are continental stars, the likes of AKA, Nasty C, M.I Abaga, Sarkodie, Ice Prince, Phyno etc.

Khaligraph has reached a point where his music is consumed by people across Africa and not just Kenya, a quick peek at the comments section of his music videos on YouTube will confirm this.

Khaligraph Jones
Khaligraph Jones

I find this interesting is because apart from Sauti Sol, the Superman hit maker is the only other Kenyan act who’s getting a lot of continental attention. The keyword is a lot.

In a way, this is a win for the country as a whole since it makes outsiders curious about the kind of music that is coming from Kenya.

Chances are, they’ll find other great musicians after listening to Khaligraph and perhaps they will enjoy their music even more.

Despite the fact that Khaligraph is doing well and making music that is consumable across Africa, I still feel that he needs a strong competitor in Kenya.

Khaligraph Jones
Khaligraph Jones

You see, as it is now Khaligraph is the pacesetter for the local rap scene, people are always curious to find out what he’s up to so that they can ‘copy’.

Because he’s ahead of the pack, this means that he doesn’t have someone to keep him on his toes. He can decide to slack because at the end of the day, he’s still the best of the best.

However, if he had someone to keep him in check i.e. a strong competitor, he would push himself harder and maybe, just maybe he’ll finally bring the BET Award for Best International Act: Africa home.

Watch his latest release dubbed Leave Me Alone below.

Men who listen to Bongo music, have we lost our masculinity?

Posted on by David Kingsley

Tanzanian music is big in Kenya. This is a fact of life and from the look of things, this will be the case for a long time to come. It’s just what it is.

If you are keen enough, you’ll notice that the top trending songs on YouTube (Kenya) are usually Tanzanian songs. As we speak, Diamond’s latest single dubbed The One is occupying the number one spot.

Before that, Harmonize’s Kainama was trending at number one and before that it was probably another Wasafi song or a song the likes of Aslay, Shetta Juma Jux, Darassa or even Ali Kiba. The point is, the biggest song in Kenya on most occasions is always a Tanzanian song.

There’s no explanation for this other than the fact that musicians from that country are very consistent and then there’s the obvious fact that their music is good. From the videos, to the lyrics down to the beat, everything is always top-notch.

Naturally, if you are a music fan, whether male or female, you’ll find yourself vibing to these songs never mind the fact that they are Bongo songs. Let’s be honest, when a song is good, it’s good there are no two ways about it.

I was recently having a conversation with some friends and I thought I should ask them what their thoughts are on men who listen to Bongo music. My question was driven by the fact that Tanzanian jams are always trending in Kenya.

Some of them claimed they would never listen to such songs. If they did, they would come off as weak men. Others, however, admitted that they listen to Bongo music because the songs are infectious. Incase you were wondering, I fall in the latter category. I listen to Tanzanian songs once in a while. Yup!

Truth is, no music genre is a preserve of a certain gender. It’s just the way the society has shaped our thinking. From a young age, men are taught to be tough while ladies are seen as soft. Perhaps this explains why men are drawn to Hip Hop while ladies are drawn to Bongo music, R&B and what not.

This should not be the case. Men should not feel like they are losing their masculinity because they love Bongo music. It’s totally okay to enjoy music that you feel is good. There’s absolutely no shame in it.

Diamond Platnumz

Allow me to say this again, “No music genre is a preserve of a certain gender.” If you enjoy Bongo music, knock yourself out, it doesn’t make you any  less of a man. And no, I’m not telling you to listen to Tanzanian songs at the expense of Kenyan music.

What are your thoughts on this topic? Feel free to leave a comment below.

We want the old Mejja back and we are not joking

Posted on by David Kingsley

There was an interesting debate on social media this past weekend. Music fans want the old Mejja back and they are not mincing their words. The general feeling is that he has moved from being a great story teller to a trashy musician.

Mejja

I thought I should weigh into this debate because I share the same sentiments. A huge part of me also feels that Mejia has failed his fans with his latest releases. He keeps getting worse with every subsequent song.

You see, I used to be a huge fan of Mejja. The first time I listened to him was circa 2007. I was still a student. I was watching The Beat during a school holiday then Jana Kuliendaje was cued up. I really loved it as I’m sure most of you did.

In the song, Mejja narrates how he got drunk the previous night and the series of events that followed after that. His description is so vivid that you can literally feel like you were there with him.

He went on to release other great songs like Landlord, Niko Poa, Furahia Maisha where he tells great stories about different events. It wasn’t about what he was saying, it’s how he was narrating the events. I loved his music. Many referred to him as the greatest storyteller ever and I had no qualms with that.

Somewhere along the way I heard that he was teaming up with Kid Kora and Madtraxx to form The Kansoul. I thought it wasn’t such a bad idea since the other two members were also super-talented.

The Kansoul

The group went on release big hits such as Dabo Tapo, Kanayudu, Drum, No Woman No Party, just to name a few. Simply put, they were doing well.

I don’t know what happened, but somewhere along the way the group lost it. They moved from doing feel good or party songs to provocative music. Unfortunately, Mejja was also caught up in this. He moved from being a great storyteller to singing things like ‘geuka nikubeng’. 

Many fans, including yours truly, have been left wondering whether he made a mistake by joining The Kansoul. Truth is, Mejja was probably one of Kenya’s biggest musicians 10 or so years ago. This was when Calif Records was still the biggest record label in Kenya.

If Calif Records had stood the test of time, would Mejja have joined The Kansoul and would he still be the great storyteller that we all knew? Truth is, we’ll never know.

Whatever the case, we want the old Mejja back and we are not joking. This should serve as a wake up call to him to shape up or shape out.

Meanwhile, skip to Mejja’s part in the song below dubbed Inama and give us your thoughts.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yvFT0_ER32Q