Schools’ festival produces top Kenyan musicians

Nairobi; Kenya: Deep in Western Kenya, at the heart of a growing town, was one Roy Smith Mwita, a student at Kakamega High School which was known for its prowess in music and drama among other co-curricular activities.

While in Kakamega Primary School, Mwita had a burning desire to shine in music and theatre.

But the environment was awash with talent, and there was competition from his senior and experienced colleagues, thus getting a role in a school play, or in any theatrical production not easy.

Enter the hawk-eyed and ever green head of drama and music, Mr Oliver Minishi, who had better ideas for Metamorphisis, his new play.

He required someone who could rap in the production so as to bring out the character of the very urbane and modern teenager faced with an identity crisis.

Mwita could rap, and rap well, and he bagged the role.

His voice painted the true picture of the character. And the play progressed up to the finals of the Kenya National Schools and Colleges Drama Festivals and was performed at State House Nakuru, before the then president.

MUSICAL CAREER LAUNCHED

Little did Mwita realise that his musical career had just been launched.

“It was such a humbling but empowering experience to perform before the President,” says Mwita, who is the modern-day award-winning Rufftone.

He reckons that his experience on stage during the drama festivals gave him the necessary confidence and motivated him to be creative.

While Rufftone’s career was launched through the drama festivals that encompasses music too, many Kenyan musicians found their voices at the sister festival, Kenya National Schools and Colleges Music festival.

For years, the music festival has always been treated as just another school event; one of those things that many a parent do not think highly of, and would rarely encourage their children to be part of.

However, it has been a stepping stone, a stage for budding artistes to discover their prowess, and even how far they can go.

DIFFERENT TANGENT

Linet Masivo Munyali can testify. Her life would have taken a totally different tangent had she not taken music seriously when she was at State House Girls High School where she was admitted in 2004.

“Students were allowed to participate in co-curricular activities only if they were performing well in classwork,” says Munyali, whose stage name is Size 8.

She was the chair of both music and drama clubs and during a performance at the national festivals in 2005, one Mrs Simpson from Hillcrest School tapped her, together with two of her classmates who are in the media, for scholarships at the high end school which operates under the British system of education.