From a brush with death to stardom, Mali Safi hit maker's bumpy ride

Artist Millicent Jeprotich Kipkorir from Elgeyo Marakwet County in Eldoret Uasin Gishu County. [Peter Ochieng, Standard] An infectious smile and simple haircut, capped with a dark beautiful complexion, have become Mali Safi hitmaker Millicent Jerotich's trademark. By now, Jerotich is not an unfamiliar figure in the music scene. Her latest song Mali Safi Chito (The Man is handsome), which was recorded on October 30 this year, has crossed the three million viewers mark on YouTube, making her the first artiste singing in the Kalenjin dialect to achieve such a feat. The song has bestridden the music scene like a colossus, in the last one and half months. Her signature air kisses and laughter have endeared her to event organisers in recent weeks. TikTok has been awash with the Mali Safi tune, a song Jerotich says is meant to share love while celebrating human beauty and achievements. Before Mali Safi Chito hit propelled Jerotich to stardom, the artiste had struggled with many songs that became one-hit wonders Save for Mali Safi Chito, none of her songs, among them Konech Kalya (Give Us Peace), Berur (Blessings) and Tororot (God) crossed the one million views mark in a month. "My journey has not been easy. Don't be mistaken by my smile and easy-going nature," she says as she welcomes The Standard for an interview in Eldoret. From being born and raised in a humble background in Koibarak, Elgeyo Marakwet County to churning out that never changed her fortunes, to working as a volunteer for months, and surviving a near-tragic road crash, Jerotich believes Mali Safi Chito marks her breakthrough. The artiste says she composed Mali Safi Chito in January 2021 but lacked the money to record it. A road accident that almost claimed her life, three months after composing Mali Chito brought many of her music plans to a halt as she recovered. She recovered for a year following the road accident. "It became difficult for me to get money to record Mali Safi Chito following the accident and financial setbacks," Jerotich says. She reveals: "I attended a funeral in Elgeyo Marakwet in October. During the funeral, I met someone I had assisted with the Master Ceremony role during the wedding ceremony of his elderly parents who were aged 88 and 85, three years ago. I offered the MC services for free. "The couple's son gave me Sh2,000. I looked for an additional Sh500 to record Mali Safi Chito. I went to the burial with a Sh91 Fuliza loan (an overdraft mobile credit facility). It turned out to be the day that a song conceived in 2021 was born." Nearly three weeks after it was recorded, the song hit 1.5 million viewers on YouTube. Jerotich was quick to indicate that the song had propelled her to celebrity status but was yet to turn around her fortunes. She says she used the initial earnings from Mali Safi Chito to upgrade her father Joseph Chebet Yator's wardrobe. The hitmaker says her father encouraged her to pursue her career after her mother Salina Jepkemoi Chepkiyeng passed on. She says her mother died while she and her siblings were young. "I made sure my father was well-dressed. He gave me blessings. My mother died a long time ago, and I dedicate everything I do, and achievements to her," she says. Jerotich is quick to note that detested individuals and event organisers who disrespect artists and their work. She says she would always call such individuals out. "I worked without pay at a government entity in Iten for three months from 2018 to 2019. Life was tough. I could not provide basic needs for myself," she says. She composed her first song titled Asante Wageni (Thank You Visitors) while in standard four at Matira Primary School in Marakwet West in the mid-1990s. Asante Wageni, she says, was sung during school functions such as fundraising and on occasions when visitors toured the institution. "After composing and performing Asante Wageni during school events, I was rewarded with gifts such as cups," Jerotich says. In April 2021, the artiste and four others cheated death in a near-tragic road accident along Chesoi-Maron road in Elgeyo Marakwet County. A Toyota Probox they were travelling in rolled several times down a steep slope in Karemit near Tuturung Trading Centre after the driver lost control of the vehicle on a sharp bend. The car veered off the meandering road and rolled about 40 metres before landing in a gulley. She could not raise her medical bill of Sh115,000 and took the intervention of well-wishers for her to be discharged from a hospital in Kapsowar after The Standard highlighted her plight. The artiste suffered a tendon injury during the 2021 road crash. She released her first song Dan Kipruto in 2009, a love song she sang in her Marakwet dialect. Later, she shifted to gospel music and produced another trend Berur in 2018, which won the Rift Valley Gospel Talent Award (RIGTA) award that year.

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