Hundreds sing, dance to protest music, warn leaders and voters

Juliani doing what he does best during the launch of book on protest songs in Nairobi. [PHOTOS: STANDARD]

BY GEORGE ORIDO

Kenyan youths are fed up with their leader’s empty promises and are calling upon them to change for the good of the country.

That was the message during  the launch of the book “Retracing Kenya’s Songs of Protest: Music as a Force for Change in Kenya 1963-2013”.  The book, a project sponsored by the Ford Foundation, is a compilation of protest songs by Kenyan musicians since independence. The launch, at Alliance Francaise in Nairobi on Friday night, was attended by hundreds of people.

Musician after  musician castigated voters for making wrong decisions only to start complaining about poor leadership.

“When you elected bad leaders, what did you expect?” benga artiste Eric Wainaina, popular for his evergreen hit “Nchi ya Kitu Kidogo” (Land of Bribes) posed.

Wainaina did not have to do much as the crowd sang along waving hands in the air in rhythmic motion.

And when Ohanglaman Makadem took to the stage in full military fatigue, it became clearer that the night was not for love poems, but for hard -hitting lyrics — songs to express the  frustration that Kenyans are experiencing in the prevailing tough economic times, aggravated by runaway corruption, inflation and famine in the north.

“Arise! Arise!” belted Makadem as he paced the stage leading his band in infantry formation. The crowd responded by standing and saluting, dancing to the reggae beats.

“I think our politicians need beatings…this is your calling, operation clean them up is your fight,” he sung in his title “Teachings”.

And Blinky Bill ventured into the murky waters of regional power relations when with Just a Band he sang “Migingo Express”.

“Migingo to en marwa kata uyie kata udagi. Ka ukawe gi thuon to unu yuag ang’e” (Mgingo belongs to us whether you like it or not. Should you seize it by force, you shall regret it one day), warned Blinky in a solemn and mournful tone.

The crowd seemed to agree and a young woman shouted loudly: “Yes. Migingo is ours!”

Buttressing the message of integrity, rising Afro-fusion music group Sarabi sent the fans wild with their metal rock style rendition of protest.

Sarabi, which means a mirage,  warned voters that theirs will remain a mirage if they do not make a conscious decision to live in integrity and love.

“Kuna jamaa anayependa watoto wa majirani, ana marifiki kuliko jamaa na anabidii hawezi kulala njaa,” he said urging people to believe in hard work and avoid shortcuts.

Fela Kuti

The toast of the day was arguably Juliani, the protest artiste.

As he sang “Utawala”, his performance could only be compared  to the likes of Nigerian legend Fela Kuti,  whose songs resonated with the disenfranchised and those who believed in real change.

He asked all those present to do something to make a change. “Let this generation not be blamed for doing something in the face of rampant inequality, deceit, indifference and oppression.” The message was clear; many Kenyans are disillusioned with the way public affairs are managed.

Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, who officially launched the book, said that space for expression in Kenya must be expanded. He lauded the team that compiled the book.

“When I presided over the last admission of lawyers at the bar, I invited Eric Wainaina and other musicians of conscience. We will continue engaging with them,” he said.

He was flanked at the event by Maurice Oloo, his successor at Ford Foundation.

“There are two types of musicians — pro-establishment and pro-people.  Music is not always about love and music of conscience carried the day,” said Tabu Osusa, whose music production house Ketebul compiled the book, 16-track CD and a video version.