With devolution, Counties must develop own music identities

With all the talk on devolution there has been no mention of music, yet it defines a people and has potential to lift societies economically.
 

Indeed, this aspect is well stated in many countries and even in the US, states strife to create and profile their uniqueness in music as a part of their branding.
 

Notably, more regions around the world are tapping into the vast music heritage and repackaging it as an economic commodity for global consumption.
 

In Mali, the griot culture has evolved into a global resource. This is best seen in the Grammy award winning artistes, Salief Keita and Ali Farka Toure, who created good linkages with renowned jazz producers to create a new flavour unique to their country.
 

Collectively, the two have pioneered a flavour of jazz that has universal appeal without losing their own identity and created unique brands for their country.
 

The concept of regionalised music branding is also noted in South Africa where genres of music native to the different regions have created varieties that bear the trademark of their respective homelands but are South African and international in appeal.
 

On paper, Kenya has the ingredients for a vibrant broad based music menu that can be packaged with modern production thinking to create a multi-genre catalogue that can effectively brand their regions of origin and add value to the country in general.
 

But there has been lack of strategic thinking in Government, but devolution ought to serve as a wake up call in this creative resource.
 

Ideally, the examples of Mali and South Africa should guide activity to provide initiatives that would lead to development of different music identities from the different regions.
 

There is certainly some work to be done and the arrival of a new generation of artistes to supply a new attitude able to harness the domestic sounds to brand regions as well as provide a product for global market.
 

For sure, promoting a regional identity is paramount but should also take into account the concept of the country and the universality of modern music communities by creating themes with crossover appeal at cultural and generation level.
 

In a sense, this would not be entirely new and this concept worked well in the 1960s where the folk style and the crossover mould co-existed to create different flavours of the same music.
On one hand the dual approach served the traditional benga of the late D.O Misiani while the crossover urban creativity inspired the genre by George Ojijo with songs like Keep Change and Gabriel Omolo with Lunchtime that were Pan African hits.
 

In Western Kenya, the music of George Mukabi was a due compliment to David Amunga's more urban approach while the central Kenya music of Joseph Kamaru retained the folklore as Daniel Kamau trended on the crossover concept.
 

The interesting aspect was that the producers were from cultural backgrounds different from the artistes and this injected an external flavour that injected value and broadened the appeal.
 

Currently, the common practice has created conclaves where artistes are only working with producers from their ethnic or social background which has tended to stereotype their music. Ultimately the potential to reach out to the 40 million out there has been impeded in effect creating serious constrains for growth even within our own national borders.
 

In reality, no single region is entirely exclusive to a single ethnic community hence need to expand the thinking in order to cultivate a broad based music market.