He came, he saw and he conquered, emerging among the most sought after musicians of his generation. And there is no stopping Otile who at 28, is determined to succeed where his peers have not.
Being in the industry for over a decade, Otile joined the game fresh from high school. Since, his chartbusters have won him acclaim locally and internationally, earning him a huge fan base attracted by his Kiswahili hits.
Otile, whose middle name could as well be ambition, recently completed a project with Bongo award-winning artiste, Harmonize.
The latter set a new world YouTube record with his song Mbona, which realised 1.3 million viewers in less than two minutes.
“I thank God for giving me the opportunity to work with Harmonize, one of East Africa’s best music artistes," says Otile.
Born from a humble family in Nyanza, but raised in Mombasa, Otile did menial jobs including selling sacks and soaps and hawking second-hand Maasai shoes from door to door in order to raise money for his heart's desire, music.
Although he admits it was not easy, his efforts bore fruit when he made some money and travelled to Nairobi. Here, he continued getting more supplies of shoes from his friend, in Mombasa, and with time he was good to go.
Through music, clinging to hope with eyes set on better days ahead, he was able to make a few recordings, and this marked the beginning of his music career.
His music resonated well with his fans, therefore, boosting his career. Inspired by rapper Khaligraph Jones, who he describes as "Africa’s finest", Otile promises he is the ‘bad man’ the industry never had.
Despite their considerable potential, most local musicians, according to Otile, lack knowledge on how to use social media to promote and market themselves, an ability that Tanzanian artistes have perfected to great advantage. He anticipates a digitally-altered Kenyan music industry.
Although his critics say his musical journey has been on a downward trajectory, Otile rubbishes the rumours. “My fans should expect bigger, and better things sooner other than later,” he says.
Bound by love
Otile has also been described as a playboy for his love affairs with some of Kenya's hottest female celebrities, something he denies, terming it a ploy to finish him through bad press.
Endowed with good looks and a mellow voice, he has brought many female celebrities his way, among them popular socialite Vera Sidika with whom he hit headlines in 2020, only to part ways after a fleeting romance in what people alleged was dumping by the socialite queen.
Otile agrees that to some extent the socialite boosted his music career, but insists he was in the limelight long before meeting her.
“I remain grateful to her for pushing me a notch higher in my career,” he says, adding that efforts by his critics to use his relationship with Vera to destroy him were futile.
Despite the endless drama and talk revolving around his love life, it appears there was no stopping Otile who has since developed a thick skin.
Although his relationship with his Ethiopian girlfriend, Nabayet hit a snag, Otile says he has been busy concentrating on his music career, which he describes as his first priority.
Otile has also been rumoured to date fellow musician Sanaipei Tande. Even as news of their private wedding in 2018, spread like wildfire on social media, Otile said the wedding was a way to promote a collabo they were working on at the time. He is also remembered for penning a sweet love message to her in 2020, as she turned 35.
