I use music as a tool for activism

SUZANNE GACHUKIA, 50, is a vetaran musician with many feathers to her hat. She spoke to SHIRLEY GENGA about the power of music and her latest music project to celebrate her work of the last 25 years

My work has and will always be music. Currently my work is studio business.

I produce artistes, make music, do videos and negotiate for those under my label.

I started my company Sub-Sahara Ltd after my divorce. Louis Otieno is a co-director.

My main goal is for musicians to be able to make a decent living out of music. I work with everyone from older established groups like Kayamba Africa to new young groups like Camp Mula.

SUZANNE GACHUKIA, a vetaran musician [Photo:Standard]

I like to advise younger artistes that being a success in the music business is not about being able to do a jam session but in having the ability to master your craft. It is not about having one hit but about longevity.

One needs to invest in their talent, whether it is vocal training or proper and grueling rehearsals. You have to be the best if you want to survive and that requires hard work and constant training. At my age I still find time to go for vocal training.

I am currently working on an album that will contain new renditions of songs that I have written in the last 25 years. I am working with Achieng Abura, Mumbi Kaigwa, Lizz Njoroge, Nyota Ndogo, Eric Wainaina, Ken Wamaria, Kavutha Mwanzia, Chris Adwar, Wyre, Harry Kimani, Abby, Innoface, Camp Mula, Peter Odera, Susan Gogosimo, Kayamba Africa, Helen Mtawali, Neema Ntalel and Ali B, just to name a few.

Traveling back in time

They will all be doing version of my songs which include: Tabasamu, Promise, Nipe nikupe, Crying is over, Pendo lako, Get your groove on, Do not ever give up, Smile and Tucheze.

The album will be called Zanna Allstars. When the project was first conceived, I approached different artistes in the industry and asked them if they were interested in working on the project and they all said yes. So for the last nine months they have been coming to my studio and doing the songs and the end result is magical.

When I listen to the songs it is like traveling back in time to when I wrote the songs but at the same time it is like moving into the future. It is great to hear how an artist can take a song, which I wrote back in the day and then breathe new life into it. I really want to finish it this January.

Whenever one does a retrospective album like this, it is about tracing where he/she came from and as Steve Jobbs put it, connecting the dots backwards. It is about situating oneself and finding a perspective of where one currently is vis a vis where he/she came from and where he/she is going. For me it is also a way of celebrating the Kenyan music industry, which has grown tremendously in the last 25 years.

I studied Music in the US and when I returned to Kenya in 1985, I got the opportunity to teach kindergarten and primary-level music classes. I also formed my own band — Muskily Speaking — which consisted of Joy Mboya, Susan Matiba-Mwamto and myself. We released such hits as Jamriambo, Nyumba, and Tweyanze, songs that drew from traditional repertoire and fused these influences with a modern pop feel.

Modern pop pioneers

I like to believe that we are the pioneers of modern pop music in Kenya. We fought the good fight and that is why so many young musicians today can do music and reap the benefits.

When we started our music careers, we first had to fight the bad image musicians had back then. It was believed that music was for those who had not performed well in school but we fought on and today people’s perceptions have changed. Music is now being seen as a respectable profession. I am glad though that my parents supported me.

We also had to overcome the distributing and marketing hurdles. When we were producing our first album we did not know that River Road was the backbone of the music industry; we were busy concentrating on sound quality and getting airplay.

But by the time I released my first Zanaziki album Nipe Nikupe in 1995, I was wiser. I established a distribution network through River Road, had sales people outside the supermarkets and we were even getting more airplay.

One high point in my career would have to be in 1989 when we received a three month scholarship from USAid to go the US to study the music industry under a programme called Training for Development. It was a great experience as we got to meet Tracy Chapman, Eddie Murphy and president of A&M Studios.

Another highlight was in 2002 when Zanaziki performed at the Festival Mundial in Holland. It was a defining moment for me.

Change tool

The Zanaziki album launch in 2008 at the Carnivore was another highlight. For me it was very much about showcasing everything I am musically and the musicians who completely understand my music — especially Michel Ongaro, Ulopa and Natasha Njee, who have been with the group over the years.

I do not see music as just a tool to entertain but as a tool to make change. We are using pop culture and infusing it into mainstream development agenda, such as anti-negative ethnicity and HIV education. I have done songs about domestic violence, the girl child, female genital mutilation, HIV and Aids, the plight of refugees and the environment. I believe passionately in the power of music. I love to take music and then use it as a tool for activism.

Last year Sub-Sahara produced the show, Road to Cohesion on a local television channel. Its goal was to highlight negative ethnicity, the effects on Kenyans and to be a tool for healing. We are all Kenyans no matter our tribes. Kenyans need to understand that tribalism is a creation of politicians to divide and conquer us.

People say that the tribal clashes of 2007 came as a surprise but I had seen it brewing in the background back after the referendum and that was why I came up with the One Love campaign in 2004.

We got permission from Rita Marley to use Bob Marley’s song, One Love, as the theme song. We got 16 artistes to the studio who did an interpretation of the chorus in their own style/language.