Battle for the cross

BY Stevens Muendo

The stage is set and the red carpet rolled out as celebrities savour every minute of this moment. But these are not ordinary stars. They are gospel singers attending the prestigious Groove Awards.

Gone are the days when you could tell the praise singers from their drab dressing and hairstyle — from once dreary outfits and boring haircuts—gospel acts have completely metamorphosed.

One cannot easily spot a gospel artiste from any secular act these days, as beats and lyrical flow are similar as well.

The trend has been catching on like a wild bushfire as mainstream churches try to stifle contemporary gospel music and the accompanying commercialisation.

The revolution, which was predicted by American contemporary gospel singer Kirk Franklin in his 1999 hit single Revolution is finally here. And local protagonists are now saying: "You ain’t seen nuthin’ yet."

The Kasangas

Ironically, some night rave joints now play more gospel music than some churches do in their Sunday services!

Today, new hits like Page za Bible by Juliani, which is laced with questionable lyrics like siku hizi nadara pages za bible by four no-no haikuwa hivo and Daddy Owen’s System ya Kapungala are considered the best gospel songs.

Basking in glory after scooping a record six accolades during the just concluded Groove Awards, Daddy Owen’s music reputation is on the apex. Owen is having the last laugh. His songs were initially received with mirth because of his Congolese coiled phrases in his self-styled Kapungala genre; now he is the King of Kapungala.

LONG WALK

According to Kevin Mulei, the founder of Groove Awards and CEO of Mo Sound Entertainment it has been a long time coming. "We have been working towards such a time like this when gospel music and artistes got their voice heard. It has taken years of strategising and with patience we are finally there. To God be the glory," he continues

"Personally, I have been encouraging gospel artistes to form a common front and present themselves as one unit, as opposed to individual ventures. That way, we will come out strong and help each others’ personal growth in the music career," Mulei remarks.

RIDING HIGH

Esther Wahome

"Gospel music has proved that it is worth the clamour it has garnered. The message is positive. It is no longer boring. Things can only get better," notes Mulei.

However, the question is how realistic Mulei’s dream will be and how long the unity among gospel artistes can last as new forces threaten attacks on new generation gospel music. It is no longer the opposing pastors. They say pride comes before a fall and as it now emerges, pride, money and fame are the new demons threatening to bring to end the gospel music windfall.

COLD WARS

Cold wars emerging among now rival gospel artistes, backstabbing and battles for concert are rocking the boat in the God’s camp and threatening to throw a new spin to the gospel music revolution.

Disgruntled artistes who lost during Groove Awards — for example — heaped the blame on the event organisers alluding that artistes who had been working with a particular group were favourites to win and eventually went on to win.

It is also emerging that some of those artistes can no longer share the same stage with others.

Cartels are being formed as different gospel recording stables line up their stars in a case similar to the current battles facing the secular artistes.

The K-Krew group is the envy of them all, having dominated the airwaves with their shows, which have won them massive following all over East Africa.

There is also the SK Blue led Sakata Media, Lampstand Records and Moja Entertainment which are recruiting and signing up artistes in the new scramble.

"It is not possible for the whole gospel music to work together as one. Events like Groove Awards can bring us together, but truth be told, besides praising and lifting the name of God high, we are using our individual talents to make a living. It is therefore inevitable that by the end of the day, every singer is pushing for individual success," says Ringtone of the Pamela fame.

"It is almost impossible to bunch all gospel artistes together. I must admit, time after time, guys differ on ideologies. I find nothing wrong with that. The problem is that now gospel artistes are washing their dirty linen in public. They fight in the media. It’s not a good picture when that happens," he adds.

"There is a slight drift. Gospel music can go so commercial that we would forget that our core calling is to glorify God with our talents" argues Bizzy B. Currently, there is a very thin line between gospel and secular music. We may not have crossed the line but we need a self check," he quips.

HUMAN NATURE

It is human — many would argue — to fall short of God’s glory. Gospel artistes have in the past been found wanting with numerous cases of pre marital pregnancy and adultery becoming common in youthful church. Others have fallen to the intoxicating power of alcohol and other worldly pleasures. The number of young artistes who confess religious faith and still frequent the nightclubs is on the rise, and so the church is an apparent stepping-stone for some artistes who seemingly take advantage of the numbers in the church to get to the top.

Artistes like Esther Wahome suffered a major backlashing after she signed a contract with giant alcohol brewers, East Africa Breweries, to endorse their Malta Guinness product last year. The move was seen to be controversial and downright blasphemous. But Esther fought back and she remains a gospel darling to many fans.

Besides all the side shows, the gospel revolution is here to stay and we can only pray that the new intrigues are nothing more but teething problems which will soon be overcome. After all, from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force (Matthew 11.12).