‘Banjuka’ Star Takes the Local Music Scene By Storm
Crooner Jua Cali may have dominated the local music scene this year in terms of presence, CV and release of songs. But as far as dominating the charts goes, one man takes the mantle - DNA.
Since late last year, the budding artiste’s song, Banjuka, has been sending music lovers yelling encores whenever it is played at discos. According to many DJs, it is Kenya’s club anthem of the year.
The song’s popularity has not only given the 25-year-old artiste an instant celebrity status, but also seen him rake in sizeable income on and off stage.
“I am very happy that the song has been very well received, and I used that opportunity to try and cash in on the craze,” he says.
“The song was used in a company advert and I still have shows across the region on a very regular basis,” says DNA who terms it “the biggest Kenyan song ever.”
But his biggest break came recently when the Party of National Unity (PNU) contracted him to be part of the campaign team to mobilise Kenyans to vote for President Kibaki for a second term in office.
The deal, whose value the singer DNA is not willing to reveal, is reported to be worth several millions. “… I am doing their campaigns with my song, and I am sure I will have as much impact as Gidi Gidi Maji Maji had in 2002 (with I’m Unbwoggable) because I don’t see another song that has the ability to mobilise the crowds like Banjuka,” adds DNA.
Before he landed the deal, the musician DNA was being sought by the Orange Democratic Movement to use him on their campaign trail, but he is said to have turned them down. “It is true they wanted me to help in the campaigns, but the reason I’m not doing their campaigns is because I could not be reached in time and they settled on someone else. But the claim that we disagreed on the money is not entirely true,” he adds.
He says he has remixed the song to include lines that praise President Kibaki and his party and others to mobilise the people to vote for them.
And how does he respond to the claim that he is a one-hit wonder? “I am not a one-hit wonder, I have several songs where Banjuka came from, and they are equally good,” he says. “The reason I have withheld them is because I don’t want to kill my debut track while it is still experiencing a good run with fans. So expect nothing else from me until the end of the year when I will still be on course to dominate 2008.”
He asks his detractors to find something better to do, arguing that their expectation that he will fade off once Banjuka loses taste will come to nought.
Music to DNA is not a pastime or something for material gain, but something he has a passion for. “I have always wanted to be a rapper, and when I did Banjuka, I knew it would be big, but not to the point it has reached where it is the biggest Kenyan song ever and loved by two and 102-year-olds,” he says. “The song was not a lucky break; before I release a song I have to look at its potential.”
But his second single, Eih, has failed to impress, and not many people know about it, something DNA attributes to its predecessor.
The self-proclaimed future rap superstar was born Dennis Kaggia and says his stage name DNA stands for “dreams ‘n ambitions”, which is what he is all about. He says he is thankful part of the dream is already coming true.
Before he took up music as a career, DNA was a student at Nazareth University, pursuing a course in computer science, which he deferred when the song became a hit. “I wanted to concentrate on my music because I knew that it was my turn to do music and I will get back to my studies soon,” he reveals.
What exactly is Banjuka all about?
“Banjuka is actually a Kiswahili word meaning dance, only that we don’t get to use it that often,” DNA says.
“I got it from a friend who was describing a party he had attended and how ‘watu walikuwa wanabanjuka’ and I loved it, and the words started coming to me, and I ended up with a song.”
The artiste who has a slight braggadocio character that can be rivalled only by American superstar Kanye West and who says he will be a billionaire by the time he is 34, points out that his song became a hit when he decided to release the songs in the “streets” rather than through the FM radio stations. He adds that although it was a big gamble, it worked.
“I released the songs to clubs, matatus and restaurants, and it just grew slowly by slowly and it was the media houses that came looking for me to give them the song, and it was a risk worth taking,” he recalls.
After sometime, he got people from as far afield as Rwanda calling him to ask for the song and also to congratulate him for a job well done.
The music star who is also a producer, seems to have the Midas touch even away from a microphone.
“I have recorded songs like Haters by Kantai and Jahmani, Bado by Kidd and Jahmani, Promise by Mellow Dee, Can I Be by Jahmani and STL and Eiyah by budding artiste Yung Nikk.”
The songs have done very well on the local scene. But the best to date is one he produced and was performed for the President last year.
“I recorded a song for an artiste called V6 and his song won during the Najivunia Kuwa Mkenya music competition during the Jamhuri Day celebrations last year. V6 was told to perform for the head of state and he clearly enjoyed the song. It was unbelievable and I don’t think I will ever get such a feel again.”
DNA would love to work with artistes like Harry Kimani and Abass, Nikki, Roba of Kalamashaka and Jua Cali.
“My role models include my dad, Jay Z, Scott Storch, Timberland, Mike Rabar and Esther Wahome,” he says.
“If you look at them, they are people who have made it in their careers and they are enjoying their talent, and they are into the business side of the show.”
He is happy with the turn the Kenyan music industry has taken lately, and says there is a lot of hope for local artistes and the industry as a whole because Kenyans love them.
[Via The Nation]
