Jabulani News Archive

M'BILIA BEL INJURED IN ROAD ACCIDENT

September 10, 2025 - 02:32 AM Congolese songbird Mbilia Bel, born Marie Claire Mboyo, was involved in a road accident early in the morning of September 9, 2025, on her way to N’djili International Airport, alongside her promoter, Jules Nsana. Both sustained injuries and were rushed to a hospital in Kinshasa for treatment. Their conditions were later described as stable, with Mbilia suffering injuries to her head and legs. A family member was quoted as saying, “Mbilia was unharmed, but hospitalized for precautionary medical observation.” Nsana also sustained injuries and is being treated at an undisclosed hospital in ...

CHRISTOPHER MONYONCHO: THE GUSII TOWERING MUSICAL ICON

August 23, 2025 - 12:00 PM Just Who Was Christopher Monyoncho? This is the question many commentators online kept asking after a short Tiktok clip by Kamba guitar sensation Tumbo Usu went viral. In the clip, Tumbo displays impressive finger dexterity on the fretboard, showcasing his guitar expertise by performing an old Benga song titled Safari ya Kericho, originally sung by Kijana Musyoki and his Kimangu Boys Band. The song, which was a regular feature on KBC radio in the 1990s, seemed to evoke fond memories for many. The viral clip rekindled nostalgia and curiosity, particularly around the song’s subject matter. It was done as a tribute by the Kamba Benga supremo in recognition of his Kisii counterparts, a......

ANOTHER BENGA SUPERSTAR FROM THE MOUNTAIN

July 21, 2025 - 08:40 PM While Franco served a six-month jail term in Makala Prison in Kinshasa for composing two songs, "Jackie" and "Heleni," considered explicit and lurid, an almost similar occurrence was happening simultaneously in Nairobi. Musician Daniel Kamau Mwai, popularly known as DK, was facing charges in court for composing two songs, "Nana" and "Mwithua," both of whose lyrics had been censored as graphic. Luckily for DK, he was never convicted and was instead acquitted of the charges. He had been in the music scene for almost a decade and was already a household name, having created a band that went on to record some of the most popular songs of the era. In a classic case of adopting, repackaging,......

JANE THE BENGA QUEEN

July 01, 2025 - 06:10 PM Very few women have dared to challenge the male dominance of Central Kenya's vibrant music industry and achieve the level of success that Queen Jane did. Many others who take up the challenge rarely rise beyond the roles of dancers and backup vocalists, as the terrain is treacherous for women and seemingly structured to favor men. Performing in clubs all night, being away from family, and battling the stigma that often portrays musicians as vagabonds are just some of the challenges that have bogged down many aspiring female musicians. But Queen Jane defied the odds. She not only navigated these hurdles but also rose to the apex as one of the region's and the country's top musicians. Her......

SUNSET COMES FOR JOSEPH JUST OF LES WANYIKA

June 22, 2025 - 03:00 PM "Joseph Just was not just a percussionist with the Wanyika bands but a great vocalist as well," reminisces Abbu Omar, his former colleague at Simba Wanyika and Les Wanyika, while mourning the Tanzanian musician who made a name in Kenya, featuring for several bands over several decades. Joseph Just, also known as Muzungu due to his light skin complexion, died on June 20, 2025, at the KCMC Hospital in Himo Town, Moshi Municipality, Tanzania, after battling a heart ailment for a couple of years, according to his wife, a Kenyan from Kakamega. He had since retired from music. He left Kenya to settle in his hometown during the COVID-19 period and operated an M-PESA shop there. Joseph Just was......

MUSAIMO’S METEORIC RISE UP THE TOP

June 19, 2025 - 04:42 PM Had his father made good on his attempt to chop off his fingers, Kenyan music wouldn't have been graced by the magical guitar works of Musaimo. He had campaigned for the late John Michuki for the Kangema Parliamentary seat in the 1979 elections and was paid 5,000 shillings, quite a tidy sum at that time. This was the money he used to pay for his secondary education. However, upon completing school, no job was forthcoming, and he had to eke out a living performing menial jobs, commonly known as "mjengo," at construction sites, often accompanying his father, who was a mason. It was from his wages that he saved and bought his first guitar for 40 shillings. In the evenings, he sat under a......

Prof. NGUGI WA THIONG'O, KENYA'S LITERARY SUPREMO HAS RESTED

May 29, 2025 - 12:30 PM Prof. Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s pen has dried up and will write no more. The literary icon died on Wednesday in the USA, where he lived and worked for five decades. His death was announced by his daughter, Wanjiku wa Ngũgĩ, in a Facebook post. “It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of our father Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o,” the post read in part. According to the post, the renowned author, described by others as the Chinua Achebe of East Africa, died on the morning of Wednesday, the 28th. Immediately, social media platforms were awash with messages of condolence pouring in from every corner of the country, in a pattern that left no doubt Ngũgĩ was revered in......

TRACING LABAN OCHUKA'S FOOTPRINTS IN MUSIC

April 05, 2025 - 01:20 PM "Snakes give birth to long things." This saying helps explain why Dan Ochuka, son of Laban Ochuka, a superstar from the Maroon Commandos, is an accomplished musician, as were both of his parents.His mother, Agnes, was a professional mourner, a role that involved a great deal of music, while his father was a dancer of the traditional Abanyole dance known as Esirembe.Ochuka, one of Kenya’s finest musical sons, began his music career in the early 1970s in Ebunangwe, Emuhaya, in what is now Vihiga County, where he was born and raised. His earliest involvement in what would become a blossoming career began as a box guitar specialist, performing at funerals and entertainment joints.This......

SIAMA’S MYSTICAL GUITAR THAT BRIDGED CONTINENTS

March 25, 2025 - 10:13 PM "Siama, I've missed you for 40 years. Now I can die happy because you've visited me." These were the words of Siama Matuzungidi's mother, Diambela, when the US-based musician visited her in 2010 after more than four decades abroad without setting foot at home. Though based in Minneapolis, USA, since 1996, it was in Africa—specifically Nairobi—where Siama rose to prominence in the music scene, playing rhythm guitar and composing for several top bands in the 1970s and '80s. Born in Matadi, Bas-Congo, in the 1950s, Siama made it to the big stage in the mid-1970s, performing with Orchestra Cavacha, led by Dona Mobeti and Mopero Wa Maloba. It was with this group that he composed......

FATHER OF AFRO JAZZ

March 20, 2025 - 07:00 PM Africa isn’t just about war, poverty, famine, and humanitarian crises, as often depicted by the international media. Africa is also a story of a people bound by kinship, deeply in love with their culture, whose story is better narrated through art than documentaries, and whose resilience is self-evident in their history. Not many artists have had the opportunity to showcase the continent’s capabilities to a global audience. However, deep in western Cameroon, a woman of the Douala tribe gave birth to a child who would help rewrite the history of Africa. On December 12, 1933, Emmanuel N’Djoke Dibango, later known as Manu Dibango, was born. He grew up in his father’s......

Jabulani News Archive