A business journalist's take on Musa Juma

Guitarist's unique tunes nurturing a new Benga 

By WASHINGTON AKUMU
First published in the Sunday Nation's Lifestyle magazine on February 15, 2004.

The makuti structure, the ubiquitous roofing for pubs in Nairobi's populous Eastlands area, is home to Musa Juma's Orchestre Limpopo International.

An array of automobiles, compete for scarce space at the Blaze Club car park, where a medley of old Lingala tunes lures fans to the bar. 

Before disappointment sinks in, the main act is announced as the clock ticks towards 7pm.

A young man of medium build and dark hue takes to the stage and, as if woken from deep drowsiness, the dance-floor warms up into a forest of wiggly swinging bodies, hands flailing in the air and shouts of "More!" 

Musa Juma is his name, and his Orchestre Limpopo International is hot in Luo Benga. Their rare convergence of adeptness at the solo guitar and Juma's well-rounded and unique voice combine well into the sound of good music. 

Compositions like Maselina and Hera Mudho have not only catapulted Juma to fame but also assured him of being a clear front-runner in the race to succeed authentic lakeside stars like Okatch Biggy, Hajulas Nyapuji, Ochieng' Kabaselleh Wuod Ogolla and Collela Mazee. 

Late last year, they released two cassettes, which have sold more than 10,000 copies. Juma believes that were it not for the vigour of pirates and a police system that looks the other way, he could make a killing. 

But what makes him rise a head above the cacophony of humdrum resident singers in Eastlands pubs? Unlike Okatch Biggy, Juma's music is not plagued by the repetitive dengo and the bland regularness that Biggy's disciples like Dola Kabarry, Jerry Jalamo and Aluoch Jamaranda harp on. 

"Juma combines the adroit guitar-work of Collela, the sonorous, haunting quivered voice of Okatch Biggy and the creativity of Kabaselleh. Or at least, among the current crop of benga musicians he comes closest (to the maestros). Besides that, he is a mascot for the new brave urban benga beat. That is why he is special," says Seth Amwoyo, a fan who has followed the musician's development for a while. 

In Maselina, a Dholuo-English-Kiswahili love song apparently poking fun at the tendency by some men to flaunt wealth when courting a woman (what the composer jokingly refers to as corruption), these qualities are forcefully evident. 

There is a memorable falsetto as Juma delivers the chorus on this number. When he and his singing partner set out to sing the Rhumba-beat preamble, which has inventively been put in the middle of the song, they effect a diction rarely heard in this genre. 

A similar boldness is carried into Hera Mudho, whose opening sequence almost sounds like a cover version of Maselina before evolving into a tenor of its own that is difficult to listen to while seated. 

Such is the sheer genius and innovation of Juma's work. Maselina is also outstanding in its staccato multiple-string rhythm guitar, which almost reminds me of a Sunday church chorus. At variance with the burly Kabaselleh, Juma's adeptness on the solo guitar stands out. 

While Collela was the best exponent of the purist Benga, Juma's music combines various influences, strumming out a fresh cosmopolitan, urban drift that almost puts him in the same pigeon-hole as Samba Mapangala's Virunga and Aziz Abdi of the Afro fame. 

But Juma's fame goes beyond those familiar with his Dholuo language. In an attempt to widen his reach, some of his latest songs like Ufisadi, Starehe and Sheri, which have received significant air-play on KBC, Citizen and Ramogi FM radio stations, are in Kiswahili. 

Juma's creativity and tendency to strain the norms of Benga challenges the typical initial singing part, the single-string rhythm guitar rendition and the guitars-only dance-floor climax practised especially by Collela. 

Some of Juma's other memorable numbers include Saida, Fiance, Aggrey, Oyoo Daktari and Siaya Kababa. 

The shy composer, who is in his early 30s and single, calls his music Benga Internationale, a seemingly dexterous marriage of lakeside music and Congolese Rhumba. 

Juma actually says Franco Luambo Makiadi and Ochieng' Kabaselleh are the two luminaries who have had the greatest influence on his music. Others are Zaiko Langa Langa and the Wenge clan. 

He explains his prowess on the solo guitar – which he strums while singing – as the product of patient and continuous training. 

"I learnt from Kabaselleh that one needed to be in charge of their music. Inability to play instruments could result in session musicians holding one at ransom, sometimes with disastrous consequences, especially if one does not have a standing band," he says as he prepares for a performance at Deep West in Nairobi West, where he plays on Thursdays and Sundays. 

Juma, who sings about love, fate, personalities and "human tragedies", was a founder member of Limpopo International in 1990. Its predecessor, Orch Solar Africa, which used to perform in Dandora Estate, folded that year. 

Born in Alego, Siaya District, Juma's singing would blossom and mature at Homa Bay High School, where he was a student. 

The other founder members of Limpopo are his younger brother Tony Omondi (also a musician, vocalist and fellow composer) and Ken Watenya, who also boasts of several original compositions to his name. 

Other members of the group include Prof Abayo (vocals and chants - atalaku) and Sammy (vocals). A number of other musicians are hired on demand. 

As Musa brings down the curtain on a live performance, one gets the feeling that perhaps with better marketing and a chance on a bigger stage, a new name can be placed in international music.