The Kansoul accuses Kenyan musicians of losing originality

What you need to know:

  • Initially, they started off as a large group but, unsurprisingly, many fell off the wagon because they were not fully committed--leaving the current members Mejja, Madraxx and KidKora

  • So far they have recorded about 30 songs but were coy on the name of the album and release date

Kenyan rap trio, The Kansoul, claim Kenyan artistes lack their own music identity, saying everyone wants to sing afrofusion.

During an interview on The Base, Mejja, one of the members, said that Kenyan songs lack originality and that they are influenced by artistes from other countries. “These days artistes and Djs have changed our sound. They are influenced by musicians from countries like Nigeria, South Africa and want to sing like Diamond,” he said.

At the same time, when commenting on their first song “Dabotap”, he said the group’s love of Instagram—an online photo-sharing service—inspired its release.

“We were seated in the house going through Instagram because we love it,” Mejja said, adding that “the photos were very exciting and we decide to do a song about it.”

Mejja added that they decide to record the song quickly before other artistes beat them to it.

Also present was KidKora who firmly stated that all the members have a role thus enabling them blend perfectly: “You find that Madraxx is the producer and I love making beats. This makes us work together very well.”

Initially, they started off as a large group but, unsurprisingly, many fell off the wagon because they were not fully committed--leaving the current members Mejja, Madraxx and KidKora. “When we started we were many but most dropped out since they were not hardworking. Some were saying they need to go home to be with their girlfriends,” Mejja pointed out.

So far they have recorded about 30 songs but were coy on the name of the album and release date.

Additionally, they pride themselves as the group that will resuscitate Kenya’s music identity and squeeze out songs with a “slow tempo which sound like poems”.