STL aka STELLA MWANGI!!!!

OK SHE IS CURRENTLY MY FAVOURITE GIRL RAPPER FROM KENYA (SHE IS BASED IN NORWAY)....I LOVE HER SOOOO MUCH!!!!!!!!
BUT EMOTIONS ASIDE, SHE IS ONE TOTALY GREAT ARTIST, HARDWORKING, DETERMINED AND ON THE GO!!!

BORN 1ST SEPTEMBER IN 1986, STELLA MWANGI LOVED MUSIC SINCE A SMALL AGE, AND HER INTEREST MAINLY RESULTED FROM THE DISCRIMINATION HER AND HER FAMILY WERE SUBJECTED TO WHEN THEY MOVED TO NORWAY WHEN SHE WAS JUST 5YRS OLD....ALSO HER ELDER SIBLINGS LOVED LISTENING TO RAP MUSIC AND THIS PARTLY INSPIRED HER.

SHE STARTED PERFORMING PUBLICLY AT THE AGE OF 11 WHEN SHE JOINED A GROUP CALLED "THE RISE" AND THEY EVEN HAD AN ALBUM RECORDED WITH THE GROUP CALLED "MAROON". IN 1998 THEY PERFORMED FOR NELSON MANDELA WHILE HE WAS IN NORWAY FOR AN AIDS CAMPAIGN.

HOWEVER HER MAJOR BREAK CAME IN 2005 WHEN SHE WORKED WITH A SENEGALESE HIPHOP GROUP CALLED WAGABLE IN THEIR DEBUT ALBUM.

BUT DESPITE MOVING OUT TO NORWAY SHE HAS KEPT IT REAL TO HER ROOTS AND HER MORTHERLAND, KENYA....HER MUSIC IS EITHER DONE FOR OR IS REPRESENTATIVE OF KENYA, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME REPPING FOR ALL GIRLS OUT THERE AND KEEPING IT FRESH!!
"FRESH TO DEATH WITH A CAP TAGGED STL"

IN 2008 SHE RELEASED HER FIRST SINGLE "TAKING IT BACK" WHICH WAS RECEIVED VERY WELL IN BOTH KENYA AND SCANDNAVIA...IT HIT EAST AFRICAN CHARTS NO 1 FOR 4WEEKS RUNNING!!


HER SECOND SINGLE "DREAMER" BLEW UP EVEN FURTHER AND WAS ON THE EAST AFRICAN CHARTS FOR 5WEEKS!!! ITS MY PERSONAL FAVOURITE AND I CANT EVER GET ENOUGH OF THIS SONG..I THINK ITS LIKE MY MINI ANTHEM.
(THIS VIDEO REMINDS ME OF LUPE'S - SUPERSTAR, dont you think???) AWESOME ALL THE SAME!!!

ALL THIS SONGS WERE FROM HER DEBUT ALBUM "LIVING FOR MUSIC" AND JUST THIS YEAR SHE REALESED ANOTHER SONG FROM THE ALBUM "SHE GOT IT/ KOOL GIRLS" THIS SONGS BROKE ALL THE RECORDS AND NOT ONLY WAS IT A HIT ALL OVER EAST AFRICAN AND YET AGAIN A NO.1 FOR NUMEROUS WEEKS IT WAS ALSO ONE OF THE MOST PLAYED SONGS ON MTV BASE AFRICA AND CHANNEL O...


ALL THIS HARDWORK IS SLOWLY PAYING OF AND SHE WAS EVEN NOMINATED FOR "THE BEST NEW ACT" AT MTV AFRICAN MUSIC AWARDS (OCTOBER 2009)....SHE ALSO PERFORMED ALONGSIDE D'BANJ AND WANDE COAL...

HER SONGS, "CRAZY", "FEELING LOVE" AND "SWING" HAVE BEEN USED IN VARIOUS AMERICAN SERIES AND MOVIES INCLUDING: SAVE THE LAST DANCE, AMERICAN PIE, REDLINE, CSI NY, LAS VEGAS, GHOST WHISPERERS, SCRUBS, AMERICAN TOP MODEL AND ARMY WIVES

SHE HAS CURTAIN RAISED FOR MANY ARTISTS INCLUDING TALIB KWELI, COMMON, ADJELIQUE KIDJO, BUSTA RHYMES, RICK ROSS, FLO-RIDA ETC

SHE CONTINUES RELEASING HIT AFTER HIT, HER LATEST BEEN "BIACARA NI BIACARA" MEANING BUSINESS IS BUSINESS IN HER NATIVE TRIBAL LANGUAGE IN KENYA "KIKUYU" SOMETHING EVEN THE ARTISTS WHO HAVE SPEND ALL THEIR LIFE IN KENYA CANT DO!


DESPITE EVERYTHING HAPPENING AROUND HER SO FAST, SHE IS THE MOST DOWN TO EARTH ARTIST I HAVE MET (I HAVE MET HER ON TWO OCCASSIONS) AND SHE IS ALWAYS KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH HER FANS ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER AND HER WEBSITE! SHE ALSO KEEPS IN TOUCH WITH ALL HAPPENING IN KENYA AND EVEN RELEASED A SONG
DURING THE POST ELECTION VIOLENCE CRISIS IN KENYA
AND WAS ALSO PART OF SAVE THE MAU FOREST CAMPAIGN IN KENYA

SHE HOPES TO BE SIGNED BY A MAJOR LABEL SOON, SOMETHING I BELIEVE SHE WILL ACHIEVE AND EVEN MORE...SHE ROCKS!!!

HERE'S ANOTHER OF HER SONGS WHICH SHE DID AS A REMIX FOR MC HAMMERS "MOVE IT" - ME LOVE IT!:

PROFFESER JAY!

ARGUABLY ONE OF THE HOTTEST MC'S WE HAVE IN EAST AFRICA...PROFESSER JAY BORN JOSEPH HAULE, STARTED RAPPING IN 1994 AS A MEMBER OF THE GROUP "HARD BLASTERS" WHICH WON "BEST HIPHOP GROUP TANZANIA" IN 1995.

BUT ITS NOT UNTIL 2001 WHEN HE DECIDED TO GO SOLO THAT HE BECAME DEFINED BY HIS MUSIC AND HIS TALENT SHONE THROUGH...

HIS FIRST ALBUM "MACHOZI, JASHO NA DAMU" (TEARS, SWEAT AND BLOOD)BROUGHT HIS LYRICAL GENIUS TO THE FRONT AND MADE PEOPLE ASK WHO IS THIS GUY? HIS LYRICAL PROWESS IN HIS SINGLE "NDIO MZEE" MEANING YES ELDER, AND TALKING ABOUT POLITICIANS AND THEIR VAGUE/FAKE PROMISES TO THEIR CONSTITUENTS MADE HIM A DARLING OF TANZANIA. THIS ALBUM AND SINGLE WON HIM BEST COMPOSER AND BEST SINGLE RESPECTIVELY IN THE TANZANIA MUSIC AWARDS.

BUT IT IS NOT UNTIL 2003 THAT HE BLEW EAST AFRICA (TANZANIA, UGANDA,KENYA,BURUNDI & RWANDA)HIPHOP SCENE INTO A STORM WITH HIS SECOND ALBUM "MAPINDUZI HALISI" (ABSOLUTE TAKE OVER)....THIS IS BECAUSE AT THIS TIME A PORTAL OF EAST AFRICAN MUSIC HAD BEEN CREATED IN THE FORM OF EAST AFRICA RADIO AND TV BOTH SIGNALS AIRING IN ALL EAST AFRICAN COUNTRIES...HIS FIRST SINGLE OFF THIS ALBUM "ZALI LA MENTALI" IN WHICH HE FEATURES JUMA NATURE STAYED IN THE EAST AFRICAN CHARTS FOR OVER TWO MONTH!!

ANOTHER HIT FROM THE ALBUM WAS "NIKUSAIDIAJE" (HOW DO I HELP YOU) WHICH FEATURED FEROOZ ...THIS SONG ALSO STAYED IN THE EAST AFRICAN CHARTS FOR OVER TWO MONTHS!!
THIS ALBUM WON HIM "BEST HIPHOP ALBUM TANZANIA" AT THE KILIMANJARO TANZANIA AWARDS, AND NIKUSAIDIAJE ALSO WON BEST SONG IN KILIMANJARO MUSIC AWARDS TZ, AND BEST TANZANIAN SONG IN KISIMA AWARDS, KENYA.
IN 2006 HE RELESEAD YET ANOTHER ALBUM CALLED "J.O.S.E.P.H" WHICH INCLUDED HITS SUCH AS "HAKUNA NOMA"


AND "JUKUMU LETU" (ITS OUR OBLIGATION) FEATURING MWANA FA
THIS ALBUM JUST LIKE THE REST, WON HIM MANY AWARDS INCLUDING THE AWARD FOR BEST MALE ARTIST IN THE PAM AWARDS, UGANDA!

IN 2007 HE YET AGAIN RELEASED ANOTHER ALBUM "ALUTA CONTINUA" AND THIS ALBUM JUST LIKE THE OTHERS WAS AN INSTANT HIT AND EVEN LED TO HIS NOMINATION FOR BEST HIPHOP ARTIST IN AFRICA AT THE MTV AFRICA MUSIC AWARDS (2008)...THIS ALBUM ALSO PRODUCED ANOTHER BIG HIT: "HAPO VIPI"



15YRS IN THE INDUSTRY, AND PROFESSER JAY IS STILL GOING STRONG..HIS MUSIC REMAINS RELEVANT AND HIS LYRICS STILL ON POINT! THERE IS NO LOOKING BACK FOR THIS GUY AND WE CAN ONLY HOPE FOR MORE HITS IN THE FUTURE.

HIS STYLE OF MUSIC/HIPHOP IS COMMONLY KNOWN IN TANZANIA AS BONGO FLAVA..AND IT SHOWS THE TANZANIAN LIFESTYLE...

K'NAAN

AS PART OF MY MUSICAL BLOGGING I HAVE DECIDED TO ADD ONE MORE ON HIPHOP IN AFRICA. THIS IS BECAUSE HIPHOP IN AFRICA IS QUITE BROAD AND I BELIEVE IT SHOULD HAVE ITS OWN SPOTLIGHT.THE FIRST ARTIST I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS K'NAAN. K'NAAN IS AT THE MOMENT BIG IN AMERICA AND EUROPE FOR HIS LATEST ALBUM CALLED TRABADOUR...THIS ALBUM HAS WON HIM MILLIONS OF FANS WORLDWIDE AND ACCOLADES FROM BIG NAMES IN THE HIPHOP INDUSTRY LIKE JAY-Z AND KANYE WEST....INFACT HE HAS EVEN TOURED WITH MAROON 5 AND LENNY KRAVITZ...

K'NAAN WAS BORN IN MOGADISHU, SOMALIA. HE LIVED THERE AT THE HEIGHT OF THE SOMALI CIVIL WAR WHEN THE THEN PRESIDENT MOHAMMED SIAD BARRE WAS OUSTED. FORTUNATELY HIS FATHER AT THE TIME, BEING AN INTELLECTUAL, HAD MOVED TO NEW YORK CITY, IN AMERICA AND WAS A TAXI DRIVER, SO WHEN THE WAR ESCALATED K'NAAN WAS AMONG THE LUCKY PEOPLE WHO GOT AN EXIT VISA FROM THE USA EMBASSY TOGETHER WITH HIS FAMILY.

AFTER LIVING IN NEW YORK CITY FOR A WHILE HIS FAMILY MOVED TO ONTARIO, CANADA.HERE HE STARTED LEARNING ENGLISH THROUGH HIPHOP ALBUMS AND TRYING TO IMITATE HOW THE MC'S SPIT. AND THUS HE BEGAN TO RAP...HE DROPPED OUT OF GRADE 10 TO GO AND SPIT IN OPEN MIC EVENTS...

HE EVENTUALLY GOT NOTICED AFTER HE RECITED A POEM BEFORE THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISIONS FOR REFUGEES IN 1999, AFTER BEEN HOOKED UP BY HIS FRIEND AND PRODUCER SOL GUY...HERE HE CAUGHT THE ATTENTION OF ACCLAIMED MUSICIAN FROM SENEGAL, YOUSSOU N'DOUR AND THEY DID A SONG TOGETHER FOR HIS ALBUM BUILDING BRIDGES AND EVEN TOURED WITH HIM IN EUROPE..DURING THE TOUR HE MET A PRODUCER FROM CANADA JARVIS CHURCH AND HE WAS THE ONE WHO PRODUCED HIS FIRST ALBUM, DUSTY FOOT PHILOSOPHER IN 2005..

DUSTY FOOT PHILOSOPHER WON CRITICAL ACCLAIM AND EVEN WON JUNO AWARDS FOR RAP RECORDING OF THE YEAR IN 2006. AMONG THE HITS IN THIS ALBUM WAS
SOOBAX WHICH MEANS COME OUT AND HE IS CALLING OUT ON HIS FELLOW SOMALIS TO COME OUT ( THE VIDEO WAS SHOT IN MY COUNTRY - KENYA):

IT ALSO INCLUDED "IF RAP GETS JELOUS" WHICH IN HIS NEW ALBUM TRABADOUR HE HAS REMIXED WITH METALLICA'S LEAD GUITARIST, KIRK HELMET: /



HE JUST RECENTL RELEASED HIS NEW ALBUM TRABADOUR WHICH HAS WON HAS WON HIM WORLDWIDE RECOGNITION AND EVEN LANDED HIM A DEAL WITH COCACOLA TO MAKE AN ANTHEM FOR THE WORLD CUP TO BE HELD IN SOUTH AFRICA NEXT YEAR (2010).

HITS FROM THIS ALBUM INCLUDE:
MY PERSONAL FAVOURITE AND THE SONG HE REMIXED TO BE THE WORLD CUP ANTHEM: WAVING FLAG...

AND TIA (THIS IS AFRICA!)IN WHICH I TOTALLY FEEL THE SPIRIT

AND ALSO, ABC'S:

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON K'NAAN AND HIS MUSIC, VISIT:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%27naan OR http://knaanmusic.ning.com/