ITS CALLED HIPHOP
The first time I heard Hip Hop music in Malawi was two decades ago. Very early in my teen years I should say. It was a late Wisdom Chitedze classic Tipewe. I took me a lot of time to understand the music, I just knew I liked the song. Also I did not really get the difference between dancehall and hip hop. So funny enough when Nyasa Guruz came on, I thought it was Hip Hop too, even Annie Matumbi. By this time Annie Matumbi and Vic Marley were the two top Hip Hop acts in Malawi.
Later on I discovered Dynamite, by then I had only heard the song over the radio and mostly in its final verse. It was his then popular hit “Anamwali khumi” that first caught my attention and for a long time I had mistakenly thought it was a circular song. Also the song had a catchy beat, I remember, most of the times I could just vibe to the beat and hum to it than sing along or rather rap along to the fast rap of dynamite. The interest in Malawi Hip Hop made me discover 50 cent. To this date I still don’t know the lyrics to in da club. Don’t laugh, then it is when I realized that the music industry in Hip Hop was called the game and there was an artist called the Game.
Until 2006, when the late Kenny Klips introduced the likes of the Basement and Biliwili, Then the game opened up. Then we started seeing people like Nospa G on television. And then Tay Grin came along with Ndabwera and everything changed. He took the whole thing to the next level and paved way for almost every other rapper that came after him. Tay grin made everyone believe that it was possible to do an international collabo or win and international award. He set the tone for most musical acts. He is a trendsetter, I think his cultural incarnation makes him stand out and easy to love. He is that guy who calculates his moves right. All along the Daredevils were present and doing better music that most. When we asked GD on their secret to survival in this game, he said it in one word authenticity. He said the Daredevils have a unique music style and sound. He said they rap about real experiences around them. GD says the duo has fans that love Daredevils for what they bring to the table creatively and not the gimmicks and stunts.
There are several other musicians who got different approaches to making a mark. Others go for the ghetto approach and others go for the church, end of the day, everyone has a different strategy. David Kalilani has a way to do it in his own way, he makes music that rebukes and does not mince words, and he actually mentions names of the people he is talking to. After his Real Elements days, he came back with exodus 1 and we all knew he is back. The likes of Slessor and Evanz Musik do not do a lot, they just come in deliver nice lines and a cool style and we love them like that. Or the likes of Seven O more who are just creative. End of the day everyone plays the game in his own way.
For a fact, the Hip hop brand in Malawi is heading for the right direction. There is a need however for s to keep learning from one another, to keep developing the art and supporting the art. There is a need for the younger generation to know what the culture is all about. We should not be listening to diss music that does not even make sense. Hip hop is only second to the famous gospel Music of the Thoko Katimba type and nothing is beyond this. Once the acts decide to be more original and authentic like GD said, we will be ok. There should be a way of penetrating the international market and earning money from the brands created. There are only less than one million Facebook users in Malawi, let us find a way to monetize the music out of social media or get integrated into the international market like Namadingo did. The name is Hip hop and it is a top brand.