Bengabelt: Tuongee Wakenya

Benga is Kenyan music par excellence, a unifying force in a country whose borders were arbitrarily drawn by the colonial power, enclosing millions of people from very different cultures and who speak about 70 different languages. This hybrid sound emerged in the 1960s from the Luo community in Western Kenya, but as an amalgamation of different styles already — from Afro Cuban Rumba from the Congo, and Western twist in the 1960s and funk later on — it remained a flexible and adaptable style that was taken up by communities around Kenya, and performed in several different languages: browsing Nairobi’s legendary record stores you can still find hundreds of Benga 45s in Luo, Kikuyu, Kamba, Kalenjin, Kisii, Luhya and other dialects. This album, produced by well known DJ and cultural activist Gregg Tendwa, is a celebration of benga’s Kenyanness, and invites young musicians from different communities to lend their own flavor to this idiosyncratic style. Dr Kakee’s “Mami” is a beautiful example of benga’s intricate guitar picking style, Michelle Ongaro’s “Umojination” incorporates Latin horns and a charanga like flute in true Afro Cuban style, and Msupa S goes for a more ‘90s pop benga on the irresistibly catchy “Hello Hello.” Tuongee Wakenya, which translates as “let’s talk, Kenyans,” is a joyous celebration of Kenya’s colorful diversity.