TBT: Professor Jay (long post)

Most of you might by now have realized that I’m not Tanzania’s biggest fan. This is mostly as a result of their dilly dallying on matters concerning the EAC. I mean, they like to be coaxed into adopting everything. And they view Kenyans the same way we view West Africans. Like we’re drug dealing, women stealing, POS conmen. Don’t even get me started on their kiswahili sanifu/mufti/whatever. Friends, reading Kiswahili sanifu is a real pain in the ass, at least for me it is. That’s why I don’t go nowhere near Jamiiforums. Most threads start innocently in English, but by the time you reach the comments section, the language mutates into something else altogether. For me, reading Swahili sanifu is no different from reading this:
http://popsych.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/math.jpg
Same fucking difference, you know?
I’ve come to realize that whenever I come across Kiswahili sanifu, my body starts acting funny. I start experiencing chest pains, lightheadedness, shortness of breath and general discomfort. These sound eerily similar to symptoms exhibited by people who suffer cardiac arrest.
Anyway, let’s zoom in on their music industry. For all their shortcomings, these swahili sanifu speaking mother-lovers make better music than Kenyans, generally speaking. Let’s give the devil his due. When Kenyans are rapping about matako, kaselfie, chapa ilale and all that other retarded crap, these guys make songs that can be listened to by the entire family. And even when they decide to go the matako/kaselfie/chapa ilale route, they do it in a way that the entire family can still listen to the song, but understand it differently, depending on how old and/or perceptive one is. Case in point: Mama Ntilie by Gelly and Ray C. Btw, there was a time when the Bongo wave had swept this country so seriously that even kenyan artistes started adopting that funny Tz accent. Now Bongo is associated with housegirls and people who’ve just checked in from the countryside. Sure, we still have the Ali Kibas and Diamonds, but still…

Ok, to Professor Jay now (finally!!!). This is without a doubt one of TZ’s music heavyweights. I don’t know what he does nowadays, but back then, this nigga was on point like a mother. And he made music that addressed social issues, like the song Msinitenge, which addressed the issue of stigma suffered by HIV/AIDS victims. But there are three songs that he made that have fascinated me for a long time. They take a dig at politicians of course.
The first is Ndio Mzee, in which a political candidate addresses a rally. While asking for votes, he makes absolutely ridiculous promises. Some include:
Bringing them piped water and milk
Buying helicopters for every policeman
Giving every farmer a tractor
Sharing what little he has with the people etc
The youtube video is shit, qualitywise…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQwk0gjpSGU

The second song is titled Kikao Cha Dharura, or simply Sio Mzee. The politician, after getting elected, predictably puts his interests first. So he’s been summoned to an impromptu meeting to explain why he hasn’t implemented his campaign promises. Of course he gives all manner of excuses. But it’s when the people start questioning him on specific promises that his arrogance comes out.
When asked about the piped milk, he requests them to “please ask mature questions”
On the issue of helicopters for all policemen, he asks them to master bicycles first. Besides, with all those choppers in the sky, there’d be lots of air accidents.
Basically he asks everyone to carry their own cross.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjZUK_L4ZB8

In the final song, Nang’atuka, the politician is stepping down as a result of his conscience catching up with him. In the song it sounds like a “western style” resignation, where one resigns because they’ve been incompetent. We all know African politicians only “resign” after getting fired. Anyway, he profusely apologizes for his sins and repents. This to me is the most powerful of the three songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7Y7QifgtnQ

While asking for forgiveness, he lists all the things he did wrong:
Kura zikawa kula, nikaishi kwa milungula
Niliona bora uongozi, si uongozi bora
Kwenye wodi ya wazazi nilijua hali ni mbaya, ndio maana kimada (?) wangu alienda kutibiwa ulaya.
Sikupinga nchi yangu kuwa ya kitu kidogo, pia nilifurahi kuhalalisha hongo
Siku zote niliamini toa mali upate mali, na kubebesha maskini magunia ya misumari
.
.
.Needless to say, that’s some powerful shit right there.

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Huwes weka samarî!

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Great stuff, Prof Jay was one great artist, another one of my favourites from those sides is Lady Jaydee, she keeps dropping hit after hit, na si mambo za kisenge.

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Hapa ndugu, nakubaliyana nawe kabisa!

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Feroze alienda wapi? that dude could rap. There’s one he sung about HIV Kwaherini kwaherini kwaheriniiii damn nilikua naskia hio sonh dame akinicheki nayetemeka miguu

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@kyuktothecore I like your writing style, flows so well. Agree with you on jay.

TL;DR Kenyan music is crap,old school bongo was on point. Mamboch na watu wa muchatha kama @Wakanyama ndio wameachiwa save for Diamond and Kiba.

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Yeah, it’s amazing how Tz artists can drop albums effortlessly while with kenyan artists it’s not unheard of for a “major celeb” to release a single every 2 years. There’s a program (African Journal) that used to show on KTN. About a decade ago they did a feature on Lady Jaydee and showed her signing all these CDs (her latest album at the time). She revealed that she’d already sold 400,000 copies. That opened my eyes to how well these Tz artists were doing.

Thanks my nigga.

@aviator ndio hio summary

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This song should be a lesson to all men and i don`t understand why this boy is not bigger than he is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2JjUfoYkJo

Ama huyu jamaa…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7ZvscdeUSc

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It annoys me when an artiste like Redsan is continuously regarded as one of Kenya’s greatest, when he only releases a song per year. Others like Nameless have how many albums in their whole career? I guess only one

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i am asking for a ceasefire of 48 hours

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Gari la mentari by prof. Jay was a good hit too. Still listen.

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Bamboo,kaligraph and doobiz wako poa. Sungura and octo wako down sana.

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That’s one of the reasons I consider Esir a true legend. Nigga already had an album by the time of his death. Considering what an uphill task it was to release even one song back then, he must have had raw talent. If he’d been alive I think he’d be the undisputed king of Kenyan hiphop.

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Zali za mentali

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I like Mr Chocolate flavor aka Sharobaro his mannerisms and dance styles are similar to what I do :cool:

E-sir was fire to bask from far. His musical ingenuity was and still is unparalleled. A genius who died before his time. Damn road carnage

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Prof Jay raps in such smoothflowing SWA makes you sit down and appreciate, TZ enyewe wako on point na you’ve not even mentioned AY, MwanaFA, Marlow, Hussein Machozi

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Depends on how good his management team was. He certainly had the talent and, most importantly, work ethic, something most artistes don’t have

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…kupanda tumepanda wote…kupalilia tumepalilia wote…basi nashangaa mbona hatuvuni wote…whistling sheepshly