Author: Stanley Gazemba
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Lokassa Ya M’bongo, A Tribute
My generation came of age with ace Congolese rhythm guitarist Lokassa ya M’bongo, the man who taught us how to dance, seduce girls, have fun on moonlit December nights; how to wear silk and viscose shirts with the top-three buttons undone to show off our sprouting chest hairs, and how to bleach our faces with…
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King of Calypso Takes a Last Bow
He is widely known for his chart-busting album Calypso, the first album in the world to sell over 1 million copies in a year, which included the smash hit “Banana Boat Song”; but he wore the title ‘King of Calypso’ with reservations because he was no Calypso Monarch but a New Yorker of mixed Jamaican…
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From Kakamega High With Love
I don’t remember how it all started, but all I know is that by the second term in Form One, I was Kakamega High School’s high priest of romance. A word charmer. A paper contortionist of matters sensual. A lovesmith hammering out lines on an anvil. My task was simple. For a quarter of a…
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An Ode To The GoDown Arts Centre
The old GoDown Arts Centre on Dunga Road was a den. A lair. You walked in and were hit smack in the face with the powerful creative forces curling and uncoiling like a slow python on a river bank, with something twisting inside its belly. A creative mchuzi mix energy was coalescing in that crumbling…
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How To Calculate The Worth Of Your Vinyl
So, you have inherited a collection of old records as part of your inheritance from your parents or you want to buy some for your private collection, how do you know what those old records are worth on the market? There’s a place on the internet where collectors, ethnomusicologists, and crate diggers can calculate the…
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Wazee Wakumbuke: Them Mushrooms at 50
Them Mushrooms band are arguably Kenya’s most iconic band who have placed the country on the global scene thanks to their catchy slogan ‘Hakuna Matata’ that originates from their smash hit ‘Jambo Bwana’, a composition of the band founder and saxophonist Teddy Kalanda Harrison, better known as Mr Groove. In an industry where bands are…
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An 80s Christmas in the Village
One problem with adulting, is that we forget what Christmas really meant to our younger selves. I remember Christmas as that time of the year when the sun
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Trapped In Nairobi For Christmas
One of the holidays I will never forget is Christmas of 2015. It left me in a muddle and practically imprisoned in the city. I usually book a ticket around December 15, right after confirming with my employer when we would be breaking for the holidays. But in this particular year, I was convinced by…
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The Magic of Football: Peculiar Rituals From Around The World
Many rituals are performed around the game of football, and especially so around a major contest like the World Cup that recently concluded in Qatar. The juju practitioners are said to have had their hands full for the entire 28 days that the football showcase lasted. It applies to other popular events around the world…
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Remembering Harambee Stars’ Talismanic Jujuman
For a man who brought colour and pomp to matches featuring the national team Harambee Stars and his favourite club from western Kenya, AFC Leopards, it was unfortunate that he had to lose his life so crudely and cheaply; hacked to death by a machete-wielding gang outside his house like a common criminal. Isaac Juma…