Entertainment
TOP 10 KENYAN COLLABO HITMAKERS
Want to give your music career a face lift and get fame and great streaming numbers while you’re at it? A collabo with these Kenyan artists will make all these dreams come true. They have massive hits, adoring fans, awards to their names and of course, talent to back it up.
Sauti Sol
Kenya’s hottest boy band was not going to this on this list. They have given us nothing but hits after hits and their recent Midnight Train virtual album launch left us in awe! With 5 solid albums and with their jam Melanin hitting over 20 million views on YouTube, they’re no doubt one of the best artists to collaborate with. Interestingly enough, Melanin was a collaboration with Nigerian musician, Patoranking. Oh, and let’s not forget Short and Sweet which had us sold and clinched over 18 million views, another collaboration with Nyashinski. You know where to place your bet.
Tanasha Donna
Tanasha’s career started in radio but she has quickly shown she’s packing more talents under her sleeve. After partnering up with Diamond Platnumz both romantically and musically, her song Gere shot up the charts in East Africa. The song has over 18 million views and her subsequent jams have been nothing shot of stellar, with some reaching 1 million views even without the help of any music collaborations. She has been consistent and has also drawn up considerable poking, thanks to her salacious dating life.
Khaligraph Jones
By collaborating with Khaligraph Jones, Tunji’s already popular “Mat za Ronga” hit epic levels of fan appreciation. This goes to show that Papa Jones is indeed one to consider when thinking of top collabos. He hit over 1 million views with his song My Casa Sucasa which was a collaboration with his then girlfriend Cashy. He also gave us Embesha and is currently topping the charts with Tuma Kitu which has over 1.5 million views. Yes, he’s the real O.G.
Masauti
Ali Said, well-known by his stage name Masauti is another hitmaker you want to have on your collabo list. Ipepete was one of the artist top hits, making to the top of Boomplay Music’s top jams of 2019. The jam was so good, so much that it got over 4 million views and is if that wasn’t enough, his collaboration with Khaligragh Jones for the song Kiboko Remix, put him yet again at the top hitting over 4.5 million views. Now, who wants that collabo?
Nadia Mukami
Nadia Mukami needs no introduction. Her rise in the music industry has been nothing short of meteoric, taking her a little over three years to get to where she is now. Nadia’s most popular song in which she collaborated with Arrow Bwoy, “Radio Love”, has over 4million views. With numbers like those, who wouldn’t want to work with her? She has gone on to collabo with the likes of Willy Paul and Moji Short Baba. Early this year, Nadia even got a BET Award nomination nod even though she didn’t qualify in the last round. However, this goes to show that she’s a force to be reckoned with in the Kenyan music game.
Otile Brown
In case you missed it, Otile Brown was crowned as the most watched Kenyan musician on YouTube. This ranking was by America’s Billboard Chart and the numbers were compiled May 2019 and May 2020, covering 11 African countries. In East Africa, the only other artists who beat him were Diamond Platnumz and Rayvanny. His album, Just in Love, raked a total of over 27 million views from his YouTube channel. Otile Brown has had his fair share of scandals and controversies but, as they say, it’s all part of the industry game. Chaguo La Moyo, in which he collaborated with Sanaipei Tande, is his song with the most views, garnering over 20 million views.
Mejja
Ever since he came onto to the scene with Kulijana Kuliendaje, Mejja has been a mainstay in the Kenyan music scene. His song with Femi One, Utawezana, has been one of the most viral songs of the year. Azzaiad popularised the song even more with her Tiktok challenge but it just proves Mejja’s prowess in producing hits especially when doing collaborations.
Nyashinski
His comeback has been one of the most impressive to watch. After Kleptomaniax split, Nyashinski went on an unexpected musical hiatus. But when he finally came back, he roared into the scene with jams such as Mungu Pekee, went on to earn the MTV-EMA Awards nomination and even collaborated with acts such as Mafikizolo on Coke Studio. He’s picky on whom he chooses to work with but we can’t deny he’s been making the right musical choices. Bebi Bebi got over 2 million views and his collabo with Sauti Sol on Short and Sweet proved to be one of the biggest hits of 2018.
Chris Kaiga
When Chris Kaiga released Zimenice, his star was already shining bright. However, this song cemented his spot in the music scene. He’s an artist worth collaborating with given that one of his latest tracks, Chain Chain, is already at 1.7 million views. His collabo with Kahush on Mastingo also proved to be a great move, with the song garnering over 400,000 views and going viral online.
Willy Paul
It’s hard to imagine the Kenyan music scene without Willy Paul. He draws in a huge number of fans and just as many critics. Initially, he was heavily invested in Gospel but he has since moved on to more secular songs. And yes, whichever side he’s on, he still producing hits and trending. In 2018, his song with Jamaican singer Alaine, peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Charts. His song with Nandy was also one of his biggest hits, getting to 15 million views.
You have your best pick of hitmakers to collabo with. Who are you going for?
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