Thread by @danaceda

Anthropology, pop culture and recognising a culture moment- A THREAD

KE pop culture has come a long way but it has always had to fight through the axis of censorship. That axis is controlled by Politicians (GoK), The Church and Media. And many times these three have worked together to kill the wave.

In fact in the days of exclusive state broadcasting the censorship strategy was arrest and detention, then church would declare you as an evil person and then media would complete the loop by bringing in some foreign stuff so the audience forgets you.

This BTW is basically why KE media is so oriented to finding foreign content. They needed to fill time and if they played restricted music they would also be arrested. Too bad they haven't changed. But I digress.

Anyway if you trace all the biggest songs of KE before FM radio (late 90s). You will notice heavy messaging. "Be good". This is because the only music that was uncensored was Christian music. And so it was now influencing all music. The system was winning.

But if you look at Pop music around the world, you realise it's not got any messaging at all. It's just feel good stuff. Michael Jackson is the best example. "I'm bad, you know it I'm bad, Who's bad"

The music felt good. It didn't need to have deep cultural spiritual messaging.

Meanwhile in KE the smash hits are "Usiibe, ukiiba we utafungwa jela "

Tough to dance to this in a club. So there a huge demand for feel good music and media are bringing as much foreign stuff as they can to meet it.

Side note: it's this formal and informal censorship that created mugithi night. The artistes that were restricted were left to struggle in the jungle of low paying gigs. This is the crux of what Kamaru was trying to say when he stormed the Kanda Bongoman gig. But I digress again.

Now comes the earthquake. FM stations brought a different context. And it was harder to control the content. So when @GidiOgidi and @MajimajiKenya came out with Unbwogable it was the first tremor of a cultural earthquake.

@ogopadeejays then amplified this with their sound and vibe. Tumekuja kuwashika. Feel good music like wauuuuuuu. Twende tukawake huko Nairobi West !!!

Local Pop culture. For the first time church had lost control of the direction of pop culture. @namelesskenya was increasing sales of durags in KE. Media people like @CarolineMutoko completely redefined what it meant to be a Kenyan woman. Church didn't know how to deal.

Obako didn't really care so things thrived. Pulse magazine. Photos everywhere. A Club scene. There was a value to being cool and everybody wanted to be cool and the Ogopa guys were the coolest. Next came Calif Records. "Waatuuuuuuuu" " "Kwa bafuuu"

More amplification. Then after this the second earthquake. @DnaMisterdreams with Banjuka. The very definition of feel good music.

It's important because media tried to kill this one. But DNA went to the ground. The track was unstoppable.

The Christian scene was reeling.tge music was good but not cool. So evolution started to happen. Enter @daddyowenmusic Papa Fololo, Mzee mwenye pamba nzito .... System Ya Kapungala ... Every church in the country was like so

Now comes another huge earthquake. @PUNIT_KENYA and @sautisol merged world's to set the stage for a new pop wave. Gentleman, Kare, Money lover. True pop true music. Utamu ulioje ...

You guy THAT Dendai!!! I know you can see this video in your mind's eye.

That song literally and fundamentally shifts the industry. And it is driven by @GhaflaKenya . A whole new kind of media. Uncontrollable and free.

There's something about pop culture that slaps different when the metaphors don't need translation. When you get it the first time.

At this point I also want to mention that people like Majani, Ike, and BK and others who brought money to the industry na completely new way.

Next cultural moment was less obvious. It was the one that brought the underground DJs. Guys making mixes for matatus and playing in small clubs. This one creeped up on everybody. And this is the catalyst for where we are now. That scene is now directly influencing the mainstream

DJ Kalonje, De Makufu , and guys like DJ Mantel (who is the creator of the phrase Wamlambez) guys like the late MC Patoka.

Now add the internet!! Freedom has come to pop culture.

theelephant.info/culture/2019/0…

It's really important that now for the first time we can trace pop culture back continuously through almost 20 years. All of it is on record and on the internet. The censorship is now majorly informal. And thankfully, unable to affect the internet.

I could go on and on but let me just say this. In these times the control of pop culture that some of you are looking for will not be achievable. The best bet you have is to be constructive. Buy and share the material you like. Grow artistes. Make them competitive.