Derived from poetry and hip-hop, spoken word has challenged the minds of creatives and vocal artists and at times touches on subjects deemed sensitive such as politics and socio-economic issues. Some artists even do it comedically. Tupac Shakur wrote poetry and performed spoken word which elevated him to hip-hop legend status. Take away the beats and hip hop basically becomes spoken word.
If you are interested in getting involved in the spoken word scene in Kenya, check out Creatives Garage, Fatuma's voice at the Alliance Française, Poetry Slam Africa at Kenya National Theatre, Poetry Spot Kenya and the Arteast Hub where up-and-coming spoken word artists hone their skills.
Here are some of Kenya's notable spoken word artists:
King Kaka
Despite venturing into arguably one of Africa's most unstructured music industries, Kaka Sungura, better known as King Kaka has successfully managed to pay homage to this art form. He is identified as a rapper, but his spoken word roots are evident from his phenomenal 2012 hit Swahili Shakespeare; which successfully straddles the spoken word and hip-hop world. Today King Kaka enjoys lucrative corporate endorsements and is the CEO and founder of Kaka Empire. He is additionally regarded as a reputable entertainment business entrepreneur.
Juliani
Artist Juliani has never been one to shy away from producing socially conscious music and championing for positive change. In 2017 he released a moving single that took on extra judicial killings titled Machozi Ya Jana. Juliani's musical journey was ignited by Ukoo Flani, a hip-hop music group in Kenya that also did revolutionary spoken word and taught poetry. Aside from a fulfilling music career he mentors young writers and other artists and is an avid community organiser.
Raya Wambui
There is a reason Raya Wambui became the 39th Slam Africa Queen. She is an exceptional poetry writer and spoken word coach who has performed and written her way to great heights. Encouraged by her own aphorism, 'creativity with the purpose of recording current history' she has seen her art published in Badilisha Poetry X-change blog among others. She was also featured on BBC, performing her piece "As She Should Be."
Checkmate Mido
He is a hip-hop artist, poet, performance art trainer and to crown it all, a beat box artist. Mido has toured internationally with his art and even facilitated a poetry workshop with Bassey Ikpi (Def Jam Poetry Star). He also opened the stage for Blake Worrell in Berlin, Germany. He has performed at over 10 festivals within and outside the country, most notably PAWA festival, BN Poetry festival in Kampala, LABA Arts festival, Storymoja, Sondeka festival, SPOKEN WORLDS in Berlin and Festival du Theatre des Realites in Sikasso, Mali among others.
Gufy Dox
Gufy has produced one of Kenya's few Spoken word albums. The 7-poem collection Misimu offers a picture of how far he has come in his poetry journey. He has graced a few prominent poetry stages including Poetry Slam Africa, Fatuma's voice and Poetry Spot. Most of his work advocates for better governance and talks openly about the state of the nation and its current socio-economic affairs.
Mufasa the Poet
He burst into the spoken word scene after winning Poetry Slam Africa-a spoken word slam competition. Since then Mufasa has been performing in all major poetry events in Kenya, winning multiple battles on and off stage including Kwani? and NTV's AM Live's The Stand segment. He describes himself as a poet, actor and all-round creative who uses his art to speak about human dignity, social justice and personal life. This all-rounded creative hides no emotion when performing his pieces. Mufasa's voice has been heard by presidents at official events and other high-profile names.
Teardrops
The first time I heard Teardrops, I could not stop snapping. His prowess with sheng (Kenyan slang) and how he infuses it into an art that is mostly in English is impeccable. So profound is his reach that his image has been plastered all over matatus and posters across Nairobi. With hard-hitting punchlines and a clever use of Sheng, Teardrops has taken poetry to a whole new level. For nearly six years, he performed for the love of poetry without any commercial benefits, but his patience paid off. He has performed at the Churchill show, Fatuma's voice forums and the PAWA 254 festival.
The strength of any art form is tied to its ability to speak to people. Spoken word resonates because it gives voice to our unspoken thoughts using beautiful stylistic styles.
