Nonini
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nonini (1981-), whose real name is Hubert Nakitare, is a Kenyan hip hop artist originally signed to Calif Records, but later joined Homeboyz Productions after falling out with producer Clemo citing lack of attention to his work. He is most famous for his controversial and sexually explicit lyrics. He was introduced to the Kenyan urban music scene through his debut single "Nonini ni Nani?" His steady rise to national and regional popularity did not begin however until his 2002 track "Manzi wa Nairobi," a song which praised the beauty of Kenyan women. The remix of the song included an expicit verse which gave fans a taste of things to come. His 2003 track "Weh Kamu however, really pushed the boundaries of Kenya's music tastes. It contained sexually explicit lyrics about inviting women over to one's house. The song, including its video caused an uproar among Kenyan parents, teachers, clergy and some government officials. Some called on the song to be pulled from the airwaves accusing it of hindering efforts in the fight against the AIDS epidemic ravaging Kenyan youth. In later interviews Nonini justified the song, saying that he didn't say anything on the song that young people did not already know. However this didn't satisfy many of his critics. The song went on to be a major national and regional hit in East Africa, and topped the charts for weeks. He subsequently toned down his lyrics on later songs though he went on to release his debut album Hanyaring Game in late 2004 which inluded the hit "Keroro" a sheng term for beer.
More recently, Nani Mwenza, his collaboration track with Tanzanian musician Juma Nature, became a regional hit. In his most recent great creations, he has collaborated with local artist Nameless to create a friday anthem appropriately title "furahi-day" which has received much airplay over the weeks.
