Sauti Sol: Final curtain fall for Kenya's greatest boy band

Sauti Sol: Final curtain fall for Kenya's greatest boy band

Sauti Sol band members Polycarp Otieno, Willis Chimano, Bien-Aime Baraza and Savara Mudigi take a knee after the 2022 Sol Fest concert. PHOTO | COURTESY

When three scrawny kids stumbled into each other at Upper Hill High School, and then merged into a musical outfit dubbed 'Voices in the Light', few would imagine the stratospheric levels of success they would garner later in life - and the lasting cultural impact they would go on to achieve.

After completing High School, these three lads, Bien-aime Baraza, Savara Mudigi and Willis Chimano, stayed in touch and, while still pursuing varying courses in colleges, still made time to hit The Alliance Française, a renowned Nairobi talent hub, and chorused their way across the hallways, adjacent alleys and to a few gathered loafers.

It was while at Alliance Française that they stumbled upon their defining musical block - Polycarp Otieno. A budding guitarist, whose zesty riffs and zappy strummings aroused the soul, Otieno quickly captured the eye of the three singing buddies and, with a magical strike from the gods above, Sauti Sol was birthed.

The boys, bountifully blessed with an indestructible musical dexterity, soon cobbled up a name derived from the most basic of stage name creativities - 'Sauti' meant 'Voice' and Sol, a Spanish word, meant 'Sun'. Thus, 'Voices in the Sun', it became.

Their first song 'Mafunzo ya Dunia' performed mildly - but opened up the path of the superstardom that awaited these four boys.

Like a wondrously assembled team of galacticos, Sauti Sol lunged for inimitable success, releasing the seminal 'Lazizi', hogging the airwaves, upending the Kenyan musical trajectory and like a dust devil in the Namib desert, creating a bewildering whirl, as they furiously rose to the skies.

There was something intrinsically special about them - the sheer magnetism, the fastidiousness, the otherworldly voices, the impeccable songwriting.

Unlike any Kenyan band before them, Sauti Sol's transcendental brilliance, which fused all aspects of world-class musicalism, juxtaposing a unique Kenyan sound with a tinge of borrowed African influences, and whose themes oscillated between melancholy and a carnival cheeriness, quickly ensnared the masses and endeared them to a crazed fanbase.

Their 2008 debut album 'Mwanzo', peppered with swirly synths and airy harmonies, announced the arrival of four musical messiahs, and, three years later, they would drop their sophomore album 'Sol Filosofia' which birthed the award-winning 'Coming Home'.

In 'Coming Home's' music video, Sauti Sol's delivered what is arguably their most gut-wrenching performance, singing about betrayal, broken love and a man's inconsolable emotional anguish.

The 2015's 'Live and Die in Afrika', which spawned the smash hits 'Sura Yako', 'Nishike', 'Nerea', 'Shake Your Bam Bam' and the poignantly piercing gospel hit 'Kuliko Jana', saw the calcification of Sauti Sol into a cultural and musical touchstone across Kenya and Africa.

Long before TikTok became the cornerstone of viral dance trends, Sauti Sol lit up the world with the viral 'Lipala' dance which ensnared all music lovers, transcending age, nationality, race or religion.

Along the way, the quartet swept the awards, garnering international accolades and flooring seasoned names to bring home multiple gongs - and even, not strangely, soon collaborated with some of their biggest contemporaries.

On the Tiwa Savage-assisted 'Girl Next Door' as well as in the Burna Boy-starring smash hit 'Afrikan Star', the eminent group proved that they could gel perfectly with any voice, any talent, any groove, any time.

Sauti Sol's stage presence was a masterclass in refined excellence - they knew how to work the crowd, keep the masses on their toes, shift the mood and masterfully command every inch of the stage like an '80s British rock band.

As the years dragged on, the members splintered to find their own voice and trudge their own dreams, while still, not losing the essence, the nucleus and the purpose on which their dreams were cemented.

Whether at the Sol Fest, or at a sold-out show in Melbourne, Australia, the energy remained the same - and the ebullience was unmatched.

Now, the group is planning a farewell global tour - and then, the curtain will fall.

Laden with an iconic catalogue, awe-inspiring musical prodigiousness, unbeatable songwriting and globe-encompassing influence, Sauti Sol has become what it initially set out to be - and more.

It's the last hurrah for Kenya's decorated pop savants. A befitting goodbye to three gaunt schoolmates and a chap they met in a corridor.

Tags:

Kenya Sauti Sol Lazizi Kuliko Jana Sura Yako

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