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The world over,there have been stories told and chronicles written,of individuals who inspired jaded masses and disillusioned communities,to fight for their rights, to stand up and challenge oppressive regimes and unfavourable status quos. We know them by name,we quote them when looking for inspiration and when retelling history.

But what about the people that were inspired? The unnamed,the unsung 'ordinary folk?''

 In truth,it is they who are the heroes,the core of history,without whom,the Martin LutherKings and Wangari Maathais wouldn't be the icons they are. And it is the people that we ought to be making way for!

If any of you know this lady,you know we have waited for her album,let alone a single,for the longest while. To finally have gotten the chance to listen(exclusively too..) to what promises to be an 'on-repeat' kind of song is quite the moment of reckoning. She highlights that 'liberation will stay.' Sara Mitaru is not only an amazing singer,but hers is a message carried across a catchy tune: 'Make way for the people.' It reminds me of Che Guevara's saying, that 'liberators do not exist, the people liberate themselves.'

 

This,to me,is a song that encapsulates the recent history that's been experienced inNorthern Africa. The revolution lied,lies and will continue to lie with the people. A timely one,too, as we here in Kenya gear up for a politically feverish season. We allwant things to be different, but we often make the mistake of pegging our hope onan individual,or group of individuals...possibly why we are never satisfied with our leadership.

 

Sara calls out to make way for the people today! My interpretation of this is that if all you want to do is sit back and be pessimistic,make way for those who've had about enough of a culture of impunity,of self-serving and self-agrrandizing leaders. Make wayfor those who will hold their leaders accountable,or will do their best to.

 

A great song this,and hopefully it will rekindle the flames for our quest to see a better Kenya, a better Africa that can only be realized if we rise up and make that difference.

 

Check out the song's teaser below, and look out  for the single on your airwaves! 

 

 

Make Way(The Lyrics)

They Say 
We're independent but they won't set us free,
They Say
We are sovereign but we shackled and chained
They Say
The future is now but the past is with us
They Say,
We are tomorrow but we're stuck in yesterday

But

There's a Man down
Head down
No food on his plate
Will he bow down
Stay down
To see another day
He is pinned down
Spirit down his back against the wall
so stand down stand down
Liberation will say

Make Way
For the people today
Make way
Liberation will say
Make way
For the people today
Make way Liberation will stay

They say,
We won't sit around we'll fight for our rights
They Say
You have trampled us enough Is enough
They say
The future is now, we leave behind the past
They Say,
We are tomorrow say goodbye to yesterday

And we will stand up
Heads up
Put food on our plates
We won't bow down
Stay down
We'll find another way
We will look up stay up and push against the wall,
So rise up rise up
Liberation has said

Make way
For the people today
Make way liberation will say!

 

©2011  Music and Lyrics by Blackman Entertainment

 

Who Are You Really Writing Songs For? | Songtrust

It is natural for songwriters to think that you are always writing music for yourself. After all, art itself is a form of ‘self-expression’. However, take a step back and think about who you are actually writing the music for by asking yourself these questions:

What are your goals as a songwriter?

Are you simply writing the best music you can because you love it?

Are you making music that will appeal to your fans because you know they will buy it?

Are you writing music that will appeal to publishers who can try to pitch the music for commercials, soundtracks and the like?

This distinction is very important for you to understand, as it will be the basis for how you approach your songs, and just how ‘self-expressive’ you can be, or can’t be, depending on what is needed for the right scenario.

Read the rest of the article here:
http://blog.songtrust.com/songwriting-tips/who-are-you-really-writing-songs-for/

Why Musicians Should Own Websites.

I am a girl about the internets...(someone should look into offering valid credentials around that.)

Anyway, while this blog may have begun as a 'group therapy-let's-all-woosa-as-musicians' space, I've decided to add more objectivity to it, and one way is to curate content as I come across it.

Today, we look at this issue of owning your own space on the internet as a musician.(Stop panicking! Breathe in...out...and read on...LOL!)

It's been interesting to find that most musicians,locally and internationally haven't jumped onto this opportunity for many reasons. For instance,as a big hit, there's always content being put out about you, right? So if an interested party does a google search about who you are,plenty is bound to come up and inform adequately. And besides, if I have a facebook fan page and I tweet every now and then, what more do I need, right? 

WRONG!!

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Digital Music Distribution: Are We Willing To Embrace It?

I hope this post will be more of a discussion that yields fruit and proposes a way forth.

 

We have embraced tech in our everyday lives; money transfer, bill payments...and it's made our lives a whole lot easier. There is no shortage of documentation on app developments and competitions, all aimed at tapping into the connectivity and opportunity that the mobile phone has presented. Now, the music industry hasn't been left behind on the tech front, with iTunes Music Store as a benchmark success. And with that has come digital distributors such as TuneCore and CD Baby,SoundCloud and Reverbnation (who recently ventured into the distribution business), AWAL UK and Overtone in South Africa, who distribute to various online music stores, among them iTunes. 

In the US, digital distribution seems to have been embraced and is the success claim for many an artiste, primarily via iTunes downloads.

Whilst these services are accessible to any music lover, they aren't necessarily customized for our market(ie Africa). Reverbnation,for instance, is a platform that most musicians have embraced, and use to create a basic online profile,(call it the Facebook for musicians...lol). Tunecore delivers music to the Nokia store,whose African reach is limited to South Africa.

Physical CDs acquisition tends to be another logistical nightmare altogether, and in this digital era, it may not be the most convenient option,not in a world where a song becomes a hit overnight, yet shipping isn't as easy.

That leaves torrents as the only other option for us to acquire music from our favourite 'international' artists. True?

Now, closer home. I'm yet to come across a digital content distributor operating across the continent.(Massive opportunity if done well....could do a lot to curb piracy, and some of us can get decent salaries off our craft/vocation...) I've had the pleasure of sitting in on brainstorming sessions on digital content (primarily music) distribution proposals. Here in Kenya, two startups: PewaHewa and Hewa have proposed a solution to digital distribution. Yet to fully understand how Hewa works, but PewaHewa makes use of MPESA,Airtel Money and YuCash to purchase one's favourite music, upon which a link to the song(s) is sent to your email address. 

 

Pewa Hewa
        

 

  
Hewa
   

Has Africa been left behind on the music and tech front?

As an artist, this novelty sounds very appealing. It reduces the headache of mass producing CDs, of smooching retailers to carry your music and pay you in good time, or having to chase every Akamba bus to deliver the CD to an eager fan in Mombasa or Kakamega as a last resort. DIY(Do It Yourself) Music Distribution is something many musicians are having to look into because the 'systems' in place seem to do nothing more than abuse our art.

All the tech-savvy people I know can go on and on about apps developed to meet many other needs, but when it comes to music, it's a whole other story. Having recently released an album, and (thankfully) there being a demand for it across the city,country and even continent(woohoo!), we are almost spending sleepless nights trying to figure out how to satiate the urgency with which the album is requested! The Ma3 album for instance, is available on iTunes and Amazon for those outside Africa. Yet the interesting thing is that people want the physical copy of the album. While that is all good, (definitely a good dilemma)...it's a logistical nightmare. We put the album online for everyone to listen (hoping that come the time to sell, digital would be the primary preference). But not so the case! Make no mistake, we are very grateful that the product we've put out there is that desirable! 

The question begs, are we, as musicians and music lovers, willing to embrace to embrace technology's solutions to the problem at hand? As a musician, I have a product to get out to the market. As a music consumer, I want to get access to the product as soon as possible, and to my satisfaction. Basic supply and demand chain? Not so! As it turns out, demand entails tangibility as I'm learning, at least as far as music goes. Fans want autographed copies of records, and it would seem that digital distribution doesn't offer that? 

But what if, as an artist, I put up my album artwork/inlay on my website for free download? 

As a social media evangelist/strategist in the Kenyan music industry, it takes all I've got not to pull out my dreadlocks trying to figure out this quagmire!

 

 

@NiNanjiraNanjira Sambuli

Goodness me!!! there really is no embracing digital music purchase/distribution is there? everyone wants a physical CD copy! woi!

The response(s) to this tweet are the inspiration behind this post/conversation. I'd love nothing more than to ensure that every music lover of the music in my hands gets to it in good time, whether in Mtwapa or Munich! But what I desire even more, is to get this to every fan in the most convenient way possible! This convenience? Digital music distribution.

So the question doth beg? Are we willing to embrace digital music distribution? If so, what do we need to do, as musicians and music lovers? What are the problems that this novelty presents, and what are the possible solutions? For musicians: could digital distribution be a means of curbing piracy by meeting demand in good time? For music lovers: could this be a means of propelling Africa's musical talent onto the world platform? We have propelled the innovation behind some of our most treasured applications/tech startups, why should we not do it for our art?

 

Beba Beba: Ma3

 

 

I happen to be part of this awesome band called Ma3. Why Ma3? Well, I could give a profound, 'politically correct response'...but we borrowed the name off the ubiqituous and often inescapable public means of transport in Kenya...All across Africa, Ma3s-whatever name they have- are part of what defines present-day culture. That's what we hope our music will do/is doing.

Style of music is Afro-pop. We had a lot of fun making this album, and we are more than excited to share the record with you. Find all the details of the album launch here. We sure hope that you can come out and share this special moment with us,if in Nairobi city this weekend. Have a listen and let us know what you think. Catch up with us on Facebook, Twitter, Reverbnation and on our website.

Ingia ndani ya Ma3!

(Come aboard the Ma3)

How to Communicate With Fans So You Connect With Them (Instead of Bore Them to Tears) - MTT - Music Think Tank

http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/how-to-communicate-with-fans-so-you-connec...