When it comes to music sang in the Dholuo dialect, there is always some top-class music which makes revelers go crazy.
In this list of top 10 best Luo artistes in Kenya in 2019, we look at musicians who made the most impact in singing Ohangla, Benga and Luo Rhumba genre of music.
Here are the best we could find.
Musa Jakadalla
Topping the list of the best Luo artistes in 2019 is Moses Odhiambo Obok aka Musa Jakadalla whose rise to fame has been exceptional in the past few years.
The ‘Hera Remo’ hitmaker is one of the few Luo musicians who don’t shy away from singing about love despite the challenging socio-political times that the Luo community has been going through in recent times.
His songs are not only educative but are also emotional and very entertaining as well.
Jakadalla started his music career as a lead vocalist for a local group known as Blaze Africa Band (formed in 2010).
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Musa released his single debut dubbed ‘Nyar Alego’ soon after breaking up with Blaze Africa Band and has since went on to release other top hit dholuo records that include ‘Nyar Ahero’ and ‘Nyathigi Lily’.
Abenny Jachiga
Think of hit songs such as ‘Simba Manyo Wendo’ and ‘Mano Kasinde’ that have been battering the radio waves in Luo Nyanza in 2019. These songs were released by the one and only Abenny Jachiga.
Even though Jachiga has not risen to fame as much as Musa Jakadalla, his style of music is surely deemed to take him to unimaginable places.
It is for this reason that he makes it to number 2 in this top list of Luo artistes 2019.
Jachiga’s latest release, ‘Nancy Nyar Ugenya’ is also proving to be a hit among merrymakers and other party animals in the streets of Nairobi.
Abenny Jachiga is one of the few Luo artistes who add a fine touch of style in his music before releasing it to the market.
His songs are some of the best quality among popular Luo musicians.
Johnny Junior
Third in this list is Johnny Junior, the Rhumba Maestro who draws multitudes of listeners in his tours with soothing music. He first performed with Otieno Jagwasi at Hit Sound International Band.
He later joined the legendary Musa Juma at Limpopo International Band before finding the way to solo performance.
Luo Rhumba king, Johnny Junior got married to his sweetheart Nyathi Jogem
His fans call him “The King of Rhumba”, a title that fits him well given that he has produced some of the best Luo Rhumba music available today.
Some of the top songs by the well-groomed vocalist include ‘Nyar Jaduong’, ‘Nyoremo’, ‘Odidi’ and ‘Dr Pamela’.
Lady Maureen
The first female Luo artiste in this list had to be Lady Maureen, the undisputed queen of Ohangla. Her music is always entertaining and at times quite provocative given that she mostly sings about current trending issues affecting the community.
Her soft voice is popular among party goers and surely she is one lady to watch for in 2019 as new songs are expected from her unending music pouch.
Her most popular song is ‘Kogalo’, sang in praise of the famous KPL soccer club, Gor Mahia.
Madanje Perimeter
Known for his song ‘Elector Nyarkano’, Madanje Perimeter is quickly becoming a household name among Rhumba music lovers in Kenya.
Although he has not released a lot of music lately, Madanje still rocks in 2019; thanks to the previous priceless songs that he solely made.
When ‘Elector Nyarkano’ was released, not most people had heard of Madanje Perimeter. This Benga icon is one of the most sought-after Luo artistes today.
Predzda “Igwe” Bandason
Seen as another well-groomed Luo artiste set to rock in 2019 of course only second to Johnny Junior, Igwe Bandason is an architect of smooth Rhumba music that continues to sooth music lovers in Kenya.
His style is characterized with smooth romantic love songs. Some popular songs by Predzda “Igwe” Bandasson include ‘Yamo Oloko Kido’ and ‘Nyisuba’.
Emma Jalamo
Although a few years ago Emma Jalamo would have topped this list of best Luo artistes in 2019, there is a feeling that he hasn’t done enough lately and therefore he will appear in the 7th position.
Artiste Profile: Emma Jalamo
Emma Jalamo started as a gospel musician before releasing hit songs in secular Benga style and immediately becoming a star.
Some of his popular songs include ‘Simba Ja Uriri’ and ‘Sherry’. Emma Jalamo is also the creator and singer of ‘We Chayo Jathum’, a popular song that talks of the plight of local musicians and how some people abhor them.
Suzanna Owiyo
The second female artiste and the only to appear in this list (of course after Lady Maureen) is Suzanna Owiyo. Her music fuses the legendary Luo Nyatiti tune with modern music sound.
Owiyo’s fans are expecting a new release in 2019 after a disappointing 2018 that saw very little come from her music reserve.
Her breakthrough song, ‘Kisumu 100’ made her famous worldwide and if she can release another similar hit in 2019, then her support base will be more than happy.
Otieno Aloka
The famous ‘Kanungo Eteko’ hitmaker is set to make a comeback in 2019 with rumors flying all over the place that a new hit is being prepared by the legend.
Otieno Aloka hit the ground rolling with his ‘Kanungo Eteko’ song, which is perhaps the most famous song in Luo history.
Of course, there are some who will counter this claim but still, the hit song by Aloka is surely a must-listen-to for any young Luo man.
Makadem
Lastly, this list of best Luo artists cannot be complete without mentioning Makadem. The famous Ohangla artist is set to enjoy goodies in 2019 given that he recently signed up with Ketebul Music.
His fan base is expecting some new music in 2019 and therefore makes him one of the popular Luo artists to watch for as we wrap up 2019.
Famously known as the Ohanglaman, Makadem plays Nyatiti with loaded vim and vigor. His dedication to Nyatiti has won him lots of local and international accolades.
His song ‘Nyako’ was nominated for Track of the Year at Gilles Peterson Worldwide Awards 2018.
Honorable mention:
Prince Indah
Prince Indah is an artiste coming up faster than any other Luo artiste currently, being one of the artistes who started out around the same time as Emma Jalamo, Prince Indah has already carved a niche for himself in the super competitive and lucrative music industry in the Luo Rhumba and Ohangla genres.
Prince Indah has owned 2019 with such a force that can’t be ignored even if you don’t appreciate Luo Rhumba music, all the music he has released thus far in 2019 are all hits.
Songs like ‘Uchumi’, ‘Cynderela’, ‘Kwach Ogolo Koke’, ‘Pokna’, ‘Mapili’, ‘Nyar Kisumo’, with ‘Mapili’ just to mention a few hit songs released by Prince Indah have entertained revelers and established him as one of the Luo music’s protege to ever picked up a microphone and entertain through music.
The future is indeed bright for young, talented and prolific Prince Indah who is currently working on releasing his album dubbed ‘Kitabu Mar Hera’ which is scheduled to be released later on in the year.
Honorable mention:
Wuod Fibi
Wuod Fibi is a popular Luo musician who is well-known for the hit song ‘Weche Hera’, he is also the father of yet another talented, young artiste Amani Gracious Ochieng popularly known as Amani G who stole people’s hearts when she sang Alicia Keys’ ‘Girl on fire’.
Wuod Fibi warns every member of Team Mafisi to always ‘kula kwa macho’
Truly his family is a blessed musical family. His rise to fame has been dramatic over the years.
In 2017 Wuod Fibi collaborated with seasoned Luo musician Emma Jalamo to release ‘Cham gi Wang’i’ which became an instant success, it was the remix of the original song released under the same name.
Apart from singing his heart out, Wuod Fibi is also a record producer at Barikiwa Studios which has since worked with the best of the best Luo musicians today, it’s only a handful of musicians that he has not worked with.
He is also credited for singing a number of worship songs including ‘Wuotho Gi Yesu’.
Honorable mention:
Freddy Jakadongo
If you know your Luo music, there’s no way, absolutely none which will have you argue that Freddy Jakadongo is not the face of Ohangla at least today.
The talented artiste has dominated the Ohangla scene with only two hit records ‘Pole’ and ‘Timbe Hera’ which even has most people who don’t understand Luopean dancing and singing along to the Ohangla hit songs.
Just like comedian Jalang’o would say, Freddy Jakadongo has arrived in the world of Ohangla music and thanks to the gifted hands of one Engineer Wuod Fibi of Barikiwa Studios, Freddy Jakadongo has dominated the airwaves from 2018 to 2019 with just two hits songs executively produced at Barikiwa Studios.
Freddy Jakadongo has since gone on to release other hit records like ‘Tok Ji’, ‘Dag E Ngima Miyiero’, ‘Abeth Mama’, and ‘Rapar’.
It’s safe to say Ohangla music is on safe hands since Freddy Jakadongo is representing the genre quite well.
