Of pirating and bad music

So I’m sitting here trying to read about staphylococcal bacteria with music from my laptop playing in the background (I have to have music playing to create some background noise, otherwise if it’s really quiet I’ll just daydream). Anyway, as I try to focus on the stuff I’m reading, ‘Turn My Swag On’ by Soulja Boy comes on. I try to concentrate and I can’t, until I realise that it’s because there’s noise around me. Then it hits me; it’s not music in the background, its noise. Soulja Boy doesn’t make music, he makes noise! I go through the few Soulja Boy songs that I have, and my fears are confirmed. He makes a living out of noise-making (genius, isn’t it? I should’ve thought of it first. Lol).

What ever happened to the real talent?!? I miss the days when music was actually music. Not like these days when Weezy will drop a line like ‘I’m fly as the sky, fly as the insect’ and people will scream in awe and worship him. I remember how I’d tune in to the radio and hear Mercy Myra’s awesome (for lack of a better word) voice fill the room.

Now THAT was music! Kenyans were not ready for neo-soul at the time; they were too pre-occupied with kapuka. So for that reason she didn’t do so well. I keep on wishing she’d make a come-back around this time, coz then she’d really be a legend. With the way people are embracing Dela and Sauti Sol, she’s assured to go very far. Assuming of course that there’s no/minimal piracy. But then again, huku ni Kenya.

I was at Nakumatt the other day with my pops and we stopped by a shelf full of CDs and albums. They were all original, of course. I picked up a Barry White CD, and the tag at the back said it was worth Shs2500. No wonder there’s so much piracy in this country! Not that I’m not one of them. This is just one of the situations where you do it because everyone is doing it, because it’s the easiest thing to do, then you speak about it and that’s the end of it. So it starts with you, with me. Or maybe artists just need to stop selling their music at exorbitant prices.

As I sign out, I leave you with actual music. Forget the crunk, the meaningless rap. Sit back, and let the tunes massage your stress away.

Mercy Myra  - Tie Dero

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQ6jPSaiGwU

Harry Kimani - Haiya

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noQLBtFAzwk

Get original music this week.