John Nzenze (194030 May 2020)
was a musician from
Kenya
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. He had performed the
twist
Twist may refer to:
In arts and entertainment Film, television, and stage
* ''Twist'' (2003 film), a 2003 independent film loosely based on Charles Dickens's novel ''Oliver Twist''
* ''Twist'' (2021 film), a 2021 modern rendition of ''Olive ...
dance style.
[Daily Nation, 14 June 2009]
At 70, Nzenze still holds on to his guitar
/ref> Some of his most popular songs were "Angelike" (released in 1961),[Daily Nation, 5 June 2009]
/ref>
Life
He was from the Luhya tribe in the western region part of Kenya. Nzenze went to St Peter's primary school. He started playing with his father's guitar at the age of 12, but after learning how much time he spent playing it, his father sold the guitar. After finishing the school, he worked at the Norfolk Hotel in Nairobi. At the time he teamed up with Daudi Kabaka Daudi Kabaka (1939–2001) was a Kenyan vocalist and musician.
The type of music he is known for is called Benga, a popular style in East Africa. His best-known songs include "African Twist", "Harambee Harambee" and "Western Shilo".
His song " He ...
, with whom he recorded three songs - "Safari Tanganyika", "Bachelor Boy" and "Nyumba za Tobacco". These songs were released by Jambo Records and became hits.Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
and various East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
n countries. In 1968 he represented Kenya at All African Music Festival in Algeria
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, finishing third. As a result, president Jomo Kenyatta
Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He was the country's first indigenous ...
feted him and his Air Fiesta Matata band, and Emperor Haile Selassie
Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...
invited him to perform in Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
.Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...
in Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, who was impressed with the band and arranged for them a tour of America. In 1971, BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...
gave them a ''Best Band in Africa'' award [The Guardian, 27 July 2001]
'If I didn't save this music no one else would'
/ref> Nzenze left his group in 1972, after which he went to perform regularly to tourists at the Panafric Hotel and later played at tourist ships. As of 2009, he had performed at the Westlife Club in Kakamega
Kakamega is a town in western Kenya lying about 30 km north of the Equator. It is the headquarters of Kakamega County that has a population of 1,867,579 (2019 census).
Kakamega is 52 km north of Kisumu, the tenth largest city in Ken ...
, and was still making music at the time of his death.Music Copyright Society of Kenya The Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) is a copyright collection society for Kenya. It collects royalties on behalf of authors, composers, arrangers, and publishers of music. It collects royalties for public performances and mechanical reprod ...
.Mwai Kibaki
Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki (15 November 1931 – 21 April 2022) was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013 and is regarded as one of Kenya's founding fathers.
He had previously ser ...
. Others were John Katana (band leader Them Mushrooms
Them Mushrooms is a musical band from Kenya, playing mostly Chakacha, some Benga and also some reggae. They are most famous for the Swahili 1982 song ''Jambo Bwana''. The band is composed of Teddy Kalanda, Henry Ndenge Saha and Ben Mutwiwa. T ...
), David Ndung'u and Conrad Karukenya (aka Tiger Power).
References
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nzenze, John
Musicians from Nairobi
1940 births
2020 deaths
20th-century Kenyan musicians
21st-century Kenyan musicians
Luhya people
Kenyan artists