Written in 3 languages (French, Kiswahili and English), Larry’s record label mate at Victory Alley Oskaranja makes his debut as an artist with new single ‘Think Of You’.
Oskaranja came up with the concept of the track last year during the lockdown and composed its chorus in English at first, however the idea of reciting it in French to better express the concept and make it more diverse came to him, and later reached out to ‘Supernova’ singer who also happens to be Buziga based Victory Alley CEO Larry to compose a few lines for his verses. The choice to recite the song in 3 languages at the same time stems from the fact that Oskaranja loves French, as a language, and the mix of Kiswahili in there is because he is Kenyan. He found it necessary to share culture and illustrate that mental health is expensive. Below is an extract from the chorus:
Je me fait mal chaque fois que je pense à toi, (I hurt myself each moment I think of you)
Chaque jour, chaque nuit où je pense à toi. (Each day and night when I think of you)
Tu me fais mal chaque fois que je pense à toi, (You hurt me every time I think of you)
Chaque fois ou moment où je pense à toi. (Every time and Moment when I think of you)
The budding singer describes his track ‘Think of You’ as a story of old relationships, a reflection on some moments and a view of mixed feelings.
By August 2020, the writing stage of the song was done, and both artists therefore set out to record, after which Rodney Mulindwa, the mixing engineer did the mixing. The songs cover art was made possible; by Jason Kigozi, the entrepreneur of Elevate who creatively designed a heart with; a great symbol that carries more meaning to the song.
Oskaranja believes that this time and the possibilities are limitless and despite the pandemic, and that as artists they must remain optimistic because some day this COVID19 situation will end. He cites Victory Alley, Rebel City, Bantu Vibes where artists like Larry, CXNRVD, Chenkobe, Cee, J-Wats, Dario, Lagum, Wiloboy, Axon, are located, Kahaya Beats, Lamu, Man Lee, Byg Ben, Timo Brown, Silver and several other individuals that are doing amazing on the East African music scene.
The ‘Think Of You’ picked his passion for doing music since his first year of college where he met a friend; – Rahul, one he talks of as being a very complete artist, comes from a musical family and plays almost all instruments.
His advice to creatives out there is for them to have fun with the process, surround yourself with friends who can criticize you without holding back. This way, you better understand what it takes to improve the ability you already have. In the end, everyone wins together. Oskaranja concluded by reechoing the need to take courage and stand for what they believe in. “if you are interested in expressing yourself, do so. In my opinion, no one cares about your creativity, your ambitions or your dreams more than you.”
Oskaranja & Larry’s ‘Think of You’ is out now! Stream it everywhere!
