Rising communities and culture-shifting collectives continue forming and grow on SoundCloud and continue to drive what’s next in music. With this has come evolution of brand-new sounds, genres and artists. Among these is the Nyege Nyege Collective; and includes acts from Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
In this vein, Soundcloud has today debuted a 14track compilation tape; the latest in its “SCENES” Discovery Series; featuring never before released tracks from emerging scenes of the continent, “Music for the Eagles”, exclusive works from local heroes, and introduces up-and-coming talents representing a variety of unique genres. Artists featured include local heroes such as Nairobi-based rapper, singer and producer Boutross, Traditional adungu and nanga harp master and singer, Otim Alpha and Tanzanian producer Jay Mitta, with his unique take on the sound of singeli.
The album also introduces up and coming talents like Kenyan future-pop artist KABEAUSHÉ, Ugandan grime, hip-hop and punk master MC Yallah, and features artists beyond East Africa including Durban’s Phelimuncasi with their signature style of Gqom, along with many more from a diverse range of underground scenes.
“East Africa is bubbling with so much music right now, and young people are taking risks and finding new sounds, people are starting to be more curious about each other and mingle their scenes,” said MC Yallah of her sound on the album. “That’s why I wanted to mash up my hip hop vibe with Nairobi’s metal sound.”
On the other hand, “SCENES: East African Underground” and tells the story of a group of innovative artists building a creative community and sharing it on a global scale, powered by future-forward music pushing the boundaries of hip-hop, experimental electronics, dance, and sounds from throughout the region. The video features commentary from these artists and others creating diverse, multi-faceted sounds across the scene, including: Vibrant, bass-heavy trailblazer Kampire; Genre-bending, globally celebrated DJ Slikback; Respected, razor-sharp MC Aunty Rayzor; sonic sound producer KMRU; Kampala-based label, collective, and Nyege Nyege Festival co-founder Derek Debru; and, US-based artist and advocate for the movement Suzi Analogue.
Commenting on the project SoundCloud Director of Editorial, Leon Sherman says that “‘SCENES’ and compilations like ‘Music for the Eagles’ are focused on driving global music discovery around the trailblazing communities of artists and passionate music fans who are propelling mainstream music trends of tomorrow.”
He also added that year, as a company they are excited to amplify the future-facing sounds of the East African underground movement and the incredibly influential Nyege Nyege Collective.”
Nyege Nyege Co-founder Derek Debru added to the word of the Director of Editorial saying: “’Music for the Eagles’ is both music that engages audiences into new sonic territories and also an opportunity for many emerging artists to get a formidable spotlight to further their career and engage with global audiences.”
How about a December, 2021 Nyege Nyege Festival, is it something you’d be down for, and what would be some of the expectations you’d have of it? Share in the comments section. The “SCENES: East African Underground” and Nyege Nyege “Music for the Eagles” compilation albums are available for streaming exclusively on Soundcloud and YouTube:
