The Real Charm of a Hip-Hop Star – Part 2

I love music – I literally need music in my life otherwise I’d probably have a headache so bad that horns would sprout off the sides of my head and then I would explode into a bloody mushy mess. Okay, maybe that’s a stretch but yes, you get my point.

Anyway, I love music, especially hip-hop, neo soul and afrofusion. For the longest time I was obsessed with alternative rock but my taste in rock gradually shifted to the classics.  I consider myself an ardent fan of a couple of bands and artistes but with Kenyan music, I have never been able to really identify with any particular musicians. I am very picky when it comes to Kenyan music – there are only a handful of artistes that I would pay to watch perform live. So it took me some time to really gel with Octopizzo’s music but having interacted with him and having an understanding of what inspires his music, I was quickly sold.

It was exciting to see how he had such a hold on the youths he was mentoring – and not the star struck kind of hold. No, they were really tapping into his street wisdom and gleaning every piece of advice he had to offer. Often times I would sit in the car long after official work hours (6pm) and watch glumly as he stood surrounded by youths who still had a million questions for him. It was a real task dragging him away from the camp so that we could head back to the compound before it got dark. Four months ago, I would never have understood this hold he had on them but now I did. It was actually starting to rub off on me!

He was like a big brother to them. They well and truly believed in his ability to open doors for them. And open doors he did. Come World Refugee Day on 20 June 2015, Octopizzo literally gave up his slot to perform before all the dignitaries and spectators who had assembled in Kakuma to these kids. This is something he had never done before. And for over half an hour those kids gave it their all – the performance was a fantastic mash up of cultural dances and contemporary music. And he didn’t just involve the kids – there were grown men, probably in their fifties who also took part in the performance. Those old men brought the house down with their amazing dancing skills! The audience was thrilled.

Afterwards, he would return to Nairobi to prepare for the launch of his hugely anticipated album. And this time he had an even bigger surprise for the youth he was working with. Through UNHCR, he brought 8 kids (including one from the local Turkana community) to Nairobi for a week to attend his show and curtain raise for him. This was a HUGE opportunity for them – most of them had never been to Nairobi before so they were over the moon. I was so excited for them; I thought my head would explode. (Okay, again with the exploding head – something has to give).

Octopizzo not only had them come to Nairobi but he also took the time to organize interviews for them with top national radio and TV stations. And they were great at the interviews. They had the opportunity to meet media personalities, watch Octopizzo rehearse with his band and even perform with him on live TV! And on the D Day, they performed on the biggest stage of their lives. The crowd showed them love like the superstars that they were.

I was on cloud nine – for me, this gesture was so big it deserved an accolade. I kept thinking, “Why would this man do this for these kids if he isn’t truly a bighearted human being?” I had the audacity to ask him the question out loud and his answer was so bare in its simplicity and honesty. “Because no one ever did this for me. I want the best for them. I want them to see what they are working for. I want them to have the opportunities that I never had when I was a struggling artist.”

I would later ruminate on this and all I could do was smile. Octopizzo is really just a regular guy with the biggest heart you could ever imagine. And he truly cares about these kids. He opened up his world – both professional and personal to them. He brought them into his home and dined with them. He took them to Kibera where he was born and bred and showed them what it really means to grow up with nothing but dreams.

Octopizzo poses with the eight stars in his old neighbourhood (from left)Nyakuma, Denton, Mr.Jay, Mau Mau, King Moses, Queen Lisa, Young Courageous & Spyda.

“I couldn’t live here,” Queen Lisa, one of the kids from the camp said as we walked through the slum. “Kakuma isn’t so bad after all. Young Courageous, the 15 year old Turkana kid with more talent than you could fit into a stadium nodded solemnly in agreement.

That visit to Kibera really opened their eyes and mine. If at any one point they never really understood Octopizzo and what he stands for and why he work so hard, then now they did. And they were grateful for that.

I now understand the true meaning of selflessness. One doesn’t have to work for an aid agency to be a humanitarian. It is a state of mind - a sense of awareness that is within oneself. And for Octopizzo, the charming and extremely enigmatic hip hop star, this is a true calling. And the refugee youth of Kakuma will always treasure him for that.

I'm loving: Blackstar - Octopizzo

The Real Charm of a Hip-Hop Star – Part 1

The past month was a great month. My best month is actually May (hello May babies!) but for once August took the cake. Why? Because for one, I took a long and much deserved break (5 weeks) from work to go and spend time with family and friends. I was bitten by the wanderlust bug and so I travelled quite a bit (Kisumu, Turkey, Dubai, Diani) and last but definitely not least, I went to the eagerly anticipated album launch of hip hop star Octopizzo

Yes, it was a great month.

But maybe I should start from a different point.

First selfie ever - a star was among us.

Like I always say, working with refugees has enabled me to meet a host of various personalities from different walks of life. When I first started working in the camp, I didn’t think that I would at one point interact with a hip hop star. The idea would have seemed extremely farfetched and ludicrous. What would a hip hop artist be doing in a refugee camp anyway? So it was a shocker when I first met Octopizzo in June 2014.

I didn’t really have any first impression of him – he was just another Kenyan artist. But I noticed that the people were very excited to see him – especially the kids and the youth. That left me bewildered. “How do they even know him?” I kept wondering to myself.

I couldn’t even name two of his songs if a gun was pointed to my head – I was that unaware of this artist and his music. I just knew that he was born and bred in Kibera slums – arguably the largest informal settlement in the world, having pushed Soweto out of that position a few years back.

Anyway, Octopizzo would go on to perform at World Refugee Day to a raucous applause. I was surprised – here was a Kenyan musician who was rapping in sheng (Swahili slang) and half of the audience in their thousands was singing along like they understood exactly what he was on about. I couldn’t make the connection. I was befuddled. Befuddlement doesn’t sit well with me – it puts me on edge and I have to figure out what’s going on ASAP if I am to function at all. So I asked around and what I found out made me understand what Archimedes must have felt centuries ago when he yelled “Eureka!” as he leaped out of the bathtub naked.

See, Octopizzo first came to the camp in 2013 through Filmaid International – an NGO that he was working with as a Youth Ambassador on some youth projects. He initially came to perform at an event where he interacted with refugees from various countries. The level of talent that he witnessed at that event and the personal accounts he heard would change his perspective on refugees forever.

“I was amazed by all the talent that I saw – there were rappers, singers, dancers, models. It was insane!” he would later say. “I never expected to find such a sea of talent in a refugee camp. I felt like I needed to do something as an artiste to help these young people who had the talent but lacked the resources and capacity to do more.”

I was amazed that he would take time off his crazy schedule and come up with a project for mentoring and training refugee youth to maximize on their potential. He would then partner with UNHCR to pilot this project in the camp. This led to my second interaction with him in early 2015. This time, I looked at him through different eyes. This time, he wasn’t just any other Kenyan artiste. He was a humanitarian, an advocate for the refugee cause and he was lending his voice (a very deep baritone if I may add) to the conversation on how refugees can contribute greatly to the countries that host them. He was out to quash the negative preconceived notions that existed about refugees.

Because I wanted to – no, I needed to understand how and why he wanted to do this, I asked him what his story was. As he took me through his life story, I couldn’t help but keep thinking about how well he articulated himself. He was passionate about what he was saying. He had a fire in his eye and a lot of conviction. I tell you, I was charmed. I was won over by how humble he actually was, contrary to popular belief. Here was a guy who could have been anywhere in the country or world for that matter, making his music and going on tours and making money off it. But here he was, in the vast desert reaches of Turkana, wanting to do his bit to elevate refugees to a level where they could be self-reliant.

“I identify that hunger in them,” he explained. “That same hunger is what inspired me to struggle hard and sweat my way out of the harsh conditions of the slum. If I wasn’t hungry enough, I would probably be a different person not contributing positively to my community.”

This was where his world and the refugees’ world coalesced. He may not have been forced to flee any conflict or run for his life, but he sure did know and understand what it meant to live a life that was faced daily with harsh conditions that could make a grown man cry. He understood the frustration and pain of having to deal with a seemingly hopeless situation where society has relegated you to the margins and you seem destined for failure and nothingness. He understood how negative perceptions could force one into the dark recesses of vice and crime just to eke a living. He understood because he was born and bred in that environment where he was seen as just another statistic. 

“Despite living in this environment of deep-rooted hopelessness and inadequacy, I found my saving grace through music. I am a living testament that it is possible to brave the harsh realities of life and rise above the odds to make it.” Octopizzo felt that he could use his story to inspire the youth to work hard to achieve their dreams.

The one thing that struck me was how easily he blended in with the youths. It didn’t matter that not all of them could speak his brand of sheng - they all tapped into what he said and they communicated. They came to him with their issues and he answered them as best as he could. Where he could provide no answer he would swivel around and yell out to me so that I could scurry over and deal with the questions. I soon came to realize that it was quite the adrenaline rush hanging out with him. Each of his almost quarterly visits would last about a week and they were the most intense, exciting and out of this world experiences.

Octo, as he casually refers to himself during a workshop session with his protégés at Kakuma Refugee Camp.

He would usually come with a photographer, a journalist or blogger and a music producer. He would hold intense workshops with over 150 youth and discussions would range from basic writing skills, song composition to how to market oneself on social media. He would admonish the bigheaded types who felt like stars and remind them that it took him 23 songs to finally get a hit.  “This is not a one day race! You cannot write a song today and expect to make it on radio and become a hit. It takes a lot of work and marketing. You have to learn all these and you need to work as a team as well.”

He never tired of reminding them about three key things – being humble, being a team player and being hungry. “Always stay hungry people - always stay hungry. That’s the only way you will be motivated to be the best.”

I took in everything he said with much fervor. I couldn’t believe how easily he relayed key messages. I was an immediate fan. I realized that this was not just another platform for a musician to make fans – no he was not even talking about himself! He was sincerely passionate about helping these young kids and he would even get frustrated sometimes as he realized the realities on the ground. To him, their situation reminded him of his. He was one of them. I now saw in true HD the real charismatic personality that he was.  Hook, line and sinker – the kids, including me were all reeled in.

I'm loving: Something For You - Octopizzo