 He had a different look. He was doing a different genre. I'm talking about Kenneth B. What's up? I'm good, ma'am. It's a pleasure to have you up at Tenna on the E-Circuit. I'm more than happy about this man. Because this is a very great opportunity for my growth for everyone's growth and he needs a channel in our Keli Shapoasana ma'am. So I'm proud to be here. I'm happy to be here. And it's a pleasure to have you. You know the thing is, a lot has happened. Ya, since the last time you were here. Ya, from here to to... You had the dreadlocks that were reaching all the way here and you were doing spoken word. But now you're here with a new song. And I said, okay, and you're rapping on it. Tell us about all this transition that has occurred over the past few years. Uh, growth has, it shades. You have really to shade some few things in life if you really have to grow. Like a tripe or cow in a grow. It has to, some trunks and branches have to be, the branches have to be taken away for it to get a... Tola. A tola growth, a wide look, a beautiful look out there. So I really... So you had a trim of few things. Ya, cause everything has life in it. So I as a human being, I really have to check where I'm not fitting properly. And the avenues I really love walking through. If something is hindering me from walking that avenue the way I want it, I should be open enough and quick enough to adjust changes to my life so that I really penetrate at that speed, you know. Ya man. But I bet it wasn't an easy decision because, you know, having such long locks, it took a while to grow them, ya? Yes, it wasn't an easy decision even cause even the barber, I went to the barber shop to get me shaved, refused. Said like, no Ken, I'm not doing this. Kuna taka kuni rogla. Nika mambia no, but it's my decision. No, easy see locks akunyo. Nika mambia no, it's time. Like you are talking about when you, at what age should you settle in life. That was the age of my deadlocks to settle away from me. So I had to change the vision, the look and everything. And then there's the new post. The last time you were here, we never had an opportunity to talk about the new post at Kenya National Theater. And the good job you're doing with the youth. Ah, this has been observed at the Kenya Cultural Center for like 5, 6, 7 years as the talent development officer. And even when I had my dreadlocks, I was still an officer there. But then I had to change that just quick enough so that, you know, the system is system. The system is system. System is system. And atakama ziku uku in my heart. But ziku uku komo ya? That full and red roster, you know, not just the looks. But I'm the talent development officer. I work with a lot of youths. We still run palpuit after lunch, which happens every Thursday of the week at the Kenya Cultural Center. Men auditorium kupim dogur outside wherever we choose when bookings are not that heavy. So yes, it's a work I enjoy so much because my kids also are within that channel. So when I have a platform to raise people, raise kids, my kids are the first one on the front line. If it's a bad drive I'm doing, then they'll be sacrificed first. And that is when you are a real warrior. So you're basically just leading by example? You have to. You have no choice. If you're doing a good thing, set your family first. And if it's a bad thing, who pun you? Speaking of your kids, L.O.X. was here. Initially was the rapper. Now he's the spoken word artist. So it's like you guys did a switch. I think, I think for Loks, it came so much of spoken word because of his new post at Lengawgahidi initiative, which he's serving as an ambassador. So he did a spoken word poetry that one and gave him a few things here and there and he's still moving with them. So I think he's concentrating so much on that. And then again he loves writing. So I give him the opportunity. You do that. I also twist and take it back. And you went to rapping now. I take it back to the count of words with the beat. That transition as well in terms of music now. Spoken word art and rapping. What's the big difference so far in terms of expressing yourself? Because you're very expressive even with the way you use your words. I think there is no huge gap between spoken word poetry and it's just the beat. It's just the beat. Spoken word is a little bit vast because you can now just talk without limiting yourself to the count of the beat like the bars and everything. But in spoken word now you have to with this poetry rap, hip-hop, with hip-hop and rap, you have to keep it to the beat. Like if there are four bars, if there are eight bars being vast, you really have to respect all that. So I really wanted to... So there's more rules in hip-hop? There is more rule in rap, in music in general. There is more rule. You can't just talk like you are talking in spoken word because the producer will tell you, ah, baba, apa you have to remove a few words. But in spoken word those are the words that make the old item becomes juicy and cool. So here you really have to pick on the best to fit in that verse so that it comes out, it's executed like it's supposed to be. Like I said earlier, a lot of young people look up to you, especially the people who come for poetry after lunch, every Thursday at the Kenya National Theatre. Now that you've made that transition to rap, what's been the reception? Very good. One, when you're telling you plant the garden, step aside, you don't stand in the garden watching them grow. Watching beans or whatever grow. You plant, go step aside, come back, weed, then go wait for the rain to come. That is how you work. I can't stand in the garden with them because rap was my original art when I started even in the industry. It wasn't spoken word art. No, no, no, no. I started doing rap in Kijaluo, keep it locked, kido go those days. And then I came to the spoken word industry to help this industry realize its value. And now I have beautiful points out there kuna griefins, kuna falamjanja, kuna kuna michi, kuna locks. I have very, very, very beautiful points. Girls out there kuna nini. I have very good points. So why don't I also help this industry that is a little bit... Still growing. Rap is still growing. And we really have to transport our poetry spoken word to the music line so that we fuse it well with the beats so that a lot of the rappers out there, a lot of our rappers out there get to know that it's word. Word has to be there on that instrumental to make it a driving force. Yes. Basically, you want them to be able to express themselves even more. Isikue kitu dry? Isikue just music for the sake of music. Isikue tu abotia luksu gu lukumbaya, lukloma, nini nini. Isikue ju yaiyo. So speaking of that, there's this gangaton that's flooding music industry at the moment. What do you think about it in terms of content? I think, onajwa nini, I don't think I should even talk about that, but then, because anu atu hi anu anu anu jari boku ni express ya, onajwa. And I think if it's giving them money, yes, it's good, but that one is inside the ballroom thing should not be out there. I know it's flooding the streets people are liking it because there is nothing great they can enjoy. So when there is nothing you can lean on, you lean on, what is there? So we want to give them an alternative to lean on because we have it and we believe. You didn't want to answer, but I think you did in your own way? Yeah, I told you no. I rank it. I don't know. Easy must do or whatever need. Those man, how would I man? I serve another Majesty. Nice, nice, nice. Poetry after lunch, it's been growing and growing and growing. And let's talk about that before we get back to the music. In different counties now. How do you coordinate all of them? We have a great spoken word that is first of all you have to support. See the right person who can work on the ground with you. You don't just go and give it to anybody. It must be a spoken word point 2 who has a deep heart that can accommodate all that. So those are the guys I look for. And then when we go, they set the ground ready and then when we go, we launch it and now we coordinate because there are a lot of spoken word fans out there who want to do spoken word, young spoken word artists who are coming out there. So once we start it at the county level, it serves them because we used to find a lot of youth travelling from the counties to come to Nairobi every Thursday and we really wanted to make them comfortable through having the same platform in their regions. And that's why we really try to relocate Kisumu. We have our people doing it there. Embu, we have our youth doing it there. Busia, we have Oluwita Edwin system, Edu systems doing it there with the youth there. So we have a lot of people running things. And I really find joy in that because they don't get the hectic time of travelling to Nairobi just to do this, to follow this because art is everywhere. Art is in the mountain, down the valleys, in the rivers, oceans, bakayad. It's everywhere. So you can't just run to a place that you haven't come to. Art is everywhere. This is the Lenga Ugeidi in a Atlanta competition that you're involved in. And I was wondering since now it's no longer local just in Nairobi, poetry after lunch, will there be such competitions now in the county level? This is for poetry. Yes, yes. And I'm in charge of that in fact. Gish Kevin of Lenga Ugeidi gave me that work and I think I'm proud to handle it so well. So I'll be working with that just to get them, extract the right intellectual content from their brain so that we really model good content for fighting terrorism. And that's why I'm here. So we'll be fetching poets, we'll be talking to poets networking with poets all around the county just to get the real rich content and really serve this purpose so well when brought to media and when published internationally and internationally. Yes. Okay, back to the music. The new track. I hope I'm pronouncing this correctly. Anasemoke. Anasemoke. Anasemoke. Anasemoke. Anasemoke. Can you say Anasemoke? Anasemoke. I don't know what she did right there, but I don't like it. That is magic now. That is like magical. That is what luck now. That is what now fans should sing along when I say Anasemoke. What does it mean? Nisha iwasha. Nisha iwasha. Anika abadum na telewa wukum na gopa mi nisha chafuwa ya nisha iwasha. Nisha iwasha. I've started it already. Onajokuna the thing is the mentality is you want to do a project with some people but most people are always afraid to start. Even in business, investing. So when you want to start you want to do an example. Anasemoke. You have to stop from happening. It's like a ringleader's anthem. Anasemoke. Nice, nice. You brought the producer here and I'm curious about his thoughts working with you because I can tell it looks quite fun. If we can have a minute with you. As it comes tell me about that experience finally rapping on a track. I work with two producers both of them do videos and audios. So when I went to the studio my guy is here so when I went to the studio our studio had said like Daoudi Productions track club they've listened to me because we had not worked for quite a long time and they told me Ken there is something in you I used to know before and we want to extract it and then my videographer was not there. Then we started down with Daoudi and did the track and then he told me Ken can we now get a suite chorus for this he told me ah Ken she wash it and I said ah we can wash it mape maivi ah we do anamoke anasemoke and then we did the track we want the liens as well so he told me go to the booth we wash it so when we did that I now talk to my my other producer who is Silas is here who is my videographer and also the another audio producer who did Yawelaragi Sata and if you remember that song and he told me Ken this is big let's do a quick video for this then we found ourselves in Mombasa and we did our thing and here we are yes nice David Silas Silas tell me about working with Ken at B first of all working with Ken at B has been one of my best experiences in production since 2018 we have been meeting in studio since 2009 just doing spoken word art no no we never talked it was recording his stuff I was doing my stuff you never worked together before this we first talked in 2018 from 2009 you can imagine I was just setting myself feet for him I was searching for him for the last 10 years what about this track tell me a bit about it Anasimoke that's how to pronounce it Anasimoke Yes I know it is a little bit Anasimoke Anasimoke our DJ is saying Anasimoke so it depends it depends on how you say it yeah yeah the time they were doing it I wasn't around so I just got the audio then all of a sudden for the video the story is very interesting we found ourselves in Mombasa for another stuff then he sat and looked the area we were in then he just said like why don't we just shoot this video then Ken was like you didn't carry a camera so I just told him like no camera no problem we have to do it so how did you record it we did with the phone with the phone? yes nice, interesting that's how we do it we just work with what we have interesting and I think these teachers each and every other youth outside they are struggling to make a good thing they should never be an excuse there should be an excuse invest in technology you doki doki doki doko buy a nice phone just a powerful phone and you can record your music videos right there right there anytime and Mazeya Nimae producer is one of the greatest guys Cyrus, thank you so much for coming over to have a chat with us and Kenneth P it's always a pleasure and we love the work you're doing with the youth especially with poetry after lunch and the talent development that you're doing at the Kenya National Theatre and there's a guy who's here as well before we conclude I don't know if my producer will allow this but he has to come and say hello Mr. Lox that come what's up sorry to surprise you like this but this is Lox for those of you who don't know Lox just come here and I want you to say hi to the people hello, I'm Lox aka Liquid Oxygen tell them what you do exactly and give us a sample for those who don't know me I always do poetry rapping yeah yeah nice nice just give us a sample it's okay I'll hold it for you sometimes I sing I rap and I always do poetry my poetry I have two two poetries called terrorism and I am walking into my future and a song called Happening Now you can find it on YouTube yeah I like his confidence Kenneth you're teaching him well where on YouTube exactly YouTube Lox Happening Now that's Lox Happening Now on YouTube make sure you subscribe and what do you think about Daddy's song Anasemoke Anasemoke is a really good song it's great video great lyrics and producer Khal did a very good job recording it and just putting the video and my dad also did a good job thinking about that song nice nice nice but you know the fear I have the follower who is a girl Queen is going to surprise us cause she has a new song out there we'll be launching nice nice I've been anticipating yeah it's called Kwanpole we can't live she'll be crying she'll butter us when you are on the road just join hi queen hello again introduce yourself please my name is Queen you're the shy one of the family I can tell no I hear there's a new song coming how soon what should we expect the new song next Saturday I can hear Lox over here whispering next Saturday so you'll bring it here on the E circuit right and we'll be able to talk about it and how you came up with the song and the video yes nice and the show to watch is the E E circuit E circuit thank you so much guys for coming through next up is Anasem Okabe produced by Santisana and again people can still find you on social media Kenneth Poet Facebook Kenneth Instagram Kenneth underscore B Kenya cultural center is my office from Monday to Friday I work I'm a very easy guy man Tuta kwa apu tuta kula zagava kidogo kidogo I need to kunye chai support this song go to the YouTube Anasem Okabe my channel is Kenneth B on YouTube just search Anasem Okabe share and less have the joy but then the warning is I have a hip-hop album coming people better get ready so this is just a different direction there are a lot of chances but now don't mention them all those hip-hop guys they know wherever they are they know you heard it here first on the E circuit Kenneth B is coming for whatever crown you thought you held and this is Anasem Okabe