 What's up? The hashtag remains a balance in nation. Thank you so much for keeping it here And like I promised you before you went on a break I told you we have there's guests in studio and without further ado I'm gonna introduce you actually to our first guest and guess what she is Super talented. She is like I Literally can't put her in like one sentence, but I'm gonna tell you she is our international Percussionist. She's a drummer and of course, she's best right here in Nairobi. I really don't know how to introduce you Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome Cassiva mutua, how are you? It's good to have you on the show and you look great you look um, I don't know you're African and I love the Okay Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah the drumstick, but that's very it's at it's at sea That's all I can say but without actually going into the interview I'm gonna let you just do your thing so that people can know what you're all about before you actually get to talk to you You're ready. Okay, let's do it. All right You to stop because now I'm just getting into the vibe. I'm like, okay, let's do this I mean, like how do you wake up one day and do you realize you can drum like that? Like how did that even happen? So I started playing drums from stories that my grandmother used to tell me. Yeah, and You know from the stories that she used to tell me I learned how to listen very keenly to sounds around the environment She used to be like, you know, she was a really really good storyteller I had to tell me all these stories and then I was a very very curious child and so I kept on bugging her to tell me more and more and she learned how to keep me away Because So she would tell me hey, I will go to that corner and try and listen to what's going on there and I would go down try and listen and listen and Nothing would be happening that be like And I'd go back and on and on and on and the the more I went back the more I tried to listen even keenly more deeper and I started hearing sounds from the environment as I tried to listen to this secret that was not happening So I would hear like, you know the wind howling in the trees I would hear crickets I would hear people laughing and you know in the center of where all these sounds are happening I started hearing rhythm. Yeah, and then I tried to replicate those sounds that I was hearing on my, you know My my ties my legs my chest Yeah, and I was really really tiny I didn't have any drums. I didn't even know what drums were I was about, you know, six years old by then It was a really long time ago. Yeah. Yeah. So, um, you know, as I tried replicating the sounds I grew up, you know, to be replicating sounds on tables chairs euphoria as glasses And now I replicate the sound But I want to know because like most of us would just be there and we'll never hear anything So how do you how do you get to a point where you block everything else? So you're just one with the environment I have to how long did that come about because I'm not gonna pick up on things I can't hear Totally because you've mastered that so You know, like in this studio, it's really really quiet, but if you listen keenly There's the sound of I think an AC happening Somewhere if you just like and there's also like the static of electricity you can hear it from like the bulbs and everything Wow, so I can hear that and it truly doesn't it's it's not Something that has a lot of work You just need to be very centered and very asked to what you are and what you're listening to at that point So you I would say you really have to concentrate right on what's going on and you'll be able to hear these sounds Moja moja and sort of like try to see I think in another one if you are not a percussionist in drama, I think you will be you know Those people that make our sounds they're like the bats chopping Yeah, I used like this Absolutely I would totally do that. Yeah, I love sounds. I love textures Yeah, I find colors in textures and signs, right But it's not always been that because I know like when you are like really young and you're trying to get this when you knew That was your niche and that's what you wanted to do It wasn't easy for you because back then growing up women weren't allowed to drum. Yeah. Yeah So talk about that. Yeah, I mean, you know, I deem something called Representation and examples to be a very important thing when you're a child and you see somebody on TV Rocking a stage and playing a guitar You always have an example to look at and you say, oh, I want to be like that when you don't have that then it becomes very difficult Because then you start thinking, okay, what's wrong with this thing that I want to do, you know Like for me, I never saw an example on TV I never saw an example around me in the community, you know where I lived I never saw a woman playing drums and you know, I was really worried to the point that you know I started thinking am I imagine something wrong, you know And because of this I actually hid this thing this talent this skill that I had from my parents I never let anybody know that I loved playing on, you know on I liked tapping on instruments or like, you know objects tables chairs what not and It's only until maybe when I finished compo It's very late in life very late in life is when you know, I started taking this seriously because I thought I really looked deep within and thought there must be there must be a reason why I like doing what I like doing But there also must be a reason why there not so many women who are doing what I like doing, you know And so I set out to research on you know women and drumming and women in music And I found out that you know in some of the cultures some of them in Africa Actually deemed drumming as taboo for women. Yeah, you know and not just drumming There's certain instruments like for example in Kenya. You don't see a lot of women playing the Oroo to Venya Titi Yeah, yeah the traditional Fido from Western Kenya You don't see a lot of women playing that and there's a lot of reasons traditionally and culturally why women don't do that Yeah, so, you know just learning a bit about culture and how drums, you know relates to our culture and tradition That I was able to sort of put my niche together and actually even start teaching women Yeah, pick up the drew the Expression, yeah, I was gonna ask you that is that we are it's mantra Yeah, it's a way to is born that you know, actually more to music was born from a need of I was actually lonely I was lonely because There weren't any other women playing. I couldn't see anybody else And you know like sometimes when you play for a long time or when you play, you know, like down in the coast to get blisters And sometimes it's really difficult to go to guys and tell them your Monsignor blisters, you know And I actually missed talking to a woman and telling a woman that yo I have blisters like there is a way that we Talk and understand each other and sort of just the way we handle each other as women and it was born from that need of being able To socialize with other women and express myself in a manner that someone else would understand So my two of my friends mathematics and mobutu came together and we started mantra So mantra is a space for women to come in and learn percussion to come in and learn drumming It's a one-year sort of like program where they come in and learn They just have to sign up so if anybody is interested in actually joining Mottra Yeah, just find us on Instagram at Mottra music you can DM us if you want to learn how to drum Yeah, there's no fee It's it's a thing that we do from our hearts because it's our way of giving back Amazing imagine training someone to do something you're passionate about for a whole year without even charging them anything That's really just a passion really And I saw that you tell your stories through drumming. Yeah, like drumming helps you tell your story How so maybe you could just explain to us a little bit. So You know, I haven't been I haven't been much of a speaker Yeah, and I've only become a speaker maybe say the last year and this year because of you know the release of my debut EP yeah, and I use the drum to express myself to express what's deep in me And I believe when you're telling a story, then you have to be very honest with telling the story and For me honesty lives in my heart deep in my soul. Yeah, and that's where rhythm comes from Right, so then when I say I tell my stories using the drum as my tool of expression and then I think it's self-explanatory to just say that this is The messenger of what I want to say and everything guys at home actually understand what we're talking about when we say that because I've seen you play and you're literally someone else because you're you're it's like you have This person so now like there's someone different that comes to and then they just like because you take over It's like you block out everything else and everyone else And I saw that in How cook how cook all you how cook all I saw that and I saw you and you just like going and going and going and That was really awesome to see you being in that space I have to immerse myself in my truth again, you know When when I play the drum It's the one place that I'm completely honest with myself Yeah, it's the one place that I truly exist as Kaseeva Yeah, and if you're keen then and if you listen you're able to tell what I'm trying to say Yeah And if you watch me play then you're truly inspired and get to know what I'm trying to to pass across right And how is how we are so how cook all yeah, because I'm very curious So how cook only is a form of art in Hawaii right That's actually quite overlooked and it's stories songs and poetry right aimed at ridiculing people But yeah in Hawaii it's used in Ridiculing people for a positive purpose I'll explain so say for example you have a Friend who likes cheating on their boyfriend. Yeah, and it's not cool Yeah, it's not and you don't know how to tell them that Excuse me character development is not And you can't you don't know how to approach them and tell them this so in Hawaii you hire somebody to For the for this person so that the person hired to compose the hako call it It's sort of like quote-in-quote like a verbal assassin and you they come in with all the poetry the words The the ridiculing words the ridiculing sayings to pass across a message Tell them you're like cheating is not cool So when I composed hako call it Yeah, I remember this one time because you know in this EP I'm actually telling stories of my experiences and the experiences other people so stories that have been told by other people Yeah, and this one time I was in Addis and I was seated in a cultural center and this guy comes and Starts singing for me and playing like this one string sort of instrument called the mosenko And so he's standing there playing the mosenko singing and guys are dying behind me. They're just laughing I'm like, what do you mean and they're like, you know, you had to go check it out Yeah, and then so I'm like yo guys like me turn when you what's going on And then come at this guy has been going on and on saying oh you're such a beautiful woman But I can't see a ring on your finger And retain you back in it and you have no idea I had no idea and then he's like I can see that you're a foreign you're a foreigner and I can see that you're not understanding what I'm saying Oh, how I would love to make And you know when I was thinking about this experience I remembered ah This ties in with Haku Kone because I had just researched Yeah, you know this this form of art because I do a lot of music research and just trying to learn like what people are up to You know outside Kenya and I came across Haku Kone So I was like wow this guy and Haku Kone have a similarity in terms of you know In like infusing humor and using you know satire Yeah to sort of address people and you know Haku Kone is also done in a public forum So imagine your friend being Nyoroshwad in a public forum You can read into the satire and the hidden things and now Ah, we are not Nyoroshwad because they are cheating It's like Mchungoano but sang Word man, word, word, yeah It's like Mchungoano but now it's sang, it's saying, it's poetry So if only Mchungoano was like aimed at educating somebody then it would a complete Haku Kone Now I want to talk about Ngewa but before we do that I think the camera is going to zoom into this one so that guys can see but before we get to that I want to talk about you're featured on Okay 100 Women And you're also featured on Ted That is so crazy, that is such a big achievement How do you even prep for a Ted talk Can you imagine talking to me like Ted You're like, excuse me Like, how was that experience for you and how did you prep for it and how did that come about So Ted is one of the things that I actually don't talk about much Because it's quite humbling that a musician, a percussionist from Kenya Just Kaseeva was a Ted And writing my Ted talk sort of took me a long while But it also took me through a very deep process of just reliving my life all over again in my head And just thinking about those times that I started drumming, how I started drumming Those painful times when maybe people would laugh at me or maybe people would tear my drums Or when I'd be told to sit like a lady because I would put her drum here And it was quite an experience coming up with that Ted talk But executing it was I think the hardest part for me because I don't prefer talking, I prefer playing So you have the whole idea in your mind but then how you let people know I think you did a great job, I checked it out and that was super amazing Being able to express yourself and in that place for other people to know your story And where you've come from, I think that was like real Yeah, it was scary but we did it And for you to be vulnerable also It's a good Ted talk, I mean it's a 1.2 million views now That's a lot Yeah, that's a lot of views And all these people just get to see your story and I'm sure you inspire a lot of people A lot of people will watch that and be very inspired Because if you're studying something that is not out there So you know people are afraid of what they don't know So they'll heckle you, they'll come at you, they're like what is this you're doing Normal, like everyone else Yeah, I'm sure people are very inspired with that And Ngewa, this is your EP, Six Tracks Yeah, talk to us about that Ngewa, actually it means stories in Kikamba Actually it's pronounced as Ngewa Ngewa Ngewa Yeah, so Ngewa means stories in Kikamba I'm from Eastern Kenya, I'm a proud ka Ngewa But most of all I am a Kenyan And I represent Kenyan stories, I represent African stories And I represent stories by women, for women And I also represent cultures that I have interacted with And stories that people have told me So I am sort of a messenger for stories as well So I recorded Ngewa from June last year Stark in the middle of the pandemic And we released it about four weeks ago So Ngewa is a month old It's very new, it's very new It's a month old now And Ngewa is about six, it's six tracks But it's only 15 minutes Short and sweet and quick Yeah, that's how people are now It's my forever generation I know our attention span is just like So I made a whole EP Just 15 minutes for your quick consumption Quick, quick, quick, quick, quick, quick As you finish It's six tracks, it's drum music Or you could say percussion music If anyone is watching and they don't know what percussion is So percussion is anything that you can hit Or strike, or rattle, or shake To produce a sound Like a drum, a whistle Do shakes count? Shakers, yeah Yeah, a clap Oh, yeah That's percussion All of that is percussion And you'll find all that Plus so many more elements in Ngewa Ngewa, this is perfect How much is it going for And where is it available Tell us So you can find Ngewa on all streaming platforms Whatever you use, iTunes, Spotify Deezer, Bombay It's on YouTube as well And there's a Firefire video for Hakko Kole Yeah, I love it Which is a performance video You should see her You should see her in her element I'm telling you guys Yeah, and if anybody wants a physical copy I mean, I'm not very big in physical copies Some people want that Some people just love that touch I prefer that because it's very personal If anybody wants a copy You can just hit me up on my IG That's Kasiwa Motua That's okay with socials Yeah, so my socials are Kasiwa Motua on IG, Facebook, Twitter Yeah Everywhere I'm actually not on TikTok Not yet Not yet I find TikTok to be very noisy Or you're a quiet person I spend my life playing And this is a lot of noise Yeah, I know I prefer a little bit of rest When I'm by myself But if anybody wants a physical copy Of Ngewa Just hit me up on my socials And I'll get it to you Oh, amazing Even in the diaspora We've already sent some copies out That's really amazing And it's different You know something that Many people are doing And we love different I would have asked about the story About the drumstick being in there But we don't have a lot of time So maybe just 10 seconds You can tell us about that Because we want you to perform for us again Cool Was it convenient? Because I don't have a place To keep them, let them go here How did you... You know, actually You are the first person To actually guess this right It was out of convenience That I lodged these sticks on my head Because at a performance I have so many things going on There's drums, there's shakers There's cowbells And some of them Usually need sticks to play So I just lost them Then you're... And then you get them back And you continue playing And then, you know Guys are like That lady with the chopstick I almost said chopstick And it works And it's very creative and different It's now become part of you It's here It's on the EP It's a brand now Out of convenience Out of convenience That's so amazing And thank you so much I wish you had more time We have a lot to talk about But unfortunately We have other things to do We still have a guest We have guys in Kisi We still need to play music But we'd love to have you I don't know But I'm sure we'll make time Until we can catch up From where we're stopping right now Thank you so much for coming too Thank you so much for having me Always a pleasure Anytime you want to stop by Just be like, yo bro I'm passing by I'm at the gate You're there in the studio Okay, let's do that thing And you're always welcome Alright, so maybe you played for us one last time Tell us what you're going to play for us next And then just, you know Role with it I'll just compose something Like on top of my head What I'm feeling Look at that Creativity I'm feeling kind of like I don't know I'm feeling like Loud it I'll literally definitely sign up For MOTRA That's amazing So thank you so much for coming It's been a pleasure having you on set Thank you Alright, so we have the Kisi guys On standby We're going to be coming back with them In a few just standby If you want to know what's happening On the ground Right now I'm heading over To Ken Kingsley Afanilo Kitu