Wednesday, October 13, 2010

HOT NEWZEzz!

Ugandan hip-hop artist Navio, Zambia’s biggest super star JK, Tanzanian heartthrob Alikiba, Ghanaian trio 4x4 and Gabonese Hip Hop duo Movaizhaleine have joined forces and started recording a single and an album. However before they get down to the final recording and shooting of the video, rumors are flying from Nigeria to Kenya as to who will be next to join them in the ONE8 group.

Combining genres, sounds, voices and audiences, ONE8 is the ultimate all into one powerful musical force that is rumored to be causing waves in the international world, with a top Chicago based US artist ready to jump on board as well as many other top African artists. Who will be next…..watch this space.

The track is being produced by an undisclosed top international producer and will drop in November with a hot video featuring some of Africa’s hottest artists. The track & video will be rocking your radio, TV, web and mobile in one massive movement that will hit the streets soon.


2. WASIFU WA ALI KIBA NA WENZAKE
When it comes to the Tanzanian music style of Bongo Flava, (a combination of hip hop and traditional East African music), one man is at the top of the food chain. He goes by the name Alikiba and he is fast becoming an internationally recognised star. Alikiba’s Bongo Flava style is largely influenced “Zouk” music which has it’s origins in the Caribbean Islands. “Zouk” means “party” or “festival” in Antillean Creole and that is exactly what the music of Alikiba is all about.

Alikiba’s first album was released in 2008 and shortly after it hit shelves the album became one the top selling albums in East Africa. Its main feature was the hit “Cinderella,” the popularity of which propelled him on a whirlwind tour of the UK and the US.

In 2009 Alikiba released his second album entitled “Ali K 4Real” which saw him nominated for two extremely prestigious awards in the UK. The first award that the Swahili speaking artist was recognised for was the Best East African Artist at the African Music Awards for 2009. Alikiba was then nominated for Best International Act at the BEFFTA Awards, (Black Entertainment, Film, Fashion, Television and Arts Awards) which was held at the London Hilton Metropol.

With a career on the rise, Alikiba will bring a unique style and flair to the ONE8 music project.

4x4 is made up of strangely named trio consisting of Captain Planet, Fresh Prince and Abortion. Captain Planet's real name is Sylvanus Dodji Jeoffrey and Abortion was christened Raphael Edem Avornyo. Fresh Prince’s real name is Prince Tamakloe.

4X4 is a rap group mentored by hip-life duo Buk Bak (Bright and Rooney). They released their first album ‘Siklitele’ in 2003, followed by a second album ‘Contestant Number 1’ in 2007. The group explain that they choose the name 4×4 because the whole crew was elevated by four minds: Bright, Ronny, Captain Planet and Abortion.
4X4, was initially a duo, later bringing Fresh Prince (Prince Tamakloe) on board to feature on their 2007 hit ‘HotGirls.com’ eventually joining the group permanently to make it a trio.
Under the watchful eye of Ronnie Coches and Bright Bling Sparkles (Buk Bak) the group has made a massive name for themselves in the Ghanaian music scene.
Captain Planet is the first person to rap in Ghanaian vernacular languages which include Akuapem, Twi, Ga, Ewe, and Pidgin English.
Abortion, who is a ragga artist, started rapping with a group called Kokorokoo in high school which featured Ghana's premier Akuapem rapper, Pope Skinnie. Captain Planet also started rapping in secondary school with a group called the Wu Clan. He was discovered by Buk Bak after being featured on a television programme called Kiddafest.
As great role models to the youth in Ghana, the members of 4x4 have worked extremely hard to get where they are today. Captain Planet has a degree in Advanced Marketing while Abortion studied his dream career of being an architect at ATTC.
Their latest album, Hotgirls.com is a blend of foreign touch (hip hop style) but with a local dialect and dancehall flavour. Speaking to Ghanaian media, they stated that ‘we have introduced this new blend of foreign touch (hip hop style) with local dialect and dancehall to sound different, more productive and very hot. The album is going to be launched in some tertiary institutions like University of Ghana, Legon, Kwame Nkrumah of Science and Technology and Cape Coast University.”
“We have decided to launch the album in tertiary institutions because our target audience are the youth and the best place to reach their hearts is to be at their doorsteps in their various institutions”, they said.
We are sure that their great example to the youth mixed with their pride for their country will see 4x4 fit perfectly into the One8 project.

Daniel Kigozi aka Navio is one of the biggest hip hop names in Uganda. Navio has been at the forefront of developing the country’s bourgeoning hip hop scene over the last ten years and has made huge strides in pushing the genre to new heights in East Africa.

It started in the year 2000 when Navio and four fellow performers began singing and rapping in karaoke bars around Kampala where they soon began drawing crowds to their riveting performances.

The 5 rappers formed the group “Klear Kut” and caught the eye of local producer Steve Jean who helped them recorded their first single “Nothin’ Wrong Wit’ A Lil’ Doe’” The song was well received by the Ugandan public and this made “Klear Kut” the first local hip hop group to be accepted by mainstream critics.

Navio and Klear Kut then teamed up with Dawoo and Daudi Productions to record their full length album. The single “All I Wanna Know” which featured Juliana, made it to the top of the charts in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. The video for “All I Wanna Know” also pioneered modern video production in Uganda. It earned the group two nominations at the prestigious 2002 Kora All Africa Music Awards in the “Most Promising African Group” and “Revelation of the Year” categories. This also made them the first Ugandan group to be nominated at the KORA’s.
Klear Kut was also nominated at the 2003 Pearl of Africa Music Awards and won the award for “Best Hip Hop Group.” The group then released a second album, “K2”, which featured the hit single “Mon Coeur/Murder of Crows.” The video was on heavy rotation on WBS as well as TV Africa before the station's demise. The video also topped the EATV Top 10 music video charts and would further create new records by being the first Ugandan music video to be featured on MTV [1]. The album features Bebe Cool, TID, Benon, Rania, E-Von & Poetic.
Navio had by this stage developed his own individual style which he termed “Uga-flow” and in 2009 he launched his first solo album “Half the Legend.” Having spent six years in South Africa, Navio is excited to be back home revitalising what he feels is a homogenous music scene. Through continued solo projects, work with his group Klear Kut and further collaborations, Navio will continue to develop the East African hip hop sound.
This proudly Ugandan singer will definitely have a passionate and creative style to offer the One8 project.

One of the continents most successful rap stories, ex-pats Movaizhaleine, now residing in Paris, France, have taken the African rap flag and are flying it high across the world for Gabon, and indeed the rest of the continent.
Consisting of two young conscientious rappers, Lord Ekomy Ndong and Maat Seigneur Lion, the group, also affectionately known as MH, began rapping together when still at high school - highly influenced by the activism on the continent at the time.
Musically the boys were sucked in by the sounds of reggae bands such as Burning Spear as well as the iconic hip-hop acts like NWA, Public Enemy and KRS One. Living in the heart of Gabon they were also shaped by listening to African bands such as Griot Mvett, Sacred Harp and Bwiti.
Strong believers in the rehabilitation of Black history, the duo started rapping about their views and in a short space of time became favourites on radio stations in Libreville, They formed their own independent record label Zorbam productions and released their first single – a track called Nyabinghi. In 1998 their first solo album Mission came out and was a ground breaking release for the African rap market, proving to the rappers they could achieve success through music.
In 2001 they released the follow up album Mission Akomplie which boasted collaborations with acts such as Patrick Nguema Ndong, Anthony Gussie and Annie Flore Batchiellilys. In 2003 the members took a short break to both release solo albums to great success, but this was by no means the end of MH. They came back hard and fast in 2005 with the album On Détient La Harpe Sacrée (Tome 1), again resulting in a best seller for the group.
Movaizhaleine also organizes events that reaffirm the fundamental values of African conscious hip-hop in Gabon. Their annual concert 'Le Show Du Pays' (the show of the country) is an important event on the local hip-hop scene.
In January 2007, MH assembled their own studio and recorded La Foret Des Abeilles (the Drill of the Bees). In late 2007, they released their 4th album 'TOME 2'. MH won the 2008 Video of the Year at the inaugural MTV MAMA Music Awards for their single “Nous”, despite the obvious political message in the track.
A pioneer of the Gabonese Hip Hop scene, MH is the longest-standing group in the rap community. With 4 top selling albums under their belt and more than a hundred spectacular showcases in Africa and France, the group is still growing from strength to strength. Joining the ONE8 team is a natural move for these pan-African cultural leaders.

This proudly Ugandan singer will definitely have a passionate and creative style to offer the One8 project.

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