New Music on the Radar JUL 18 (Bien, HR the Messenger, Noisey Boi and Kethan)

New Music on the Radar JUL 18 (Bien, HR the Messenger, Noisey Boi and Kethan)

This week’s selection of standout Kenyan releases invites listeners into a world of emotional honesty, romantic reflection, and hard truths. Across the board, artists explore love in its most complex forms—love that heals, love that hurts, love that never quite arrived. These songs are soaked in longing, quiet epiphanies, and the sting of past disappointments. Some tracks feel like letters unsent, while others are declarations finally spoken out loud. There […]

July 18, 2025 74

Featured

New Music on the Radar JUL 11

This week’s new releases arrive like a refreshing breeze on a scorching afternoon — vibrant, layered, and bursting with stories that feel both intimate and universal. From witty bro codes to soul-stirring freedom chants, dance floor anthems to dreamy coastal escapes, Kenyan artists continue to redefine what it means to blend tradition with modern sound. Our roundup for July 11 dives into songs that refuse to sit quietly in the […]

July 12, 2025 46

Featured

New Music on the Radar JUL 4(Ochiko & Mbithi, Mnaya, MASTAR VK and Wakadinali)

Welcome to the July 4 edition of our music deep-dive, where we explore the beats, bars, and brilliance defining Kenya’s ever-evolving soundscape. From fearless street anthems to introspective protest psalms, this week’s selections remind us why Kenyan music remains both a mirror and a megaphone for society. Whether it’s Wakadinali’s sharp urban commentary, Mnaya’s spiritual defiance, or the playful yet defiant wordplay of MASTAR VK and Toxic Lyrikali, these songs […]

July 5, 2025 52

Album Review

Victims of Madnes 2.0 Early Impressions by Otieno Arudo

After nearly two months of cryptic tweets, late-night Instagram Lives, and snippets shared in dingy studio corners, Wakadinali’s Victims of Madness 2.0 has finally dropped — and it lands like a concrete slap on Nairobi’s underground rap scene. The Rong Rende collective, known for transforming street slang into anthems and drill cadences into cultural phenomena, teased this project as a return to their roots while simultaneously promising sonic reinvention. Fans […]

July 3, 2025 35

Article

New Music on the Radar June 21 (Buruklyn Boyz, Jovial & Otile Brown, Toxic Lyrilali and Gwaash)

Welcome to the June 20 edition of New Music on the Radar, where we track the pulse of Kenya’s evolving soundscape. This week’s roundup offers a diverse sonic buffet — from the sharpened symbolism of Buruklyn Boyz’s Machete, to the heartfelt vows exchanged in Jovial and Otile Brown’s wedding anthem I Got You. Toxic Lyrikali rides a Jamaican riddim into Nairobi’s lived reality on Backbencher, while Gwaash teams up with […]

June 20, 2025 76

Article

New Music on the Radar – JUN 13(Njerae,Asum Garvey, Fadhilee Itulya,Malosh)

This week’s picks are for the real lovers—four songs that stretch genre lines while staying rooted in local narratives. From soul-stirring Afro-Indie reflections and raw Swahili rap confessions to playful coastal ballads and high-energy dancefloor anthems, the JUN 13 edition of New Music on the Radar celebrates both musical experimentation and emotional honesty. Whether it’s Njerae reaching across continents, Asum Garvey switching cadence, Fadhilee Itulya revisiting ancestral grooves, or Malosh […]

June 13, 2025 48

Article

New Music on the Radar JUN 6 ( Matata, TheLuchi, Willy Paul, An21 KE)

Welcome dear readers to the first weekly music round up of June 2025.We feature a punchy raw rap single from An21 KE and Karis from the Recipe EP that debuted earlier this week on radio 254 exclusively. Two Alternative or (Odi Pop if you love genre names so much) have released songs with almost similar titles, Tiki Tako by Matata and Tikitaka by TheLuchi, what are the odds of that? […]

June 6, 2025 132

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Article

June 25th: Octopizzo Recalls History Through Sound

On May 30, 2025, Kenyan rap heavyweight Octopizzo released June 25th, a searing protest anthem that turns raw memory into art, recounting the youth-led anti-finance bill protests of 2024 and the brutal government crackdown that followed. Known for his evolution from braggadocious street rapper to a master of layered, socially conscious production, Octopizzo uses this latest release to craft a sonic historical record. This article offers an in-depth exploration of […]

June 2, 2025 109 2

Article

New Music on the Radar MAY 30 (Chimano, Zawadi, Llumi, King Kaka & More)

New Music on the Radar MAY 30 Zawadi Mukami is truly the gift that keeps on giving. Fresh off the Musings EP — released just earlier this month and already becoming a fan and critic favorite — the singer dives headfirst into the world of rap, delivering a strong, unexpected verse over a KiliHippie beat alongside BoiBlacc. What’s striking is how this release fits into a larger trend in Kenyan […]

May 30, 2025 74