For H_art the Band, honesty, readiness to learn are keys to success
You would think that boy band H_art the Band, made up of Wachira ‘Skoko’ Gatama, Mordecai Mwini and Kenneth ‘Kenchez’ Muya, spent weeks in the studio carefully crafting the sound to their latest megahit Jaber.
But they said the song was actually an afterthought that took only a day to make, and would never even have made it to their third studio album, Simple Man.
In fact, the band was ready to leave Kisumu, where they had stayed for one week working on music projects, when they decided to stay one more day.
That decision was a blessing in disguise as they ended up recording the song with fellow singer Brizy Annechild.
H_art the Band.
“We went to Kisumu with our crew, including music producer Cedo and camped there for like a week and Jaber was actually like the last song we recorded,” Skoko said.
Cedo “had made a beat and we just jumped on it and Kenchez had heard about Brizy. Also he raised the curtain for us before during a show in Kisumu and we saw how good he was.”
The band, he said, wanted to work with someone to help them bring out the lake region culture. Jaber captured their Kisumu experience.
“The song was like a surprise baby, the child that was never planned for, but it turned out to be a very amazing baby.”
Pressure to top last song
Jaber is a Luo word meaning a beautiful girl. The song talks about how a man wants to spoil a woman with gifts and luxury treatments as an appreciation of her natural beauty.
If you listen carefully to the group’s music, you will notice that there is always some sort of story being told. They debuted with the hit song Uliza Kiatu, which earned them a huge fan base.
Skoko explained that their storytelling tendencies have something to do with their background as actors. He and Kenchez also have a past in poetry and spoken word, he said.
“Storytelling is also part of our Kenyan culture. Most of us grew up being told stories by our parents and grandparents, so it is something we are trying to also bring out in our art,” Kenchez said.
“Uliza Kiatu was all about the struggles an average man goes through every day to put food on the table for his family. I believe music should be a story.”
There was a time in 2019, they said, when things were not going well for them. They had captured the attention of fans, and with every new song, the bar was set much higher. The pressure to top the last song started to take a toll on them.
“Each one of us has a story of the struggles they went through growing up and where we are right now we know that a supernatural being is responsible,” Mordecai said.
“That is why we composed El Shaddai to give thanks to God. When we wrote that song things were not the way we wanted them to be. And as a public figure and someone who is in the limelight, the pressure can be overwhelming.”
Blessing in disguise
Matters became worse the following year when Covid-19 hit Kenya, resulting in lockdowns and the shutting down of social activities.
It was a difficult period for artistes as they found it hard to make their daily bread during the pandemic.
H_art the Band.
But this was not the case for H_art the Band, For them, Covid-19 came as a blessing in disguise.
“Of course the pandemic affected everyone, socially, economically, mentally, but we believe that nothing lasts forever and at the end of the day, life has to move on,” Mordecai said.
“So we found a way to survive and keep afloat. For example, we really tapped into virtual concerts, digital streaming of our music. These were areas that most Kenyan artistes were not actively exploiting.”
The pandemic opened up their minds to other revenue streams. “We launched our album in June on Hustle Sasa, and we sold more than we ever thought possible, and this was the first time we were selling our album as a digital copy.”
Music groups like Elani and Sauti Sol have proved that singing in a band actually works. This is especially true now in the entertainment industry, where backstabbing in order to move ahead is the order of the day.
Disagreements always exist, Mordecai said, but the band works to keep it real with each other, pushing themselves to the limit and remaining teachable.
The industry, they said, is making the right steps ahead and they believe that in the next few years more great things will happen BY DAILY NATION


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