When music and romance blend

Dar es Salaam. Mixing business with pleasure is believed to be quite a dangerous path which if not well trod could lead to a catastrophe.

Tanzania’s music industry has grown in leaps and bounds in recent years and that growth has not been in isolation as global trends have not been left behind.

The entertainers have not only stopped at entertaining, they have gone further and included the dating game on their rich profiles.

Role models from whom they had to borrow a leaf from have not been in short supply with the likes of Jay Z and Beyonce, Drake and Rihanna (since parted ways), and Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton, who have mesmerised audiences with hit songs.

Navy Kenzo

In Tanzania’s Bongo Flava, ‘Navy Kenzo’ a group that is made up of Nahreel and Aika quickly comes to mind of couple that does more than just music.

The dynamic duo, who were unleashed into the limelight with the release of debut single ‘Chelewa’ are also known for their affection toward each other.

When they released their first mega international hit ‘Game’ they set the continent ablaze by its jamming beats, a quality that has become the cornerstone of Nahreel’s craftsmanship under ‘The Industry’ label.

The chemistry that Nahreel and Aika share not only in their songs, but their personal life, is what makes them the most successful Bongo Flava duo so far.

Even though they are yet to tie the knot, the couple is already building a house together in the suburban area of Mikocheni, an indication of their commitment to spend the rest of their lives together.

In an interview with a local TV station, Emmanuel Mkono aka Nahreel, talked of how he and Aika started living together when they had nothing but one mattress.

“I and Aika met in India when we were both pursuing our studies. We’ve been through a lot together through the years. We started with nothing,” said Nahreel, who is also a record producer and entrepreneur.

Aika on her part talked of a more personal relationship and how the couple manages to live together under one roof, and still do music.

“As a couple, we do argue, but we manage to resolve our differences amicably,” says Aika.

Theirs was something that started as a hobby as they both had different jobs.

“We later realised that our music was slowly going to waste. We then decided to come to Dar es Salaam and focus on music as a career,” says Nahreel.

Before they formed Navy Kenzo, Nahreel and Aika were part of group known as Pah One.

Under the group, they released a number of songs that had limited success; such as ‘I Wanna Get Paid’ featuring Kenyan rapper Shrekeezy, but later left the group following internal conflicts.

Today, Navy Kenzo is at the top of local and international charts. And they’ve successfully released their first album ‘Above In a Minute’ (AIM).

Navy Kenzo has been nominated in national and international awards. They’ve vied for nods at the MTV Africa Music awards for Best African group, pitting them against South Africa’s Micasa, and Kenya’s Sauti Sol, eventually losing to the latter in last year’s edition of the awards.

The Amazing

This might sound like stray talk from the grapevine yet there is quite a thin line between what meets the eye and what doesn’t.

Rapper Izzo Bizness made headlines in 2016 following his announcement of a new label called The Amazing which saw him team up with American-raised singer Abela.

Izzo Bizness who came to prominence through hit songs such as Rizi One and Love me made the decision to work with Abela Kibira after listening to her vocals. “My producer sent Abela a beat, and asked her to put in her vocals. She did an amazing job so I decided to work with her,” he was once quoted.

Bizness and Abela first met on social media; where she hinted to him her desire to become a musician and went on to reveal her vocal skills to him and his producer.

The beautiful singer went on to give up her dreams in the US and came to Tanzania to realize the dream of working with Izzo Bizness.

Though still a group trying to find ground in the local music scene, Abela and Bizness have so far released two songs under The Amazing brand; ‘ Umeniweza’ and ‘Dangerous Boy’ that have done relatively well. But even as Bizness and Abela have tried to keep their personal life private their body language seems to give plenty of ammunitions to the gossip world that continue to speculate.

Lady Jaydee and Spicy

In December when Dar’s glitterati gathered at the Mlimani City Hall for the East Africa TV they perhaps got more than what they had bargained for.

Having officially divorced her husband her relationship status remained a mystery and on most occasion mere speculation with plenty of gossip doing rounds.

To show that she had moved on from her previous marriage she made it clear, she had a new babe from Naija called Spicy. They have made several public appearances in Dar es Salaam and elsewhere and to confirm that it was more than just some whirlwind romance, the duo released a remix version of ‘Together’.

It is a song that has gone on to garner plenty of airplay on local radio and TV stations confirming the power that the couple possesses.

Vanessa Mdee and Jux

Tanzania’s sweetheart Vanessa Mdee and RnB artiste Juma Mkambala aka Jux’s romance has been around for some time now.

Theirs has been a low key relationship as they have put their careers ahead of their pleasures sometimes preferring to keep most of it under wraps.

Vanessa has been at the top of her game since she made her début over 5 years ago. Since then, she’s released hits that have put her on the same pedestal with the likes of Yemi Alade, Victoria Kimani and Tiwa Savage.

Along her illustrious career, Vanessa has managed to earn recognition by being nominated among the best female musicians in Africa twice, both times losing to Nigeria’s Yemi Alade. In East Africa however, she remains the crème de la crème of the music business, managing to win regional and international awards that have cemented her status among the best female musicians to grace the East African music scene.

Jux might not be a staple name on the international music scene, but he holds a firm and devoted fan base in Tanzania. He is considered to be one of the best R&B singers in the game at the moment. Staying true to his given caliber, Jux has released soulful songs that have had fans, mostly women, yearning for more from the stylish musician.