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Ali Kiba signs deal with Sony

Bongo flava star Ali Kiba with Sean Watson, managing director of Sony Music Entertainment Africa, after signing a global recording agreement in Johannesburg yesterday. Story on Page 2. PHOTO | AGENCIES

What you need to know:

Bongo Flava heartthrob Ali Kiba yesterday made history after he was signed by record giants Sony Music Africa in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Dar es Salaam. Bongo Flava heartthrob Ali Kiba yesterday made history after he was signed by record giants Sony Music Africa in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Speaking at a press conference an elated Ali Kiba said the deal was a giant leap forward in music that many of his fans and himself had been looking forward to for many years.

“Today is a day when history is being made. I had always promised my fans that I would make them proud one day and I dedicated this to them for it calls for a celebration,” said Ali Kiba.

Ali Kiba, aka King, who made his return to music two years ago after a hiatus with Mwana, has since released hits such as Cheketua, Nagharamia, Unconditional Bae and Aje.

The Sony deal became one of the most trending topics on social media: ‘We’re through with the Sony Music International signing and you can watch my music video Aje,” wrote Ali Kiba on his twitter handle.

Recently his rivalry with Diamond Platnumz has been a major talking point as their “camps” jostled for supremacy on the local scene.

Before yesterday’s deal signing, Ali Kiba was with RockStar4000, a company that has its representatives in Tanzania, which was responsible for his 2010 One8 Project that saw him and other eight African stars record a song with RNB singer R Kelly.

It is still not clear how this new deal affects the first one or whether the two can co-exist. Ali Kiba, who has a large continental following, becomes the second Tanzanian to sign on the label after Nakaaya Sumari signed with the record giants in 2008. After her Mr Politician hit single, the singer never recorded any song on the label as the deal later aborted.

and no reason has been given to date for the premature collapse of the pact.

Sony Music Entertainment Inc is an American music corporation managed and operated by Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Sony Corporation.

Some of the label’s subsidiaries include Columbia Records, RCA Records, Epic Records, Sony Music UK, Sony Music Mexico, Sony Music Latin, Legacy Recordings and many others.