Watendawili: The Power of Trying Again
“Locked-in” would be an understatement in trying to describe just how ready to show and tell their story Watendawili is. Nairobi’s hottest pop duo has been grinding for years and with all the attention they’ve been garnering in the scene over the last year it doesn’t look like it’s going to stop. Composed of Israel Onyach and Eugine Ywaya, Watendawili as we know them today has existed for the last 4 years. The now duo previously existed as a trio releasing music and performing under the name, Kazkazini and were signed to Kenya’s biggest boy-band, Sauti Sol’s record label, Sol Generation. They Speak of their time at SolGen with gratitude. The environment opened up their minds and eyes to all that the music industry could offer them and has functioned as a launching pad for the success they are garnering today.
But let’s take it a little further back. The pair, Israel and Ywaya, first encountered each other at an open mic in which they were both performing. Israel was there performing with his guitar and another friend and immediately Ywaya saw them, he knew that those were people he should know. Ywaya later graced the stage as the last act of the night. The young man hoped to impress the crowd with a performance of his own spoken word poetry. However they were so uninterested, the crew began setting down the stage in the middle of his act. Though this did not stop his future musical partner, Israel from witnessing his gift. The two exchanged greetings after the show, each impressed with the other's performance and rode the bus home together. Nairobi city’s traffic jams and lack of patience cause the young men to alight and walk the rest of their journeys home. They chatted and bonded over their love of music and JP Cooper and hoped to collaborate soon.
It was months before the two reunited again, but reunite they did. Ywaya was struck by Israel’s performance that first day and began calling the young musician over to his home to play guitar and jam together. Backed by Israel’s guitar, he would perform his spoken word for his friend. It was in these jam sessions that he would experiment with using his voice as a melodic instrument. Israel’s encouragement and his desire to grow allowed him to open his mind to the possibility of singing. Israel was so impressed he encouraged his friend to audition for the then popular Sauti Academy, a live performance education program. Ywaya agreed, but the two had to go together, and so they auditioned under the name, “The Ones”. Their genius was obvious and the two acquired a scholarship to be a part of the prestigious program, launching their careers as performing and recording artists in Nairobi. Their time at the Sauti Academy got them noticed by the hottest commodity in Kenyan music, Sauti Sol and the group now with their 3rd member Chris Clave was signed to their record label Sol Generation.
While SolGen was a blessing for the young artists looking for a start, it came with its own set of difficulties. Polarised visions and differing ideas of their future led the group’s dynamic to crumble. The guys had entered into this game to pursue music and share in their love of the medium with each other. But the fast-paced, commercialised version of what was meant to be their passion was not what they had set out to do. Israel speaks of the time remembering the pressure he felt to perform, to conform to an image and output music that didn’t speak as closely to his heart. “Being an artist means you’re an instrument and no instrument can serve their true purpose once they’ve lost their sense of self,” comments Israel. Ywaya shares a similar sentiment in that the new environment drastically changed their creative process. The duo were used to it being just them and a guitar. The scene had changed and with it came more challenges than they would have expected. Their struggle was real and recognised by the team of professionals they worked with and a mutual understanding was reached. They would eventually come to end their contract with the biggest boy-band in East Africa and make it on their own.
Learning how to bounce back after such a major shift in careers was no easy feat. But like many other creatives, the Covid-19 pandemic offered the young artists time. They had time to write, time to experiment and time to figure out what it was that truly mattered to them as far as their music and the dynamic of the group was concerned. They knew that it was time to really hone in on their sound, and the two friends felt like it was time to change up their flow. A tense conversation and some much needed confrontation later, the two were now a duo and back to their original formation. Ywaya and Israel were now ready to take on the task of figuring out who Watendawili was going to be. In the beginning of 2020 over choppy Whatsapp calls, hours and hours were spent writing lyrics and bouncing ideas off of each other. These Whatsapp sessions were raw and real but marked a tough season of recalibration. Finding their voice after a period of feeling lost wasn’t easy, but they do speak of the time with nostalgia. They saw a lot of growth within themselves and their artistry and the music that came out of that time in something that brings the two pride.
Their sound can be described as afro-fusion, but must be observed in the context of when it was created. The two do not want to be placed in a box. Their sound and music ranges, from more acoustic folk inspired melodies, to clearly defined pop music and soulful songs inspired by their cultural roots and sung in their mother-tongue of Luo, expressing the vastness of their creativity and journeys apart and together. They write music about their lives and the lives of their friends. They write music about the people around them. They reflect the feelings and the facets of life that exist in closest proximity to them acting as a mirror for the people they write music for. Israel and Ywaya are from the streets. They write music for the streets for the ones who rode with them as they were coming up.
The two artists occupy two differing ends of the emotional spectrum. With Ywaya being less inclined to express himself in his day-to-day life and Israel often worried he’s being too vulnerable. Their creative process offers each member of the group the opportunity to hone in on their individual skills and the chance to grow themselves personally. “The music that I love making,makes me feel lighter on the inside like “Wow finally got that off my chest!,” says Ywaya in speaking on his experience making music as being one of release. He recognised early on that occupying a stage can keep people’s attention on you and you can convey whatever message you’d like and folks will listen.
Music gave him the platform to get his message out. “Israel allows the music to pass through him and gives him the room to be somebody else on stage. His message is heard however he is performing it, whether on a stage or through a track, he can use music as his mouthpiece and divorce himself from the pressure of being himself. The group also acts as a cover and protection for the duo. Playing music with your friend and sharing in the pain and the positives guards the young artists against the burden of public opinion. Watendawili is a safe haven for the two to truly express themselves through their art.
Experimenting is the true backbone of everything Watendawili makes. Their foray into music production was a result of their desire to gain control over their creative process. Working with producers that didn’t quite catch their sound or understand the vibe that they wanted to get out became frustrating for the pair. And in the wake of this frustration they both took their power back and in producing their own tracks and once again experimenting within their production, Watendawili began making music that really and truly inspired them. With a serendipity only displayed by the universe, divine timing brought them into the orbit of someone who would help and uplift the two to be able to release music they were proud of. The duo met Wuod Omollo in their Sol Gen days, and he was a producer that stuck by their vision and believed in the story they wanted to tell and how they saw it should come forward. Wuod Omollo is one of the minds behinds some of Watendawili’s biggest hits, “Cham Thum (Atoti)”, “Sio February Tu” and “Sio Siri”.
Seeing their dreams come true in real time is what keeps these two young artists going and watching their fans experience the music and interact with their stories inspires the two to keep on making the music they’ve fought to create. “Someone once told me… love what you do and it’ll love you back. Honestly, Watendawili’s journey is a true testament to that. Our fans have reciprocated the passion we have for our music time and time again without fail”, comments Israel. The new thresholds and milestones that have become available to them keep the fire alive and keeps us excited for what’s next. Israel and Ywaya’s joint slay and combined courage are what makes Watendawili the music powerhouse they have become and we can’t wait to keep seeing their growth.
