Simba Wanyika was a Kenyan based band created in 1971 by Tanzanian brothers Wilson Kinyonga and George Kinyonga, and disbanded in 1994. Simba Wanyika and its two offshoots, Les Wanyika and Super Wanyika Stars, became some of the most popular bands in Kenya. Their guitar-driven sound, inspired by the Soukous guitarist Dr. Nico, combined highly melodic rumba with lyrics sung in Swahili. Simba wa nyika means "Lions of the Savannah" in Swahili.
Music listened by Tanzanians stretches from (Bolingo) traditional African music to the string-based taarab to a distinctive hip hop known as bongo flava.
Cozy Powell was an English rock drummer, who made his name with many major rock bands and artists like The Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow, Gary Moore, Robert Plant, Brian May, Whitesnake, Emerson, Lake & Powell, and Black Sabbath.
The Mad Capsule Markets were a Japanese band that formed in 1985 and were active until 2006. The band became known for their experimental style, which melded various kinds of electronic music and punk rock.
Icon is an American heavy metal/glam metal band that formed in 1979, disbanding in 1990. Icon has fully reformed as of 2008, currently consisting of three-fifths of the classic lineup: Dan Wexler (guitar), Stephen Clifford, and John Aquilino (guitar), along with Dave Henzerling (bass) and Gary Bruzzese (drums).
Midtown was an American pop punk band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Midtown was formed in November 1998 by three Rutgers University students, but soon became a quartet. The group released three full-length studio albums and three extended plays before disbanding in 2005. In early 2014, Midtown reunited to play three shows, the first as a secret show at The Knitting Factory in Brooklyn, and the two remaining at the Skate And Surf Festival.
John Reis and also known by the pseudonyms Speedo, Slasher, and The Swami is an American musician, singer, guitarist, record label owner, and disc jockey. He is best known as the singer and guitarist for the rock band Rocket from the Crypt, which he formed and fronted for the entirety of its career from 1990 to 2005. Prior to this he was the guitarist in the post-hardcore band Pitchfork, and also played in Drive Like Jehu during the early 1990s. In 1999 he formed the Hot Snakes, and in 2000 also formed the Sultans, in which he sang and originally played bass before switching to rhythm guitar. He played in both these bands until their breakups in 2005 and 2007 respectively. He also released a solo recording under the name Back Off Cupids, which was recorded in 1994 but not released until 1999. Over the years he has performed in many other musical acts including Conservative Itch, Stacatto Reads, Custom Floor, and Beehive & the Barracudas. He is the owner of Swami Records, a label he founded in 1999. He frequently works with bands in a studio capacity and releases albums by many southern California groups through his label. He also hosts the "Swami Sound System" program. Reis remains an influential figure in the San Diego underground music community and is currently performing with a new band named The Night Marchers.
Congolese rumba, also known as Rumba Lingala after its predominant language, is a popular genre of dance music which originated in the Congo basin during the 1940s, with strong similarities to Cuban son. The style gained popularity throughout Africa during the 1960s and 1970s.
Kevin Omondi Migot better known for his stage name Dola Kabarry is a benga musician from Kenya. He leads the band Orchestra Super Haki Haki. His songs are mainly in Dholuo language.
The Cuban Marimba Band was an influential Tanzanian big band from the city of Morogoro. It was founded in 1948 by Salim Abdullah, who had previously created another band called Morogoro Jazz Band .Salum Abdallah was a prolific songwriter and musician. He was a "chotara" i.e. a person of mixed races. His band's name speaks volumes on the influence of Cuban music in the 40s and 50s in East Africa. He played guitar and mandolin. The main themes of his music were, the joy and pain of love, life wisdom, the good and evil of man kind and even politics. For about twenty years, until Abdullah's sudden death in a car accident in 1965, Cuban Marimba was one of the most popular muziki wa dansi bands in Tanzania. One of his popular tunes is Mkono wa Idd, which is usually played in the radio during Idd festivities. Just before his death, he released a twist tune, a departure from his suave rumba style," Hapo zamani sana" about the horrible colonial days in South Africa. Then in another, he paid tribute to Tanzanian women, "Wanawake wa Tanzania wazuri sana." Abdullah was replaced by Juma Kilaza, but the band declined.
DDC Mlimani Park Orchestra has been one of the most popular Tanzanian muziki wa dansi bands.
Morogoro Jazz Band, also known as K.Z. Morogoro Jazz Band, was a seminal muziki wa dansi band from Morogoro, Tanzania. The band originally played live at the clubs and bars of Morogoro and became very popular in the 1960s and 1970s, receiving considerable airplay from Tanzanian radio stations. The leader of the band was guitarist Mbaraka Mwinshehe, who dropped out of school to join the band in 1965. Coincidentally, the band was formed the same year Mwinsheshe was born, in 1944. The original lineup of the band featured Makala Kindamile, Joseph Thomas, Seif Ally, Daudi Ally and Shaabana Mwambe. Salim Abdullah, who would later found Cuban Marimba Band, was also an early member of the band.
Msondo Ngoma is an influential and long-lived Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band. Having been established in 1964, it is the oldest active dansi band in Tanzania.
Vijana Jazz Orchestra is a Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band that reached its peak of popularity in the 1980s. As with many other dansi bands of the times, it was sponsored by a government institution, namely the Umoja wa Vijana, i.e., the youth wing of Tanzania's ruling party Tanganyika African National Union (TANU).
Bangladeshi rock or Bangla rock has its roots in 1960s and 1970s rock and roll. Bangladeshi rock music was influenced by the American and British rock and roll music. In the 1960s, blues rock was introduced by Zinga, The Windy Side of Care, The Lightnings, Rambling Stones etc. From early to mid 1970s pop rock music was introduced by Uchcharon, Souls, Feedback and Miles. In the 1980s number of subgenres such as hard rock and heavy metal was introduced. In the 1990s hard rock and heavy metal broke through the mainstream with bands like LRB, Feelings, Ark and Warfaze etc.
Sauti Sol is a Kenyan afro-pop band formed in Nairobi by vocalists Bien-Aimé Baraza, Willis Chimano and Savara Mudigi in 2005. Initially an a cappella group, guitarist Polycarp Otieno joined before they named themselves Sauti.
Tabora Sound Band, formerly known as Tabora Jazz, is a seminal Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band based in Tabora and led by guitarist Shem Ibrahim Karenga. In the 1970s, their song Dada Asha was a major hit in Tanzania and East Africa. They disbanded in the late 1970s but were later reformed by Karenga.
