Kusah (singer)

Last updated
Kusah
Kusah Wikipedia.jpg
Background information
Birth nameSalmin Ismail Hoza
Born Bumbuli, Tanga Region
Genres Bongo Flava • R&B
Occupation(s) Singer • Songwriter
InstrumentsVocals
Years active2018 - present
Partner(s)Aunt Ezekiel

Salmin Ismail Hoza, professionally known by his stage name Kusah, is a Tanzanian musician, singer and songwriter. He started getting attention as a songwriter but later rose to stardom after releasing songs such as Kelele, No Time, I Don't Care and I Wish [1] which made him a household name in Tanzania. [2]

Contents

Early life

Salmin Ismail was born in Bumbuli, Lushoto Tanga. As a child, Kusah became interested in music and entertainment where he used to sing in gatherings and even penned their school's anthem. After finishing high school Kusah landed in Dar es Salaam where he resided at his grandfather's house but later moved out of his grandfather's house to focus on his music career. [3]

As a singer, Kusah is usually described as a Bongo Flava artist, who also sometimes explores other genres like Afrobeats and Afro-Pop.

In 2022, Kusah was featured by the legendary and one of the founders of the Bongo Fleva genre Dully Sykes, in a song titled Do Do [1]

Career

Before his big break in the Tanzanian music industry, Kusah was a ghostwriter as he used to write songs for major A-List artists in Tanzania such as Ali Kiba, Nandy, Ben Pol, Ruby, Hamisa Mobeto and many others. [4]

Kusah became a household name after releasing Kelele featuring Ruby in 2018 and from there he released many successful singles such as I Don't Care, Nibebe, Mama Lao and I Wish which have amassed over 10 million streams on Boomplay. [5]

In September 2022, Kusah released his first project titled, Romantic EP featuring Nigeria's Johnny Drille and Kenya's Femi One. The project was critically acclaimed with Notjustok describing the EP as "Kusah's way of proving that he is the next Bongo Fleva Biggest Music Export." [6] [7]

In 2022 he was nominated in The Tanzanian Music Awards as The Best Upcoming Artist and in the same year, he was ranked by various publications as one of the best upcoming artists in Tanzania 2022. [8]

Personal life

Kusah is dating Tanzanian Bongo Movie Actress Known, as Aunty Ezekiel and the two are blessed with 2 kids. Their relationship is public and is usually a hot topic in the Tanzanian media. [9]

Discography

ft ruby

Related Research Articles

Bongo Flava is a nickname for Tanzanian music. The genre developed in the 1990s, mainly as a derivative of American hip hop and traditional Tanzanian styles such as taarab and dansi, with additional influences from reggae, R&B, and afrobeats, to form a unique style of music. Lyrics are usually in Swahili or English, although increasingly from mid 2000s there has been limited use of words from Sub-Saharan African music traditions due to the influence of Afrobeats and Kwaito with their dynamics usage of West African Pidgin English, Nigerian Pidgin or other Creole language.


Tanzanian Hip-hop, which is sometimes referred to Bongo Flava by many outside of Tanzania's hip hop community, encompasses a large variety of different sounds, but it is particularly known for heavy synth riffs and an incorporation of Tanzanian pop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dully Sykes</span> Tanzanian musician (born 1980)

Dully Sykes is a Tanzanian Bongo Flava musician, songwriter, record producer and composer.

Tanzania Music Awards are national music awards held annually in Tanzania. They are also known as the Kilimanjaro Music Awards or the Kili Music Awards after their sponsor. The awards were established in 1999 by the National Arts Council (BASATA) under the Tanzanian Ministry of Education and Culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diamond Platnumz</span> Tanzanian singer, dancer, philanthropist and businessman

Naseeb Abdul Juma Issack, popularly known by his stage name Diamond Platnumz, is a Tanzanian bongo flava recording artist, dancer, philanthropist and businessman. He is the founder and CEO of WCB Wasafi Record Label, Wasafi Bet and Wasafi Media. Diamond has gained a massive following in East and Central Africa. He became the first Africa-based artist to reach 900 million views on YouTube.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harmonize (singer)</span> Tanzanian musician

Rajab Abdul Kahali, also known by his stage name Harmonize, is a Tanzanian Bongo Flava artist, singer, songwriter and entrepreneur.

Raymond Shaban Mwakyusa, better known by his stage name Rayvanny, is a Tanzanian musician, songwriter and recording artist who was signed under WCB Wasafi record label until July 2022. He was born and raised in Nzovwe ward of Mbeya city, located in Mbeya Region. He is the most successful bongo flava musician in Tanzania from Mbeya region. He is the founder and CEO of Next Level Music. Rayvanny is best known by his song "Kwetu", which introduced him to the world. Rayvanny was mentioned by MTV Base among "Acts To Look Out For" in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nandy (singer)</span> Tanzanian musician

Faustina Charles Mfinanga, popularly known by her stage name Nandy is a Tanzanian singer, songwriter and actress. She was born and raised in the town of Moshi, Tanzania in Kilimanjaro Region. She won the All Africa Music Awards twice in the best female artist in East Africa category in 2017 and 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nedy Music</span> Musical artist

Said Seif Ally popularly known as Nedy Music, is a singer and songwriter of Afropop, Zouk and Bongo Flava music from Tanzania. He is known for his single "Usiende Mbali". Nedy was nominated on Afrima Awards in 2018 and won on a category of "African Fans favourite".

Zuhura Othman Soud better known by her stage name Zuchu, is a Tanzanian singer and songwriter born in Zanzibar. She is based in Dar es Salaam and signed to WCB Wasafi record label. She was awarded the Silver Plaque Button by YouTube for hitting 100,000 subscribers within a week. She became the first East African female artist to reach that milestone within a week. She also became the first East African female artist to reach 1 million subscribers on YouTube 11 months later. In 2020 Zuchu was named by AFRIMMA as the winner of the Emerging Artist Award.

William Nicholaus Lyimo, popularly known by his stage name Bill Nass, is a Tanzanian rapper of Chagga heritage, he was born in Tanga, Tanga Region. MTV Base named him among the "50 Artists To Watch For In 2017". He is currently based in Dar es Salaam. Months after the release of his debut single "Raha", Lyimo was nominated on 2015's Kilimanjaro Tanzania Music Awards (KTMA) as a "New Best Artist".

Hamis Mwinjuma, also known as (MwanaFA) is a Tanzanian musician and politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S2Kizzy</span> Tanzanian Record Producer (born 1995)

Salmin Kasimu Maengo, popularly known by his producer-artist name S2KIZZY, is a Tanzanian record producer and songwriter. He is best known for producing Bongo Flava songs "Amaboko" by Diamond Platnumz, and "Tetema" by Rayvanny. He has produced albums for and overseen the careers of Diamond Platnumz, Rayvanny, Bill Nass and Vanessa Mdee. He is credited as a 'super-producer' in contemporary Bongo-Flava, Bongo-Trap, Afrobeats and Afro-pop.

Nadia Mukami is a Kenyan singer and songwriter known for her hit singles "Si Rahisi", and "Radio Love", featuring Arrow Bwoy. She released her debut EP, African Popstar, in October 2020. She is the founder of the Kenyan record label "Sevens Creative Hub".

Nyamari Ongegu, known professionally as Nyashinski, is a Kenyan rapper and songwriter. He is a co-founding member of the hip-hop trio Kleptomaniax.

Omary Ally Mwanga, known professionally as Marioo, is a Tanzanian singer, songwriter, poet, and music producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnaba Classic</span> Tanzanian singer-songwriter

Elias Barnabas Inyasi who is predominantly known by his stage names, Barnaba Classic and Barnaba boy is a singer, songwriter and performer from Tanzania.

Albert Keneth Mangweha who used aliases; Ngwair, Mangwea, Mangwair, and Ngwea was a Tanzanian hip hop artist predominantly known for his freestyle punchlines and hardcore rap style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RJ The DJ</span> Tanzanian DJ

Romeo George alias RJ The DJ and Romy Jon(e)s is a Tanzanian DJ, record producer and television actor.

Marianne Namshali Mdee popularly known by her stage name Mimi Mars is a Tanzanian singer, actress and media personality.

References

  1. 1 2 TZA, Edwin. "Mkali Kusah katuletea video mpya 'I wish' mastaa mbalimbali waonekana". Millard Ayo. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  2. ↑ Godson, Asiama (2022-04-09). "Kusah Biography, Music, Videos, Booking". ProfileAbility. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  3. ↑ "Salama Na: SE7EP31 - SALAMA NA KUSAH | NG'WANA AZAIZA!! on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  4. ↑ "Nyimbo Mpya: Rayvanny 'New Chui' EP, Alikiba 'Bwana Mdogo' na Ngoma Zingine Mpya Zilizoachiwa Bongo Wiki Hii ⚜ Latest music news online". mdundo.com. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  5. ↑ Maganga, Charles (2022-10-20). "Kusah's I Wish Clocks 10 Million Streams On Boomplay, Makes A New Record | SEE DETAILS". Latest East African & Bongo Flava Music, Songs & Video - Notjustok. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  6. ↑ Maganga, Charles (2022-09-13). "The Tracklist For Kusah's Romantic EP Is Finally Out With Major Collaborations From Nigeria And Kenya| SEE DETAILS". Latest East African & Bongo Flava Music, Songs & Video - Notjustok. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  7. ↑ Maganga, Charles (2022-10-18). "In Romantic EP, Kusah Proves He Is The Next Bongo Fleva Biggest Music Export| Read Review". Latest East African & Bongo Flava Music, Songs & Video - Notjustok. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  8. ↑ "Tanzania Music Awards", Wikipedia, 2023-02-12, retrieved 2023-02-13
  9. ↑ "Kusah afunguka ndoa yake na Aunty Ezekiel | East Africa Television". eatv.tv. 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.