Nahreel | |
---|---|
Birth name | Emmanuel Mkono |
Born | 1989 (age 34–35) Dar es Salaam, Tanzania |
Origin | Arusha |
Genres | Trip hop, dancehall, R&B, Afrobeat Hip hop |
Occupation(s) | Rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur |
Years active | 2008–present |
Labels | The Industry Studios |
Member of | NAVY KENZO |
Partner(s) | Aika Marealle |
Emmanuel Mkono (born 12 December 1989 in Dar es Salaam), known by his stage name Nahreel, is a Tanzanian Afro beats / Dancehall recording artist and record producer.
He is the founder and current CEO of The Industry Studios. Nahreel is a co-founder and member of the music group Navy Kenzo. He has produced albums for and overseen the careers of many rappers and singers, including Vanessa Mdee, Joh Makini, Diamond Platnumz, Nikki wa pili, Navy Kenzo, Izzo Biznes, Gnako, K.O, Roma Shrekeezy., [1] He is credited as a key figure in the popularization of English rap in Tanzania.
Nahreel places his interest in music at the age of 14 when his father bought him a piano and a teacher to tutor him on how to play. [2] He officially began his career in music as an assistant music producer at Kama Kawa records in Dar es Salaam. He worked there for a period of two years before leaving to India to further his studies at Punjab College. His Riz One instrumental for Izzo Bizness, released under MJ Records, led the rapper Izzo Bizness to become one of the best-selling Tanzanian performing artists of 2009. The instrumental also led Nahreel to receive nominations for major awards and to meet the son of the President of the Republic of Tanzania, Ridhiwani Kikwete. [3] He was still in India at this time but the demand for his instrumentals was high back in Tanzania as many hip-hop artists were interested in working with him. [4] [5] [6]
In 2011, he completed his education in India and came back to Tanzania. He produced a couple of singles before joining a couple of his friends to form the music group Pah One. [7]
In August 2014, Nahreel opened his own company called The Industry. The Industry comprises The Industry studios (label, public relations, management) and the Industry School Of Music where he is able to establish all his years work in one. The Industry has since then worked upon many major projects with different companies and artists. The Industry label manages two artists including Wildad and rapper, Rosa Ree.
After the break up of Pah One, Nahreel together with Aika (his long time girlfriend) formed a group called Navy Kenzo [8] which became popular with their third single Chelewa [9] and managed to be a hit in Tanzania. They also managed to make other hits like Kamatia Chini, Game (ft Vanessa Mdee), feel good (ft Wildad), Lini (ft Alikiba), Morning (is the first track in their 2016 first ever album 'AIM-Above in a Minute') and Bajaj (ft Patoranking) katika (ft Diamond platinumz). The group managed to produce their first ever album 'ABOVE IN A MINUTE (AIM) featuring big names in Africa such as Patoranking, Alikiba and Vanessa Mdee.
List of awards received by Navy Kenzo
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Kamatia | Best Raggae Dancehall Video | Nominated | [10] |
Best East African Video | Nominated | [11] | ||
Best Group/Duo Video | Won | [12] |
Weusi is a hip hop music group composed of Joh Makini, Nikki wa pili, Gnako, Bonta and Lordeyes they are awarded for 2012–2013 best group at KTMA in Tanzania. Nahreel has been working with Joh Makini since 2007 and to date he has created over 10 songs that have also been awarded.
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.
The 12th edition of the Tanzania Music Awards took place at the Diamond Jubilee Hall in Dar es Salaam, on Saturday March 26, 2011. Bongo Flava artist 20 Percent was the big winner of the night with five trophies out of seven nominations. The artist himself was not present and he was represented by his producer Man Water. Winner Lady Jaydee was also absent during the Award ceremony and a fan collected the two awards on her behalf. The artist later stated she had not received an invitation for the event. Singer Diamond Platnumz, who won three awards in the 2010 Tanzania Music Awards was nominated in four categories, although he was among those who left empty-handed.
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Vanessa Hau Mdee, is a Tanzanian singer, rapper, television personality and radio host. Mdee is popularly known for being the first ever Tanzanian MTV VJ. She later rose to prominence as a radio and TV host, hosting Epic Bongo Star Search and Dume Challenge for ITV Tanzania before signing to B'Hits Music Group in late 2012.
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