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.
The 13th edition of the Tanzania Music Awards took place at the Mlimani City Conference Center in Dar es Salaam, on Saturday 14 April 2012. The event was anchored by Vanessa Mdee and Millard Ayo. The nominees were announced on 8 February 2012 with Bongo Flava artist Diamond Platnumz topping the list with seven nominations. Two days after the list was released, four-time nominee Dully Sykes announced his withdrawal from the event. He stated 'it does not contribute to my growth whatsoever, and this contest is full of lies'. After leaving the 2011 Tanzania Music Awards empty-handed, Diamond Platnumz made a return by winning three awards, including Best Male Artist and Best Video.
The 11th edition of the Tanzania Music Awards took place at the Diamond Jubilee Hall in Dar es Salaam, on Friday 14 May 2010. The event was anchored by Jokate Mwegelo. Bongo Flava singer Diamond Platnumz was the big winner of the night with three awards out of four nominations, which is a remarkable result for a newcomer.
Emmanuel Mkono, known by his stage name Nahreel, is a Tanzanian Afro beats / Dancehall recording artist and record producer.
Naseeb Abdul Juma Issack, professionally known as 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.
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.
Victoria Kimani is a Kenyan singer, songwriter, and entertainer previously signed to the Nigerian record label Chocolate City. Her debut album was released in 2016.
Raymond Shaban, 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. His songs are mainly in Swahili. 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.
A Boy from Tandale is the third studio album by Tanzanian singer Diamond Platnumz - following Kamwambie (2010) and Lala Salama (2012). It was released on March 14, 2018, by Universal Music Group. After joining Universal Music Group in 2017, Diamond began working on the songs which would be used on the album. Musically, A Boy from Tandale is an afro-pop, Bongo Flava album that displays influences of music from West of Africa - especially Nigeria.
Said Seif Ally popularly known as Nedy Music, is an Afropop, Zouk and Bongo Flava music singer and songwriter 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, born 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 Emerging Artist Award winner.
Omary Rajabu Tambwe is a Tanzanian media personality, Content Creator, Brand Influencer and entrepreneur. Known as Lil Ommy, he is known for hosting “The Switch” a radio show about music, news, and culture programming. He also host “Big Sunday Live”, a TV show on Wasafi TV.
"Wasted Energy" is a song by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys featuring Tanzanian recording artist Diamond Platnumz. It was written by Keys, Richard Isong, Ariowa Irosogie, Nathaniel Warner, Kali McLoughlin and produced by P2J, and released on Keys' seventh studio album Alicia (2020). A remixed version of the song featuring American singer and songwriter Kaash Paige was released a single from the digital reissue of the album on December 17, 2020.
Juma Mussa Mkambala, known professionally by his stage name Jux, is a Tanzanian artist and songwriter.
Kenned David Sanga, also known by his pseudonym "Director Kenny", Tanzanian music video director, cinematographer and film director from Dar es salaam, Tanzania.
Elias Barnabas Inyasi who is predominantly known by his stage names, Barnaba Classic and Barnaba boy is a singer, songwriter and performer from Tanzania.
Mwanahawa Abdul Juma better known by her stage name Queen Darleen is a Tanzanian singer signed under WCB Wasafi.
John Simon Mseke, popularly known by his stage name Joh Makini, is a Tanzanian hip hop recording artist and composer.
Tetema is a song recorded by Tanzanian singer Rayvanny included as the second song in his debut studio album, Sound From Africa (2021). It was officially released by WCB Wasafi on February 20, 2019. The track features Tanzanian singer Diamond Platnumz.
