As revellers prepare to celebrate the 22nd edition of the Lamu Cultural Festival this week, divisions have emerged among the elders concerning the trend by organisers to invite popular musicians from Tanzania to grace the event.
The elders perceive the musicians’ style of music popularly known as ‘Bongo Flava’ to be modern thus not corresponding to the local culture and Islamic traditions.
Abdalla Faraj, an elder, insists that every time there are performances by Bongo Flava artistes at the Mkunguni Square in Lamu Old Town, spectators, mostly the youth, have always ended up breaching the norms and intentions of the cultural event.
Mr Faraj also complained that sometimes the Bongo Flava artistes themselves breach the cultural taste of the event with lewd performances on stage.
Why Tanzania’s 'Bongo Flava' has divided Lamu elders
The Lamu Cultural Festival is an annual event celebrated to showcase the rich culture and heritage of the Swahili people of Lamu.
This year’s Lamu Cultural Festival will be held between Thursday, November 28th and Saturday, November 30th.
Event organisers have already announced that Tanzanian artistes Dennis Mwasele aka D Voice and Yammi (real name Yasirun Yassin Shaban) will grace the event.
Pedestrians go about their business on the streets of Lamu Island.
Photo credit: Kalume Kazungu | Nation Media Group
“Lamu Cultural Festival is all about celebrating, recognising and appreciating the culture of the people of Lamu who are the Swahili of Bajuni origin. We feel inviting or incorporating modern artistes is against the initial objectives of this festival,” said Mr Faraj.
“We, as elders, expect nothing less than the traditional exhibitions that make our community truly exceptional. In fact, the cultural event helps to make Lamu a beacon of cultural diversity and preservation. I don’t think bringing Tanzanian Bongo Flava artistes will in any way help achieve this target. We expect traditional dances like Goma la Lamu, Chama, Kirumbizi, Qasida and other showcases to grace our event," he added.
Ahmed Hussein, another elder, echoed Mr Faraj’s sentiments saying that the cultural festival should purely offer an insight into how life in the old days was in terms of lifestyle and other issues.
Concerns by the elders is believed to have stemmed from an incident in 2017 when Tanzanian music group Offside Trick had to be forcefully removed from the stage by event organisers over what was alleged to be an erotic dance.
Historically, Lamu is known for playing a key role in spreading Islam across Kenya and the East African Coast.
He expressed disappointment that every time Bongo Flava artistes’ concerts are organised during the Lamu Cultural Festival, both cultural and religious norms and traditions are always breached.
“This is the time you’ll witness men and women serenading themselves tightly and holding one another indecently in public podiums. There are those men and women who even end up doing erotic dances, including twerking in podiums. These performances have sometimes embarrassed us. It’s disrespectful to our culture and Islamic traditions. We will be happy if they are excluded in this year’s cultural fete,” said Mr Athman.
Other leaders, however, defended the decision by the cultural festival organisers to invite Bongo Flava artistes to preside over such celebrations.
Those who support this decision said the event attracts people from different demographics who observe different forms of entertainment.
Ghalib Alwy, who is the former chair and founder of the Lamu Cultural Festival Promotional Group, insisted that it is not bad to invite artistes from outside Lamu to grace such events since they add flavour in terms of entertainment.
Mr Alwy, however, insisted that the most important thing is for the organizers to ensure the musicians do not go overboard or beyond the Lamu customs, traditions and expectations.
“The cultural festival has grown to become an international event. It’s not the Lamu people alone who attend the fete. We have people from around the globe who flock to Lamu to enjoy themselves during the three-day fete. We welcome artistes from all corners, provided they abide by the event's cultural norms and traditions,” said Mr Alwy.
Hussein Mohamed Noor, alias Professor Chonda, on his part, says it is usually clear that if the event organisers opt to keep the entertainment local, there will be very few attendees.
Tanzanian artiste Abdul Juma Idd aka Lava Lava, performs at the he Lamu Cultural Festival in Mkunguni Square, Lamu Old Town on November 26, 2022.
Photo credit: Kalume Kazungu | Nation Media Group
“The problem isn’t with the event organisers but rather, the locals themselves here in Lamu. Put Qasida at Mkunguni for entertainment and you’ll be shocked as no one will come out to cheer. But the moment you bring artists like Diamond Platnumz, Lava Lava, Mbosso, Jay Melody and the rest, the venue won’t be enough as hundreds will flock to Mkunguni to spectate. So, leave the Lamu Cultural Festival organisers alone. They have no problem but rather are prompted by what revelers want,” said Mr Noor.
Meanwhile, Lamu County Culture Executive Aisha Miraj has assured residents and revelers attending this year’s cultural festival of a well-coordinated series of entertainment throughout the three-day event.
Ms Miraj defended the Bongo Flava artistes, saying they cannot breach any rule as far as the festival is concerned, adding that they had met them prior to the festival and informed them of what to expect as per the festivals’ dos and don’ts.
“The two artistes, D Voice and Yammi from Tanzania coming to grace this year’s Lamu Cultural Festival will not go beyond our norms and traditions as some elders claim. There’s nothing to worry about. We have met and briefed them on what to perform and how to dress while at the podium. We have even advised them to have a dressing code that conforms with the Lamu cultural norms and traditions while performing on those podiums,” said Ms Miraj.
During the 2023 Lamu Cultural Festival, Sharif Said Juma, popularly known by his stage name as Jay Melody from Tanzania graced the event.
Other Bongo Flava artistes who have also performed at Lamu Cultural Festivals are Abdul Juma Idd aka Lava Lava (2022), and Mbwana Yusuf Kilungi, better known by his stage name Mbosso Khan (2019).
