D BLEQUE?

D BLEQUE?

“Donge” is one of the dopest luo rap music ever done on earth. Like way back in time when Gidi Gidi and Maji used to nail it and made people across the globe sing to their tunes, “Donge” is that music that is catchy and easy to rap along. It gives you a feeling that you know it yet you have never heard it. I bonded with the man behind the song and this is what he told me about himself.

WHO IS THIS RAPPER CALLED D BLEQUE?

My name is Stephen Omondi. Few people know me by my official name and this is attributed to basketball where people that have known me as a player and my teammates call me ‘Omera’because I am a luo. I have lived most of my life in Kakamega, except that I schooled in Nyanza at Maranda High School for the four years of my high school education.

HOW DID YOU GET INTO MUSIC?

I started writing music in Form 2. And just to clarify, I am a Kakamega hip hop artist. I started with writing simple inspirational lyrics because at that time my education was tough and I needed something for encouragement. With time, I started drawing closer to hip hop. By then, I was close to my brother from another mother, Martin Rhonde. I consider him family because he has always had my back from day one and always wanted me to do better in music

My friends used to associate me with basketball and nicknamed me ‘Spiderman’ coz I used to jump high, music came as a surprise to them. My first stage name was Steam but I didn’t like it so much so I decided to change. Then settled to d black only to realize there was a Ghanaian artist with the same name. I still wanted to maintain it so I changed it a bit to dbleque which has stuck to date. This name simply means representing the block and also the black people.

OH! WHEN WAS YOUR FIRST SONG OUT?

By the time I was leaving high school I had 92 tracks to my name but you will be quite surprised when I tell you that I only settled on three songs that could maybe be recorded out of all these tracks. The reason to this is when I came out of high school; I started listening to the hip hop genre broadly. My level of content, rhyme scheme and lyricism began maturing. So I decided that I will start afresh and write good music. The first song recorded was DibajiI was featured by Vale. We did it at Zetu Media in Kakamega. It took me close to 2and half years to step in the booth again. But during this time I was really posting on Facebook a lot. I even started a lyrical group on Facebook called Fresh YahngBlahd (FYB). My major lyrical project is called #InstaRapWeekly where I used to post a lyrical on instagram at least ones or twice a week from around April to December 2015. It had 44 posts and it really started drawing a lot of attention from some of my followers who do love hip hop. People encouraged me to start recording because they loved my lyrics, and they would love to see what I could do on the mic.

AND WHEN WAS DONGE DONE?

It was after campus. I went to visit Rhonde in Nairobi then linked up with Snobbyz. Who was also a schoolmate of mine back in high school. We recorded a track called Freeman. then later recorded Mamluki which was a freestyle i did despite having flu. it got a good response that made me go for a third song that was Donge. Which is a trap song that has Luo in it and this made a major impact through Urban Radio Kisumu giving it some massive airplay since August last year to date. I have then released Yung Simba and Mchezo KwenyeKazi .

 

WHAT’S COOKING THAT WE SHOULD WAIT FOR?

Currently I am working with Snobbyz but I am not tied to any deal. I record at his label known as 90Something Records and we have few more projects for you. I am working on an EP and possibly by august it will be out. Before the EP, I will still be dropping new singles for the people so that I can prepare them for what to expect when the EP drops.

LASTLY WHAT DO YOU THINK SHOULD BE CHANGED SO THAT KENYAN MUSIC COULD GROW HIGHER?

The Kenyan industry is growing and as artists we should embrace our cultures, languages, environment and also borrow from other countries just a little of what they have, blend it with what we have and come up with a unique sound. If we can listen to hip hop from S.A done in their native languages, listen to Nigerian music which we pretty much understand only a few words in them, why can’t we also make hip hop our own languages and let the world appreciate our music from our own perspective. Good music is good music irrespective of language barrier. For now, all I can say is REST IN BEATS. Something big is coming.

And before I forget I wanna send out special thanks to Iano Beats who has made it possible for me to work on my 2016 projects, Anarnia Beats who produced the Donge beat and now Otis who I am currently working with too.