Tanzanian Hip Hop - Music Style of Bongo Flava

Music Style of Bongo Flava

Bongo flava is Tanzanian hip hop, with fast rhythms and rhymes in Swahili. The name “Bongo Flava” comes from the Swahili word for brains: ubongo. Bongo is the nickname of Dar es Salaam. It means that you need brains to survive there. It has evolved over time, combining elements of American rap, R&B, hip hop, with its unique Swahili twist. As much as American culture is in Tanzania the lyrics are politicized, about HIV, poverty and corruption, or about life, relationships, money, jealously and love.

Bongo Flava is a mixture of Afrobeat and arabesque melodies, dancehall and hip-hop beats, and Swahili lyrics. It developed in the 1980s when Tanzanian youth started rapping because they were fascinated by the hip-hop scene in the United States. They fairly quickly added their own spin and flavor to the music by localizing it with beats, rhythms, and topics. The genre has become popular very quickly; it is the best-selling musical genre in East Africa, is already a success in neighboring Kenya and Uganda, and is sweeping the African continent and spreading to the rest of the world. In 2004, German record label Out Here Records released the compilation CD, Bongo Flava - Swahili Rap from Tanzania. The 70 minute record which features artists including X Plastaz, Juma Nature, and Gangwe Mobb has enjoyed wide international distribution.

When American hip hop first migrated to Tanzania, local rappers would sample popular American rap beats, simply inserting Swahili rhymes in place of English. This infant Bongo Flava style and imported American hip hop was initially embraced almost exclusively by young upper class individuals who found it fashionable to follow US trends. This was often viewed as Tanzanians simply appropriating American culture and style, relating this to the idea of Americanization. In the early 1990s, as the genre was developing, the 'Kiswacentric' concept was born. Artists began to "localize" the music by addressing purely Tanzanian issues and eventually using the Swahili language, which in itself is a language with many global influences. Additionally, beats shifted from American hip hop sampling to organic synthesized beats often incorporating local beats, rhythm, and sounds. Tanzanian artists ensured that even when rapping in English, they would maintain the Swahili meanings behind their rhymes. By rapping in Swahili they were able to make the hip-hop style their own, while still "keeping it real" by the standards of American Hip-Hop. This Kiswacentric rap has continued the Swahili poetic tradition of using wordplay, puns, and rhyme to express oneself. Many artists strive to use Swahili ideas and culture in their songs and styles rather than reproducing American pop culture or gangsta rap.

The choice of language played an important role in the development and local acceptance of bongo flava. Through rapping in Swahili, many new artists were able to localize hip hop, giving it “a politically charged cultural image” and providing a way to relate it with Tanzanian culture. Tanzanian rapper Dolasoul (Ahmed Dola), who studied in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, notes that rap music, particularly in Swahili, provided him “with the means to represent his people and speak about changes that can be made for ‘a better tomorrow.’" He also notes that albums produced in Swahili, with minimal English, helps to make his language more accepted internationally. The use of Swahili language in bongo flava conveys a particular message and idea to its listeners, instilling a sense of national pride and common culture. Dolasoul mentions that with his use of Swahili and minimal English, he is attempting to “give a wake up call to my people.”

At the same time, the employment of Swahili Rap represents an attempt to negotiate the authentic gangster projection with more traditional and local Tanzanian musical forms. Between the prominent mainstream US hip hop image of gangster rappers and increased radio and television airplay for groups from South Africa, Europe and the Congo region who project that image, Tanzanian rappers are heavily swayed toward a more raw style. While this borrowing of the authentic gangster image as represented outside of Tanzania can be interpreted as an appropriation for localizing purposes, it can also be viewed as mimicry. Since authentic gangster rap is commercially viable, Tanzanian artists are torn between the possibilities it presents and the negative attention it may gain them. Indeed, those who do imitate Western gangster rap are often isolated and derided for being gangster wannabes. Thus, the use of the Swahili language in Tanzanian rap helps take ideas from a larger hip hop discourse and incorporate them into the local context of that African rap culture. It makes sense then that those most dependent on the more marketable hardcore rap generally come from the impoverished regions of Tanzania, like Dar Es Salaam, where any chance at success may be more important than the worry of abandoning national pride in exuding a culturally ambivalent image. One of the paramount rap topics in this issue of balance is the objectification of women, which while it may be more marketable than less explicit forms, stands in contention with the Islamic ideals that many Tanzanians embrace. Still though, crude styles tend to appeal to the urban youth of Tanzania, as exemplified by the rap group LWP Majitu who, according to Out Here Records, "are popular for their hardcore hard hitting lyrics." Whether in the poorer parts of Tanzania or the more privileged, it is crucial for rap artists to maintain a healthy balance between the traditional and the original, the local and the global.