‘Sussana Kolukanda’ is a shambo revival

Judging by Kuku Nkandanga’s latest album cover, it seems as if the singer is down to earth, jolly and loves having a good time.

Pressing play on the first song with those expectations, the title track proved me right.

Shambo is a genre that is popular across Namibia, although you don’t hear new artists exploring the possibilities within this traditional music. Nkandanga certainly stepped up to the plate and revived the genre with a modern twist.

Track three, ‘Wedding Day’, pays tribute to Brenda Fassie’s legendary song of the same name. Incorporating a township disco sound, Nkandanga added a touch of Namibia by putting his originality on the track.

The album isn’t packed with features, though notable names such as Young T, PDK’s Dion, Otjinate, Diop and Tate Buti appear.

The latter added spice to two songs, namely ‘Okwiinyengaa’, a track with house undertones, and ‘Otoli Nenge Otolala’ alongside Dion.

‘Otoli Nenge Otolala’ takes it back to classic shambo with a very upbeat sound.

‘Ondonga – Uukwanyama’ sees Nkandanga teaming with Young T, a collaboration that proved to be fruitful as the featured artist’s vocals fit perfectly with this style of music. A slower addition to the track list, this song is one of the outstanding ones on the project.

‘Sussana Kolukanda’ is a piece of music worth listening to as the album goes above and beyond with effort. The mixing and mastering were done well and the features add the right touch to their respective songs.

Nkandanga was confident on all the tracks and wasn’t drowned out by the music, nor overshadowed by the featuring artists.

Although vocally the singer could do with training, he can hold a note and puts his voice to good use with ad libs and fillers throughout the album. Overall, ‘Sussana Kolukanda’ is a highly enjoyable project that deserves a thumbs up.

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– @jonathan.sasha on Instagram, @jonathan_sasha on Twitter.

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