Okinikini

Verse 1

Kotora omundu uandje uemutuarapi

Ngumahungire kaje kako

Nguina tuzuvasana

Tuna okamuanoketu

Mohungire otja Mukuru no nganga

Ndino kona okuzuvasana

Ove ndino kona okuzuvasana

Chorus

Mbatemua x3

Mbakumua x3

Verse 2

Mbatemua tjjitukara katuposasana ofoko kako

Mbakumua kutja watie ije mukuetu uandje

Mbakumua indi erero atuari naua kumue

Mbakumua naove

Mbatemua tjjitukara katuposasana ofoko kako

Mbakumua kutja watie ije mukuetu uandje

Hapo uatie okondjesa mukuetu x2

Big Ben and the Last Band will perform at Zenso's Lounge on 19 May 2012. Damage is only N$80. Tickets can be bought at Zenso's Lounge, Universal Sounds and Oviritje Music Shop.

The Band will consist of John Kali Kasinda on Keyboards, Pius Fernando Paulus on Drums, Sam Battola on Lead Guitars, J.P Ntsika on Bass, Joachi Paulus and Fiston Britto on Backing Vocals and Ben on Rhythm Guitars, Saxaphone and Lead Vocals.

Anyone who’s had the chance to check out one of Namibia’s best kept secrets in terms of live music is a very lucky person indeed. In the last few weeks I’ve grown more and more green with envy of those who get to enjoy the lyrical mastery and melodic vibes produced by Big Ben and his band, winner of Best Live Performer awarded by the City of Windhoek and the Namibia Music Awards.

Singing in Otjiherero, a native language of Namibia, Big Ben has established himself as something of a musical legend in Namibia, and it was when I began to explore the world of Namibian music that a great friend of mine introduced me to the magic of a track called Moro Moro a typically African blend of drums, guitar and magical fun and excitement in its words.

Someone I know once said to me that African Music always sounds so happy and bouncy, and this is certainly the case with Big Ben’s music. With over 70 tunes under his belt, which includes the likes of ‘Don’t Bother’, ‘Ouje Mbui’, ‘Untitled’, ‘Natango’ and so many more, Big Ben is now onto his fifth album which was released in 2010.

Social Avenue, Big Ben’s new album has been released online on over 24 online music retailers.

The album is Big Ben’s sixth album after the hit album “Natango” and is again, predominantly, sung in African languages and only about 2 songs contain English lyrics. The track Bum Bum Bum has already reached the number one spot on Base FM’s top ten charts and there more tracks promising to be hits once it hits the airwaves.

According to online Album notes, Big Ben has co-produced 2 songs with well known producer Christiaan Poloni of Cabanon Music of the “A Handful of Namibians” fame. The album also features the young drummer Fiston Britto a

nd Tate Mafuta from Ndilimani Cultural Troupe.

Big Ben has long been Namibia’s ignored international musician with a record of international performances in countries such Germany and publishing record on various artist compilations in Europe and the world. For example, all six songs from the Moro Moro EP have been published on various editions of a compilation called “Africa Meets Pop, Hip Hop and Contemporary”. His rise on the world wide web has drawn so much attention that various publishing houses has approached him for publishing rights in the USA and Europe but according to him, he refused due to the fact that he would rather have all rights managed from Namibia. In addition, his music has also been used in various theatre productions and exhibitions in European countries such as Denmark.

The album Social Avenue, which consists of 14 tracks, has been released on well known online and mobile music shops and players such as iTunes, Amazon MP3 Store, Nokia OVI, Medianet , Zune, the mobile music application Spotify.

Okinikini Records has moved online for this album due to a relatively high demand for the music internationally. According to the record label, Big Ben’s fans have done a good job in being ambassadors for his music that internet sales for his music has picked up, prompting the label to give more attention to online sales. Evidently, the Namibian population in the Diaspora has grown and they need to be fed with music from the motherland.  Current Sales records for the new album indicates sales from as far as Atlanta, Georgia in the US and other cities in Canada, Norway, Nigeria, South Africa, Germany, Italy and England through the more than 24 online shops.

Some links to the various online stores are listed below. Please visit links.

iTunes, MySpace, Nokia, Medianet, LastFM, Amazon Mp3 Store and CDBaby.        

The album’s release in Namibia has been delayed since last year due to too much travelling and a tight calendar on the corporate circuit in Namibia, Europe and Asia. However, Big Ben fans have been promised the album to be released on CD by February 2012.

With regards to Namibian’s that would prefer digital downloads, Big Ben says that it is unfortunate that the Namibian internet and banking services are far behind with the rest of the world. Many online shops do not avail products to Namibian music lovers to buy directly due licensing restrictions and a history of high fraudulent activities in many African countries. However, some sites will allow his album to be sold in countries such as Namibia and South Africa. Notably, if you have a Nokia phone you can just buy Big Ben’s music from the Nokia music store. The good news is that any credit card issued in Namibia can allow you to buy music on any website and you will save at least N$20 dollars on an album if you buy a digital download.