Shani Omari: Hip Hop in Tanzania Has Continued To Grow and Strengthen Over Time
Dr. Shani Omari, senior lecturer and professor at the University of Dar es Salaam
Mmerikani’s Substack consists of sourced, edifying quotes in a dual-language format (Swahili & English). I am a Quaker, runner, and was formally trained in Swahili.
KISWAHILI
[Madondoo yaliofuatia kutoka kwa utafiti wa Shani Omari uliochapishwa katika Jarida la Kioo cha Lugha kama “‘Mgogoro’ wa Ushairi wa Kiswahili bado Upo?: Uchunguzi wa Nyimbo za Muziki wa Hip hop na Bongo fleva nchini Tanzania” (2017).]
“Tangu kuibuka kwake [, Muziki wa Hip Hop kwenya Tanzania] umeendelea kukua na kuimarishwa siku hadi siku. Hii inajidhihirisha kwa kuongezeka kwa wadau na wafuasi wake kama vile wasanii na wapenzi na matumizi ya vionjo vya kifasihi, kiutamaduni na kimuziki vya ndani na nje ya Tanzania. Miongoni mwa vionjo hivyo ni kuingiza midundo ya ngoma za Kiafrika, malumbano, majibizano, majigambo na hata midundo ya kimuziki kutoka Bara la Asia na kwingineko duniani.
“Maendeleo mengine ni kubadilika kutoka kuimba kwa Kiingereza hadi Kiswahili1, kubadilika kutoka kurap tu hadi kuimba, kushamiri kwa dhamira za mapenzi na kuzaliwa neno ‘Bongo fleva’. Hivyo, Bongo fleva ni mchanganyiko wa aina2 mbalimbali za muziki ikiwamo rhumba, zouk, reggae, R&B na kadhalika, unaochanganya vionjo vya kimuziki na kifasihi kutoka ndani na nje ya nchi na unaimbwa zaidi na vijana nchini Tanzania kwa Kiswahili (taz. Reuster-Jahn, 2007; Englert, 2008; Omari, 2009; Mnenuka, 2011; Samwel, 2012; Sway, 2015).“
1 Hata hivyo hivi karibuni Kiingereza kimeanza kushamiri tena katika nyimbo hizo.
2 Ingawa Hip hop ya Tanzania ilizoeleka kuitwa ni sehemu ya muziki wa Bongo Fleva lakini sasa inasisitiza kujitenga kutokana na matakwa ya wasanii wake na kutokana na kuwa na misingi yake kama vile ujumbe mkali, graffiti, na kadhalika.
- Dk. Shani Omari ni mhadhiri mkuu na profesa mshirika kwenye Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam. Ni mwandishi au mchangiaji wa machapisho yaliyozidi thelathini kuchanguza njia panda za muziki, utamaduni wa vijana, na jinsia kweneye fasihi ya simulizi na andishi ya Kiswahili.
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
[Excerpts from academic research by Shani Omari published in the Kioo cha Lugha Journal as “Does the 'Dispute' of Swahili Poetry Still Exist? A Study of Hip Hop and Bongo Fleva Music in Tanzania” (2017).]
“Since its emergence, [Hip Hop in Tanzania] has continued to grow and strengthen over time. This is evidenced by a growth in the number of practitioners and enthusiasts including artists and devoted followers, and an increase in the use of literary, cultural, and musical references from both inside and outside of Tanzania. Among its influences are the incorporation of African drums, verbal sparring, call-and-response, braggadocio, and even musical rhythms from the Asian continent and elsewhere in the world.
“Other features include the crafting of lyrics using Swahili instead of English1, the change from exclusively rapping to singing, the surge of romantic themes, and the emergence of the word ‘Bongo Fleva.’ Accordingly, Bongo Fleva is a mixture of various types of music2 including rhumba, zouk, reggae, R&B and others, which combine musical and literary tastes from inside and outside of the country and is sung by the majority of young people in Tanzania and in Swahili (cf. Reuster-Jahn, 2007; Englert, 2008; Omari, 2009; Mnenuka, 2011; Samwel, 2012; Sway, 2015).“
1 Recently, however, English lyrics have begun to appear again in these songs.
2 Although Tanzanian Hip Hop was once considered a segment of Bongo Fleva music, it is now viewed as a distinct genre according to its artists and due to it having its own endowment of passionate messaging, symbology, and so on.
- Dk. Shani Omari is a senior lecturer and associate professor at the University of Dar es Salaam. She is the author or contributor to over thirty publications on the intersections of music, youth culture, and gender in Swahili oral and written literature.
Chanzo (source): Shani Omari. “‘Mgogoro’ wa Ushairi wa Kiswahili bado Upo?: Uchunguzi wa Nyimbo za Muziki wa Hip hop na Bongo fleva nchini Tanzania.” [“Does the 'Crisis' of Swahili Poetry Still Exist? A Study of Hip Hop and Bongo Fleva Music in Tanzania”] Kioo cha Lugha, vol. 15, no. 1 (2017): 131-148. Kioo cha Lugha ni jarida la Taasisi ya Taaluma za Kiswahili, Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam. Article published on African Journals Online (AJOL) on November 14, 2017 at https://www.ajol.info/index.php/kcl/article/view/162916. Accessed June 13, 2025.