Kenya's most trending pop group Sauti Sol ruled the airwaves at the 95th edition of the Kenyan Music Festival when not only did their single hit Suzzana win a new category for modern pop, but had four out of the over a dozen teams pick their songs for arrangement in a new class christened Zinazovuma.
The class is a development from the popular Zilizopendwa style that allows schools and colleges to arrange golden oldies, breathing a breath of freshness into them.
Moi Girls Secondary School Nairobi emerged tops with the Suzzana hit, also known as Senje.
In the song, the persona is expressing his undying love for Suzanna, who has left their promising relationship and is now aping the White Woman in European capitals, including dying her skin colour to look fairer. To make matters worse, she has gone out of reach and her lover can only hear rumours from friends about her new-found life on the fast lane.
And the Nairobi Girls did treat the song right, almost sounding better than the original with new dynamics into the tempo and harmony but retaining the original melody.
They impressed with their controlled vocals, turning a beautiful synchrony with dance moves to tell the tribulating story in the song.
"We are very happy and we thank God Almighty for the big win. It was a great effort and synergy between the students, teachers and the whole school community," said Mrs Margaret Njaagah, the Moi Girls Nairobi chief principal.
Incidentally, Ugenya High School from Siaya had just come off the stage with the same song; a beautiful juxtaposition on just how competitive this class became in its debut.
It is also a sign that the Afro-Pop group is a darling of the many youngsters in Kenya and beyond.
The new class, code-named Adaptations and Arrangement of Pop Tunes and Melodies from East Africa, saw Vihiga Boys also camp in Sauti Sol stable, coming with Sura number that has innate Lipala style from the Luhya idiom.
The soloists were strong and Bien, the Sauti Sol icon, could have been humbled had he been among the audience at just how a group of students could interpret the song in such a colourful fashion.
Oloolaiser completed the Sauti Sol repertoire with the choice of Unconditional Love, where they are decrying a new trend where women are loving men not for what they are but the money they have.
The persona in this number is seeking unconditional love from his lover and promises to be faithful, protective and eventually become a good father of their children
Veteran Zilizopendwa arranger Allan Khisa came to this new dawn with Chavakali Boys singing Diamond Platnumz's Zuwena, in a battle of titans from Sauti Sol's competitors from Tanzania.
Well-articulated, Diamond is lamenting about his brother's widow who in spite of taking care of her needs, including sharing his wealth, Zuwena still left her to enjoy the avaricious life in the city.
"Zuwena today even smokes and spends all her time in the city's brothels and pubs," he explains and in some correspondence informs Zuwena that their mother had died while she was away.
Diamond cannot believe it when he sets his eyes on her years later, after she had squandered all she had and had turned into a vagabond in the sprawling dungeons of the wretched of the Earth.
Harry Richie, who stormed to fame with his Vaida hit song popularised by voller and influencer Azziad Naisenya, made it to the high table of this new class with his ambassadors being Senende High School, from western Kenya.
In the song, Richie, who has asked her newly-wed wife to stay in their rural abode as he fends for the family in the city, warns her to be cautious of many men who would want to spoil the broth of their marriage.
