Dance nostalgia

Kiundu Waweru

Dance trendsetters and kings of the dance hall disco are back, ready to take Nairobi by storm in a nostalgic party, Funky Soul Train of the 1970s, 1980s and Early 1990s. Many may be in their 40s, but the dance and DJ legends, who shot to fame during the Win a Motorbike Competition in 1988 and the build up to win a car competitions of early 1990s, are bubbling with excitement. Their message to younger dancers: We will show you that we still have it!

Kanda Kid (now Kanda King). [PHOTO: BEVANS HABIL AND COURTSEY/STANDARD

Yellow Man

Soukous Party [PHOTO: FILE/STANDARD]

When pubs doubled as discos with revellers dancing the night away in freestyle and break dance to disco beats of soul and funk music Paul ‘Cracker’ Munyao, Charles Ng’ang’a, Cracker Junior, Kanda Kid and Yellow Man and groups like Soukous Party were considered dance aristocrats.

Upcoming show

Cracker, the organiser of the October 24 event which will be held at the Carnivore, says DJs Adams, Hussein Abdalla, Karis, Mdosi and Stone will be behind the decks.

"During our time, we used to be creative dancers. Everyone had his unique style and there was no copying," says Cracker, moaning the lack of versatility in today’s dancers.

Ng’ang’a concurs, saying they took Nairobi by storm because of their talent, despite little exposure by media. And they remember the disco clubs they popularised, as Annabel, Beat House, Visions, Club 19 and Boomerang.

"We were paid about Sh1,000 an hour and were given the right to the floor whenever we went even when not officially performing," says Ng’ang’a.

As the popularity of dance grew, Boomerang Club manager, Peter Mwenda, came up with the competition.

Cracker [PHOTO: BEVANS HABIL AND COURTSEY/STANDARD

"The first big competition was Win a Motorbike. I showcased the best of break dance, free style. Boy, I was ‘bad’! The fans went wild when I was declared winner," says Cracker.

Ng’ang’a took part in Win a Car in 1990 and came fourth, winning a video camera and receiving a certificate declaring him the best soul dancer in East and Central Africa. Jam City won the competition followed by crowd favourites Rare Watts. Soukous party came third.

"We were in newspapers and on TV. Appearing in the media those days was a big thing, and we became instant celebrities," says Ng’ang’a.

And in a 1991 event, International Dance Competition, Soukous Party won the group routine dance while Cracker was eliminated in the semis. Cracker Boy (Nicholas Vomba) blasted Ng’ang’a in the solo category.

Making of Kanda

Kanda King (then known as Kanda Kid), who now has a band, was introduced to the club scene by his sister, Princess Farida: "In the early 1990s, when I was less than 10 years, Farida took me to a jam session at Boomerang where I registered for a competition alongside my age mates — Yellow Dude, Hawa Diawara. We were set to compete with big names like Jam City, Wizards, Pretty Young Twins, PYT and Soukous Party."

Soukous Party [PHOTO: FILE/STANDARD]

Kanda King did not make it until later in 1996 at the East Africa Kings of dance competitions in Tanzania. Cracker and Yellow Man graced the month long event and Kanda King emerged tops.

He won TSh1million.

"We danced to soul, Lingala and pop. There has never been such a competition and I am still the East African King," he says, tongue-in-cheek.

And as the contemporary dance styles slowly emerged. Cracker says he traveled the world, the dance legends exited the scene. Cracker says he travelled the world doing what he loved — dancing and teaching prospective dancers.

Ng’ang’a says dancing was not sustainable as a career and he did it as a hobby: "I would make a lot of money from dancing but I still had a day job. In 1993, I joined the matatu industry and I now run a courier business." The dancers are now back together, reviving what they enjoyed

"What I see today is copy cat dance, which looks more like acrobatics. Our dance style was creative and it came from the heart. We want to bring the people who knew us together, reviving the memories of the golden soul age," says Cracker.