P Unit’s "a good one"

Controversial or not, P Unit’s (featuring Collo) new video to the hit track You Guy (Dat Dendai) has tongues wagging all over the country. As a section of the media allegedly banned the video early this month, the song’s popularity grew, making it the most requested club hit, currently. Pulse reached out to the trio to set the record right

Pulse: Your new track gives your group a fresh identity. It is a migration from your usual genge style. How did you come up with the concept?

P Unit: We were in Sudan for a series of shows with Collo and on the way to the airport, we came up with this concept of integrating our style of music (genge) with some ol’ skool beat. Right there, we started playing around with some rhymes. Upon return to Nairobi, we briefed our producer Decimal Records and within a week he had the track. The rest is history.

P: The concept of the video is also an out of the box idea...

P Unit: We’ve always wanted to do a black and white video and that’s what dominates the You Guy video concept. We wanted to do something different from what we have done in the past.

P: The song was intended to give you an international appeal, or so we hear...

P Unit: We have purposed to make music that not only crosses over to the other Pan African countries, but will also have an appeal in other continents. To deliver this, we felt it was time we got engaged with a producer who could deliver a concept and quality with an international appeal. That is why we went for Clarence Peters.

P: Are you suggesting that Clarence Peters is the only producer who could achieve such?

P Unit: He is really good.  One of us (Bon Eye) had some previous experience with Clarence Peters during the Shuga MTV shoot. We had also been working with him through our digital marketing agency.  He is internationally acclaimed. He has also had some experience with shooting videos in Kenya, so it was easy working with him on such a concept.

P: Has the song really been banned in a section of the media and if so, were you given an official stand on that?

P Unit: We have a very good working relationship with the said station. We heard about the alleged ban just like everyone else (through a section of the media). We got no official communication from the station on the same. For that reason, we reserve any comments on the same.  That notwithstanding, the video is doing well on other local stations. Besides, You Guy is being aired on several Pan African channels and has also premiered on Channel O and MTV  — which was our strategy as we set out for the project.

P: The song’s media and play rating escalated as soon as the ban vibe spread. Do you consider this move a blessing in disguise?

P Unit: People got curious and everyone wanted to find out what this video being banned was all about — so Internet views went up and stations kept on playing it as more people were requesting for it. There have also been controversial statements levelled against the video and us, but we opt to stay away from that. The good thing is that even as we remained silent, our fans kept protesting on our behalf.

P: Looking at the song, can we expect more transition in P Unit’s style of music in the future?

P Unit: Our style of music is genge but as we demonstrated, we can be versatile. What we will not compromise is our style of music, which is our identity. The rhythm will remain as flexible as possible.

P: Music fans expect a lot from your upcoming Wagenge Hao Tena project. Can you give us a sneak preview?

P Unit: There will be a number of surprises. In fact, the album’s name has already changed.  We have done many collabos and our fans can expect good value for their support.

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