Renowned multi-hyphenate Simon Javan Okelo has submitted his folklore-laden album ‘Madaraka Vibes’ for Grammy consideration.
The Madaraka Festival CEO and instrumentalist made the submission in the Best Global Music Album category, making the list of a few Kenyan acts who have submitted their projects for consideration by the recording academy.
The event organizer is also part of the recording academy voting members and through his festival, he has featured on major networks like CNN and partnered with giant corporate entities, among them Live Nation and Alaska Airlines.
The ‘Omena’ singer and the brains behind Madaraka Festival has been promoting the 10-track project for the last few months, staging live performances in both in Nairobi and Kisumu. During the last stop of the trek, Okelo pulled a crowd of music enthusiasts at the Alliance Francaise. Backed by a horde of select Kenyan artistes, he gave fans live renditions of the music off ‘Madaraka Vibes’.
Singers Victoria Kimani, Bien and Savara are some of the other Kenyan musicians who have submitted their projects for Grammy consideration.
READ: Simon Javan Okelo Unveils New LP, ‘Madaraka Vibes‘
Meanwhile, Okelo is gearing up for the first ever Kenyan edition of Madaraka Festival slated for December 14. This comes months after the much-hyped US Madaraka Festival Tour saw a last minute cancellation. The tour was initially devised to commemorate the show’s 10-year anniversary, with Kenya’s Nyashinski and Savara as some of the headliners.
