SHASHAMANE INTL -The Afrikan Zulu Warriors Sound-

The History

In 1980, two Rasta brothers by the names of Ras Eugine Ruhamia and Alonzo Karahamuheto aka Bongoman came to Nairobi from Burundi on they way to Ethiopia. They met another Rasta brother called Calveti Nyabingi, better known as Papa Bingi. I was chilling at the New Stanley Hotel with my friends having some drinks, when they came and sat near us and we hailed each other in the name of jah. Bob Marley and the Wailers were also in town on their way to Zimbabwe and they were staying at the same Hotel. Neville Garrick who was Bob Marley’s art director also joined us and we all started to talk. That is when I learned that Ras Eugine and Bongoman were on their way to Ethiopia. I told them that they should think twice of going to Ethiopia because it wasn’t safe. They listened to me and the rest was History.

There was another lady from Germany by the name of Andrea Tapper who did the first Reggae gigs at the City Hall a few months after I met Ras Eugine and Bongoman. We then decided to go and attend that show. After the show, the three of us thought that Andrea Reggae was too commercial and decided to look for a Club of our own because someone cannot come all the way from Germany and try and take our Hustle. After looking for a Club without no avail, I bumped into another Rasta brother by the name of Ali Magombeni who had his own Reggae band and they were playing at an up town Club called The Starlight Club. I reasoned with him and told him that we were looking for a place to play Reggae and teach the youths about Rastafari. He agreed to take me to Mr. Armstrong who was the owner of Starlight Club. I convinced him and he agreed to give us from 2 pm until 9 pm on a Sunday before Ali Magombeni and his band comes on. And that is when the Jam Sessions was born in Kenya.

Now the problem was where were we going to get the records. As a sharp Ghetto youth, I had kept the communication with Neville Garrick. I send him a telegram telling him that we were in needs of records to play Reggae in a Club and whatever he can send us will be appreciated. He then send to us 5 Albums and some 45’s. And believe me not, we were rocking the crowd with only 5 Albums and a few 45’s for 7 hours every Sunday. And after a few months, Rita Marley send us some more records. Starlight Club become the talk of the town and the youths dub it, going to the Church on a Sunday afternoon. We did not really have a name for our Sound until Ras Eugine and myself met Jah Shaka from London when he came to Kenya in 1982. We asked him what he thought would be a good name for our sound. He told us to call it Roots Inity Promotion because we were 3 Rasta brothers promoting Reggae music and Rastafari. We had our first concert with Jah Shaka and Ali Magombeni’s band at the French Cultural center during Bob Marley’s Birthday celebration and it was one of the biggest reggae concert of the 80’s. When Jah Shaka went back to England, he told us to send one of us and he will give us a lot of records and Rasta items for sale and we send Bongoman who came back with a lot of stuff. In 1985 during the woman conference in Nairobi, we performed for dignitaries like Mayo Angelo, Coretter Scott King the wife of Martin Luther Kïng, Natalie King, Margaret Reagan who was the daughter of then, the President of the United States Ronald Reagan and many more came to Starlight Club which was the talk of the town.

Things were not going so well between us in 1984 because other people like Masikini and Bosco Kairanga from Burundi also joined the sound. So it was like I was being pushed away. And for security, I teamed up with my two brothers the late Pupa Davis and Rev Didah and registered a sound and called it Dread Brothers Promotions because all 3 of us were real brothers and all Rastafarian. They started doing small gigs at the Garden Square until I finally left Roots Inity Promotion in 1985. We then started doing our gigs in a big scale playing around Clubs like Chiromo and Alliance Club. In the summer of 1985, Ras Ken Ambasu and Daddy Chosh joined the sound.

I left for Europe in late 1985 and my journey took a very long time until I finally settled in Stuttgart Germany. I hustled and save money until 1986 and went to Denmark and bought my fist music equipment and went back to Kenya. It was very easy for us to go mobile playing around the country because we had our own and it was the first Sound System in Kenya. When I came back from Europe, I visited Shashamane land in Ethiopia as a member of the twelve tribes of Israel with Dennis Brown who was a Joseph just like myself because both of us were born in February. That is when I decided to change the name of the sound to Shashamane International.

In 1987 I organized the first sound and Dj clash at the City Hall with all the sounds including one from Birmingham England with a brother called Teflah and his sound that he had brought to Kenya. That is when I met Terrence Munene and since he was the youngest and the baddest of them all in the completion, I gave him the name of Youthman Terry and added him on the sound right away. We became the talk of the country because we had all the baddest Selectors and MCs when it came to toasting.

We Started playing at Hollywood Club and in late 1987 I went back to Germany and England where I met Dennis Brown again and he did my first Dubplate for the sound, a song called country living. I went back to Kenya in the late 1989 and stayed for a couple months then left for New York City in early 1990 and settled in Harlem. Back home, we moved from Hollywood Club to Monte Club. And Daddy Freddy, King Monday, MC Fanya, MC Frank, Daddy Augustinoh, Ras Panyaley, Oga Sura Mbaya, Dj. Sweta and MC Juce joined the sound.

In New York City I opened up a store on 125 street and St. Nicholas Avenue. And since I have burning up to keep playing music, I hooked up with some youths from the neighborhood who used to frequent my store and hear me play loud music on the street. Their names were James Bond, Little Fox, Six Killer and Danger One. And our manager was Sister Dorsey who organized for us our first gig at a club on 8th Avenue and 124 street called Luci’s. And that was in 1992. By 1993 I had saved enough money and bought two big sound systems ( Cerwin Vegas speakers and QSC 4000 amplifiers) and shipped one to Kenya. I then started promoting our own dances in Harlem and the Bronx. In 1995 I promoted our first sound clash at the Harlem Karate Club with Stereo 5 Vs Black Magic Vs Shashamane. And all 3 sounds had to bring their own music equipments. In the mist of war, someone pressed a button on my sound and it went mute, I couldn’t find what happened until I went home. Since no sound would allow you back then to play on their set and killed them, I had to lock my sound off, Stereo 5 and Black Magic went head on and Stereo 5 won in tune Fi tune.

In 1996, I had a juggling dance with Killamanjaro, we also clash and juggled with sounds like Black Terror, Afrique Sound Station, King Barka, Blunt Posse, Young Hawk, Stone wall, Storm Force, Ball Eagle, Love Star, King Addies just to mention but, a few. In 1998 I promoted a dance in Harlem with Storm Force, Love Star and King Barka. War broke out between Shashamane and King Barka and we ended up killing them on their own Tuff. Before that, Vic Rae Promotion organized bring your Selectors and come clash at the SOB in Manhattan and it as Shashamane Intl Vs King Barka Vs Blunt Posse and we won that. We also beat Black Emperor and Black Terror in Queens. In January of 2000 we beat Upto Date Sound in the Bronx. In March of 2000, we beat Star Temple in Cleveland and they ask for a rematch in November and we beat them again. We also juggled with Killimanjaro in Cleveland.

I then took them to Kenya in 2001 alongside Gregory Isaacs and his son, Chronicle, Ninja Ford and Flasher aka Zareb. During our Yearly, African Bound Reggae Summer where they perform to a crowd of 30,000. In 2002 I did Culture in Kenya and he performed for a crowd of 75,000 people. In 2003 I did a sound clash in Kenya and Pupa Nasty won. In 2004 we clash in Canada at the first African Cup Clash Vs King Turbo, Black Kat, Rebel Tone and Desert Storm. Shashamane and Black Kat went Dub Fi Dub. That is when Dynamq joined the sound. 2005 we clash at the Gulf war in Texas Vs Mighty Faith, another robbery in Dub Fi Dub. We also clash Blunt Posse and LP International at the War of the World in Queens. The same year, I took Glen Washington to Kenya. In 2006 another Gulf War in Texas Vs Poison Dart (Florida) Vs Maximilian (Trinidad) and Mighty Faith (Texas) we went to DFD with Mighty Faith. The same year I took Israel Vibrations to Kenya and the African Sound Cup Clash Vs King Turbo, Supersonic Vs LP International and we went with Supersonic in DFD. In 2007 we clash at the Gulf War in Texas Vs Sound Trooper Vs Famous Squard and we beat Ricky Trooper in DFD. We also Juggle with David Rodigan in Atlanta. In 2008 we Clash Mighty Crown in Texas. 2009 we went to the World Sound Cup Clash in London against Bass Oddessey, Blunt Posse, Luv Injection, Body Guard, One Love and Barrier Free and we won. We also clash at the Riddim Clash in Cologne, Germany and Rototom Sunsplash in Italy. In 2010, Jahmo and Albinorock joined the sound. We also clash Black Kat in Montreal, Canada. And Mighty Crown in Atlanta. And 2011 we clash in Antigua, that is when Zugu joined the sound, and 1.2.3 Badda Dan in Switzerland.

Shashamane has been clashing and touring Europe every year, Japan, Middle East and is the first African Sound to ever play in Israel. In 2016 we took Romain Virgo for our 32nd Anniversary to Kenya and in 2017 Busy Signal for our 33rd Anniversary. Dj. Murphy also joined the sound and won two clashes in Jamaica. The current members of the sound are, Papa Bingi CEO, Zugu, Dj. 4ign, Dj. Murphy, Dj. Bugs, Jahmo, Albinorock, Daddy Chosh, Dj. Augostinoh, Toni Dread, Rev Didah, Dj. Chevy, Prince O- Touch and Ranking Charlie.

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