Nairobi based production company, Content House Kenya has released a new project dubbed Turkana sessions- a musical journey through the astounding culture and landscape of Turkana.
Check out incredible talents featured in Turkana sessions with their unique songs
Turkana sessions bringing out rich traditional art forms while exploring Turkana’s musical heritage
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The project which is out to explore the region’s musical heritage brought together four Turkana artistes; Jackson Nakuwa, Mourine Apuu, Jackson Ekori and Elizabeth Korike, and Nairobi’s Eddie Grey.
The artistes featured in the sessions have compiled together a total of 10 songs. All the tracks were performed and recorded in live form, by the breathtaking shores of Lake Turkana, in the pyramid hills at Eliye and the grass flats of Kerio, all in Turkana County.
In the tunes, Jazz recording and performing artiste Eddy Grey’s soulful guitar rhythms marry with authentic Turkana sounds to provide a rich and captivating showcase.
This captures what is possible when we look at new ways of presenting our traditional art forms through high and quality production.
Songs from the Turkana sessions have been tailored to address the following topics in the society; courting, reconciliation for couples, weddings, peace, losing livestock and beauty.
Also men have been discouraged from pursuing school going girls in some of the songs.
Jackie Lebo, who is a project director at Content House, said that the project also aims at bringing the voices of marginalized people to the forefront.
“At Content House, bringing the voices of marginalized people to the forefront is one of our key missions and this project does that in beautiful and unexpected ways. We started out in the region working in photography and film, but always during breaks the artists broke into song and we knew we had to find a way of incorporating it into the larger project,” said Jackie Lebo.
While Northern Kenya has historically been in the news for conflict and poverty, the region is also endowed with great beauty and cultural heritage. Its stark, arid landscape is home to Lake Turkana, the largest desert lake in the world.
The lake’s distinctive green waters led it to be named the Jade Sea and its craters and crocodile-filled islands make it one of the most unique places to visit in the world.
Turkana Sessions is the third project from The Artists Xchange, a companion project of the feature documentary Turkana: Races for Resources which will be released in 2023.
“This is a time of great change in Turkana to bring art to the forefront. There is an opportunity for artists from the Turkana and beyond to be part of discussions of the most urgent issues of their region. With all the valuable minerals being found in the region, communities need to be treated as equal partners. They are the custodians of a rich heritage that can inform a uniquely African thinking for what these natural resource finds mean to us.
“It is time to change the narrative on Northern Kenya, show the world its art forms and inspire Kenyans to look to their roots for inspiration,” Lebo added.
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