This archive report was first published on 14 November 2019.
On November 14, 2019, Tanzania's music regulator, Basata, made headlines after banning Rosa Ree, a Tanzanian rapper, from participating in any music-related activities for six months.
The ban was issued due to the explicit content in Rosa Ree's song 'Vitamin U', which she released with Kenyan rapper Timmy Dat.
The song, which features nude scenes, was deemed inappropriate by Basata, leading to the ban.
According to a report by a local daily newspaper, Basata stated, “Baraza la Sanaa la Taifa (Basata) limemfungia msanii wa bongofleva nchini Tanzania Roza Ree kutojihusisha na muziki kwa miezi 6 kutokana na video ya wimbo wa Vitamin U aliyoshirikishwa na Msanii Timmy Tdat wa Kenya,”
As a result of the ban, Rosa Ree and Timmy Dat were forced to pull the original video and upload a cleaned-up version.
This incident is not the first time Tanzania's music regulator has taken action against artists for explicit content. In late 2019, WCB artists Diamond Platnumz and Rayvanny were banned from performing in and outside Tanzania over their song 'Mwanza', which was deemed 'dirty', and were also fined Ksh 400,000.
