This archive report was first published on 7 June 2020.
On June 7, 2020, legendary artiste Nonini opened up about his journey in the music industry, highlighting the struggles he faced due to his early days of releasing songs with vulgar lyrics.
Nonini's songs were known for their explicit content, which made it challenging for him to secure corporate endorsements. This experience serves as a valuable lesson for the current generation of artistes, particularly those in the gengetone genre.
In an interview with Clearing the Airwaves, Nonini shared his story, stating, 'Kina Nameless walikuwa wanapata ma-endorsements, kina Redsan, kina Ogopa, guys were doing shows for Redbull, Trust condom, watu wanawekwa kwa ma billboards. Although I had hits, biggest hits in this country, I never got any endorsement, nothing. Because the people who were seating in the board rooms back then walikuwa wanasema zii, huyu jamaa ni controversial hatuwezi muweka kwa any of our brands.'
Nonini also revealed that he only secured his first major corporate endorsement two years ago, when he became the Brand Ambassador for Safaricom in 2018. He emphasized that this experience has taught him the importance of being mindful of the content he creates, especially when it comes to securing endorsements.
As a pioneer of the Genge genre, which later evolved into gengetone, Nonini's story serves as a reminder to the current generation of artistes that their lyrics and content can have a significant impact on their ability to secure corporate endorsements.
