Gidi with Majimaji.
Over a decade ago Gidigidi Majimaji was one of the most popular Kenyan hip hop duos before its two members, Radio Jambo presenter Gidi (real name Joseph Ogidi Oyoo) and Ghetto Radio Director and presenter Majimaji (real name Julius Owino), split up to pursue different career paths in the entertainment industry.
Their days as musicians may have been brief and a distant memory right now but they still managed to create a lasting impression on the Kenyan music scene and political landscape.
Perhaps it is their impact on the history of Kenya's politics and leadership that raised their profile to a stratospheric level they had never imagined they would reach.
This was after a song which they released for fun, Unbwogable, became a massive hit and was adapted by the opposition party, NARC, in 2002 during its triumphant election campaign.
Unbwogable, meaning 'not susceptible to threats', had catchy lyrics and beats and its message blended in well with the politics of the time.
The opposition rode on the song's instant popularity and the impact it had on their campaigns had the ruling party at that time, KANU, shaken to the core.
In a desperate attempt to reverse the odds in their favor, the ruling party, as Gidigidi Majimaji revealed on Saturday in an interview with Swahili news anchor Jane Ngoiri on NTV Jioni, approached them and offered them millions to change the song to favor KANU.
"We have never said this before but after the opposition adapted our song, KANU approached us to change the song and sing about KANU. It was however too late for us to change anything and we turned down the offer," Gidi said.
Explaining further about why they turned down KANU's offer, Gidi said that the song had become bigger than them and if at all they had agreed to KANU's proposal, they would have put their lives at risk.
"Unbwogable had become bigger than us and if we had come out to say that it was now a KANU anthem, we would have been killed," Gidi added.
Gidigidi Majimaji said that they take great pride in Unbwogable's success and though the public has always expected them to release a politically themed song whenever elections approached, they have never had the urge to do so.
To listen to Gidigidi Majimaji narrate more about that incident as well as shed light on their musical career and current engagements, watch the video below.
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