Many artists struggle to find an appropriate stage name – not so Benjamin Webi, who laughingly thanks his parents for having the foresight to give him a name he could use on stage. Brought up in a musical family, Webi’s entry into Kenya’s music scene was more or less a certainty. It was how he chose to do it that caught the attention of many.
Traversing uncharted territory, Webi released his first neo-soul single Outside My Window to considerable airplay, despite his being unknown. Because of his genre, many did not even think Webi was Kenyan. When his second single Everlasting Love dropped, followed by a full length English album, there was no looking past him.
For someone who fell in love with music at only four years of age, his success is no surprise. Webi recalls spending hours with his grandfather, listening to him sing and accompanying him on performance tours. His twin-love for acoustic guitar was inherited from his mother, whom he says has been playing daily for as long as he can remember. She also taught him to play the instrument that has become as much a part of Webi’s uniqueness as his voice.
Yet despite surrounding environments, every man must have a moment when his calling becomes clear to him. Webi believes his came in the last year of primary school, when he wrote a song and sang it at a holiday camp. “I knew (then) that this is something I was going to be doing for the rest of my life.” When he got into high school, he promptly joined the choir and took up music. A minor bump put paid to this drive however, as he was soon transfered to a new school. But as soon as high school was done with, he picked up music lessons again at the Joy Music and Creative Arts School, where he now teaches piano and classical guitar.
Webi kicked off his stage appearances with stints in various churches, including the Winner’s chapel in Mombasa, where he was a band member. But it was not until he met producers Ben “Gittx” Gitau and Steve “Steve-O” Ominde that his career got the mainstream jolt it needed. He got to know them as he spent hours at their studios while contemporary Gospel group Votaries (who are his close friends) recorded their first album. Noticing his guitar skill and outstanding vocals, Soulchild Records signed him up and began work on his debut album, Outside My Window. The album features, amongst others The Votaries and Kiki. Webi points out that Gittx and Steve-O have been instrumental in his career, helping him to stretch his limits. “They felt my style. Few producers can do that”, he says.
Webi concedes that breaking out was not easy. In the first place, putting music together was a significant challenge - he had never done it before. Getting performances also came a cropper. Churches were reluctant to allow him the stage, not only because he was new and virtually unknown, but also because of their reluctance to embrace such expression. Today, this is largely a thing of the past as he has performed in major churches across the city, and shared the stage with some of the biggest names in the industry.
THE ALBUM, 'OUTSIDE MY WINDOW'
Released in August 2005, the album has 12 songs, predominantly R&B, but fused wit raga, hip-hop and neo soul featuring
Award winning gospel songstress Kiki, Kisima nominee Holy Dave, Award winning group ‘The votaries’ and top notch producer Steve ‘Steve-O’ Ominde. All songs were written, arranged and co-arranged by me very closely with Ben 'Gittx' Gitau.
THE ALBUM, 'ALL I CAN SAY'
This project ws released on the 25th July 2009, at a live launch concert in Nairobi. This is a crossover album that carries the signature R&B sound. It has 11 songs, with a fusion of reggae, pop, acoustic, Neo - soul, Hip hop and Afro. This album features KORA award winner Neema Ntalel, KISIMA award winner, Mbuvi and All time favourite gospel Rapper, Charles Rigga. The album is a BLACKMAN ENTERTAINMENT production.
His parting shots mirror the sobriety of his tracks:
"There’s nothing you can’t achieve, as long as you fix your eyes on it and not on your limited ability. Let God handle things for you. And whatever you end up doing, be consistent and don’t let anyone keep you down."
We don’t think there’s anything to keep Webi down either. He is no doubt going places!
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