Ever since Wakadinali alias Rong Rende blew up, the Eastlands rap group has made it clear that they can't put out music unless it's streetwise raw.
Made up of Scar Mkadinali, Munga Domani, and Sewer Syda, the trio boasts some of the most talented rappers in the Kenyan Hip Hop scene.
With that degree of exquisite talent, it's reasonable for each of the rappers to show the world what they can do as solo artists especially in Hip Hop.
On Thursday, one of the fundamental members, Munga Domani, dropped his album or commercial mixtape, or whatever you want to call it since the line between the two is pretty much blurred in this streaming era.
Titled "Exposed: Munga's Revenge", the project comes with a total of eleven tracks with guest appearances from his fellow Wakadinali members; Scar and Sewer Syda, Sir Bwoy, Tepla, Young Haze, Pepela and Siq. The features are spread throughout the track list except on two tracks.
Munga kicks off with a quick and chilling intro, Pendant Mbaya, the transition from the one-minute track to the second track, Umoroto, is perfect and sets the mood for Munga's dark lyrical themes and flows.
Umoroto
Umoroto was previously released as a lead single and considering its weight on the album, it was the right choice for the spot.
Even though the Drill song sounds like a regular Wakadinali song, Munga manages to carry the track with his reverberated verse and an infectious hook. Scar and Sewer treated the beat with justice as well.
Juzi Hosi
This takes us to Juzi Hosi, a vicious record that sees Munga embracing his rapping strengths.
"Avoid me, nitakupeleka hosi,'' is one of the lines that highlight the rapper's aggressive persona, an aspect that keeps diluting as you move down the album tracklist.
The cut also signifies Munga's chemistry with Sir Bwoy, who lays down a solid verse on the drill production.
Gari Inege
The next track, Geri Inege, an easily outstanding effort on the whole album, further highlights how Munga and Sir Bwoy's flows complementing each other.
It is also the last track on the tape that features Scar and Sewer, both who helped make the joint a complete street anthem.
With a Dancehall-Gengetone beat, the four rappers explore some of their favorite concepts - conflict between the Kenyan youths and the Police, as well as violence in the ghettos.
No Vybes Just Receipts
While Munga solely handles No Vybes Just Receipts, he still fails to meet the expectations of his unique voice and sounds like more of a filler track.
Now, everything starts to feel even more awkward on Gangster Memes. Just as Rude Bwoy and Zoom Zoom, the track is recorded over an Amapiano instrumental.
Even though Munga maintains his intelligent lyricism on the three tracks, it's safe to say Sir Bwoy came to his rescue as his (Sir Bwoy) rhythms and melodies fit with the beats better than those of Munga.
No Days Off
The Dancehall track, No Days Off, sounds poorly mixed and also sounds like a filler record on the album.
The smooth and romantic Blow Me Kisses is a perfect track to add towards the end of an album.
The catchy melody and romantically-charged lyrics show a whole another side of Munga; and Sir Bwoy had his back here too.
Mashetani
The closing track, Mashetani features Tepla, Siq & Sir Bwoy and spawns a more conscious Munga and for an outro track, it's not bad at all.
Besides his dark, storytelling, and symbolic song-writing skills, Munga's biggest weapon is his growling voice which unfortunately, kind of limits him to heavy Trap and Drill beats.
It also seems like he wasn't ready to put out a solo effort since there are only two feature-less tracks on the album and one of it is a one-minute intro.
Munga is a super-talented artist who can do far better.
Album rating - 6/10.
The foregoing is an Opinion Article submitted to Pulse Live Kenya for publication as part of the Pulse Contributors initiative.
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Timothy Mwachia is a young journalist interested in writing about entertainment and lifestyle. He has contributed news articles at Daily Rap Facts and The Dope Way and he's obsessed with knowledge - "I've got a thing for watching documentaries, reading and writing," he says.