Jam of the Week: Short n Sweet by Sauti Sol ft Nyashinski

Sauti Sol have been on a roll this year, releasing new music and music videos every other month, off their highly anticipated album, ‘Afrikan Sauce’. Their release for May 2018 is a feel good number ‘Short n Sweet’ featuring Nyashinski. When I saw the teaser online, I was immediately excited because Nyashinski has been churning out hits since his return to the Kenyan entertainment scene after a long hiatus. The collaboration was therefore more of an eventuality.

The song is produced by Sauti Sol and mixed and mastered by Sarthak Tale (Wanene Entertainment). Composed by Sauti Sol and co-written by Nyashinski, Short N Sweet is filled with memorable lyrics and an earworm of a chorus. The video is directed by Nate Thomas and is a visual celebration of urban Kenyan culture with a dose of nostalgia.

The video kicks off with Bien alighting off a train at a train station flanked by a beautiful dancer who has the attitude to match. It’s a fun opening to a lighthearted verse. Bien’s sultry voice sets the tone for a song reminiscent of Sauti Sol’s early sound. The chorus is a Kenyan dance fest starring the odi dance by dancers that look like they’re having a good time. This scene has catapulted one of the dancers to fame for her take on the odi dance and inspired GIFs and artwork in her honour.

Nyashinki’s verse is good but really not one of his best. It’s probably one of the downsides of being regarded a wordsmith and the expectations attached to the title. The most memorable line is, ”If you’ve got class then do me like assignments.” It’s cheeky and pitch perfect for this song but we could have used more of that Nyashinski magic on this collabo.

The other verses by Savara and Chimano keep up the pace and feature the cheekiness that embodies the whole song, and of course reminds us that this is a band full of gifted singers. Polycarp’s signature bass is all over the record as are the boys’ soulful harmonies. The choreography is by Oscar Mwalo and it’s quintessianly Kenyan. The styling is afrobubblegum and is by Oliver Asike (2ManySiblings) with Chimano’s outfit by Brian Babu and Monoxrome.

Short N Sweet is already a hit with the song already hitting 1M views on YouTube and steadily climbing. I can’t wait for what Sauti Sol have up their sleeves next as they continue to release music off of their album.

Fav lyrics: “Short N Sweet/ DJ play the song on repeat/ Odi Odi dance to the beat/ Hapo ulipokamata na feel so sweet.”

Fav moment: You guessed it! The girl in the striped jumpsuit odi odi dancing to the beat!

Jam best for: Dancing with your significant other who thought you’d never end up with but look at you now!

Rating: 4.7/5

Check out the ‘Short N Sweet’ video below.