In Conversation with Ken Wakia, Safaricom Choir Director

Safaricom will hold a virtual Easter concert this Sunday, 4th April, in the evening for forty-five minutes on NTV and Safaricom’s YouTube Channel from 8 pm East African time.

The musical featuring the Safaricom Choir will be a narration of the Easter story and will be amplified under Twende Tukiuke, thereby demonstrating Safaricom’s continued support of the arts through giving Kenyans a platform to follow their dreams and passion for the performing arts.

The Safaricom Choir was started in January 2009 to provide an avenue for team building, morale-boosting and involvement in community service for employees interested in choral music.

Since their participation in their debut Thematic TVC commonly known as “Niko Na Safaricom”, the team has performed for various audiences at the Safaricom AGM, Groove Awards and Classical Fusion concerts among others.

I spoke to Ken Wakia, the Choir Director to find out more about the Safaricom Choir and how they’ve been example of what going beyond is.

Ken Wakia is the Director of the Nairobi Chamber Chorus as well as the Founding Director of the Safaricom Choir. He has conducted various groups in the USA and Europe and, as a singer he has represented Kenya in international music at the prestigious World Youth Choir touring Japan, Taiwan, Philippines, Belgium, Italy, Holland and France. Ken taught music at Precious Blood Riruta and was Assistant Dean of Students and Head of Music at African Nazarene University before joining the US Embassy where he is currently the Cultural Affairs Specialist.

Ken Wakia is my former high school (Precious Blood – Riruta) music teacher so this was a fun interview.

How did you get into music?

I was actually forced into it. My primary school, Mumias Complex, choir director was the Deputy Headteacher so he would not take no for an answer if he discovered you could carry a note. I wanted to play football but choir practice was at the same time as the games so I really resented it. I even tried to skip practices but because my height made me quite visible (he called Zedekiah), I could not escape his attention. 

I begrudgingly attended choir practice and within two years, I loved it. My primary school was in Western but through music, we attended festivals in Nairobi and travelled quite a bit and it made me recognize the opportunities I had not seen before. 

My love for music carried on into high school at Musingu where I took up a leadership position in the choir, and eventually when it was time to choose my university degree, I chose music education. My father was understandably completely against it and wanted me to study engineering instead, but he relented after he saw there was no changing my mind.

My first job as you know, was a music teacher at Precious Blood – Riruta where I taught for many years before leaving to pursue my second masters in choir conducting at the US. During my first few years as a teacher, I travelled around the world as part of the World Youth Choir, and my father was amazed at the opportunities music afforded me.

It’s been an incredible journey and I’m so glad I chose to follow my passion.

How did you get involved with Safaricom?

When I came back to Kenya in 2005 after completing my Masters in the US, I started the Nairobi Chamber Chorus. I wanted a youthful choir that was as good as the one I had been while in the US, and this was my way of doing it. We quickly got recognized for our excellence and began performing on different platforms both internationally and locally. 

In December 2007 while performing Christmas music at Westgate, Michael Joseph heard us singing and invited me to a meeting. We had the meeting early 2008 and he told me he wanted me to set up a Safaricom Choir. It was a tall order because these were not professional musicians but Safaricom staff, so there was a lot of training that needed to be done.

I have to say that I’m very proud of the progress of the choir as they have become professional musicians through their hard work and dedication. Our first professional performance was the iconic “Niko na Safaricom” ad and we have performed around the world including at the UN.

What should we expect from the Easter concert?

The choir will sing hymns and other songs to celebrate Easter and we are giving our individual singers an opportunity to shine during this concert. A good number have worked tremendously to be great singers and this will be a testament to that. 

What does going beyond mean to you and how do you embody it?

For me I would say I’ve gone beyond in many ways, especially from coming from a small village to meeting world leaders because of my passion and dedication to music.

For the Safaricom Choir, the members in the beginning were not professional musicians but have gone beyond by putting in the work to become professionals. I think the Safaricom Choir is the best corporate choir in Kenya and I believe the staff who are members excel more at work because they have this weekly boost to their morale.

What advice would you give to upcoming musicians?

If you choose to do any type of music, you need commitment, discipline and the right attitude. The right attitude especially, will take you far, and once you put in the work, the rewards and recognition will follow.

Any last words?

It’s been a hard time for Kenyans, especially artistes. This is the time to support the efforts by scientists and the government to fight Covid-19 so we can all get back to work. Do it in your daily life by sanitizing, social distancing and wearing your mask, and encouraging others to do the same.