Meet Arusha’s own "Back Street Boys (BSB)" band

They are tough, hard and take no non-sense. Samuel Lesion, Joseph Hugo, Amir Hassan, Aggrey Fredrick, Aloyce Peter and John Nassoro (Jonake), are six street boys, of the Maji ya Chai- based Children for Children’s Future (CCF) Centre, who have formed the Bongo Street Boys (BSB) band and just released an eight track debut album entitled; "Mama Mzazi!" on CD format, but they don’t even have a CD player to play it.

By Nyamanoko Bwire

Amir: I am not quite satisfied because our band is still very much unknown.

John: I am very happy with the CD. You know it had never occurred to me that we would one day live to record one.

Aggrey: I am still not very happy with it because, we only sing and rap on it. It would have been much better if we also played the music (instruments) during the recording. I think we need some music lessons.

Aloyce: I am also not yet satisfied because our songs have only been heard here in Arusha and we actually aimed for the nation wide audience.

Samuel: I am very satisfied with this album because this is only our first step. All other things will follow later.

Joseph: Yeah! I have no complaints either.

Samuel: I like each and every song on the CD.

Joseph: I love three tracks which are: Sote ni ndugu, Maadili and Mama wa Kambo.

Amir: All songs are special to me.

Aloyce: I like "Mama Mzazi," than all other songs.

John: I prefer: "Watoto Twalia" and "Ajira Mbaya!"

Aggrey: I like all songs on our CD.

Question: So who were your role models in the music world?

Samuel: The Back Street Boys, I think they were also street boys just like ourselves.

Joseph: I like Juma Nature ( a Dar es Salaam- based artist).

Amir: Mine is Daz Nundaz ( another Dar es Salaam-based rapper).

Aggrey: I really like "Wagosi wa Kaya" ( a Dar es salaam group).

Aloyce: I like : "Dudu Baya" (another rapper from Dar es Salaam).

John: Personally I prefer "Professor Jay!"

Joseph: Well, the problems that I had encountered in the streets drove me into rap music as it is the only way to express them. But I used to enjoy singing since childhood.

Amir : After facing the tough street life I am compelled to do something about it and this is the first step.

John :I have discovered that music is the easiest way to communicate with people.

Aloyce: I like listening to music, especially hip hop, and the artists inspired me to try and sing as well.

Aggrey: I used to be a singer even when in streets and would go and sing along choirs at weddings, churches and other communal gatherings.

Joseph: We still depend on our teacher, Zebius Lekewe to write songs for us because none of us has ever had music lessons.

Amir: We don’t have any music instrument to practice on.

John: Instrument? Boy! We don’t even have a stereo to play our new album . In fact whenever we want to listen to the CD, we are forced to borrow one. This is a very serious problem, especially when we need to practice.

Aloyce: We have very many problems such that it is almost impossible to list them all. For instance, we are currently stuck in dubbing more copies of the CD, due to lack of money, we only had the initial eight copies. Six of which are already sold and are left with only two. Even to get the first copies we had to be financially assisted by; Mama Charlotte Hill O’ Neil of UAACC who paid the Tsh 560,000 debt which we owed the studio.

Samuel: We get no coverage, the local media has totally ignored us.

Samuel: I am sixteen and in class six at Tuvaila Primary school.

Joseph: I am also sixteen but in class four at the same school.

Amir: Sixteen and in class five.

John: Sixteen in class six.

Aggrey: I am seventeen and in class six.

Aloyce: I am eighteen and in standard six.

BSB: None! We all sings lead verses in particular songs, share rap stanzas and sing together in bridges and chorus verses.

BSB: NEVER!!

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Last modified: November 21, 2002.
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