TAWANDA CHARI
There’s something instantly familiar about ‘Mumoyo’, Joe Mugauri’s 2024 release. Even if you’ve only just come across it, the track unlocks a wave of nostalgia, almost as if it's a time portal to the mid-2000s era of smooth US Hip-Hop/R&B. Think T-Pain without the auto-tune, Usher at his most romantic and Nelly in his prime crooning love songs with melodic confidence. That’s the kind of aura ‘Mumoyo’ carries. Smooth and soaked in emotion.
The track’s production is pristine and the arrangement of the instrumentation does a lot of heavy lifting, evoking warmth that allows the potent hook to truly land. It’s this hook that carries the weight of the song:
"So I wanted you to know, zvando feeler mumoyo..."
"There can never be another one. There can never be a better one."
It’s simple; Joe Mugauri wasn’t trying to overcomplicate the message. The verses don’t slack either. Joe continues to pour himself out with lines like “I promise you your heart is safe with me, I’ll never break it. A miracle I’ve waited for, since I started praying.” It's the kind of vulnerable honesty that makes you sit up and take notice.
And just when you think he’s done, Joe appends a poetic exaggeration that’s hard not to chuckle at: fighting a lion just to see her smile. Grand gestures, even if metaphorical, still have their place in music and Joe knew this. He strikes me as an affable artist.
With only six tracks currently available on his Spotify, Joe Mugauri’s catalogue may be small, but ‘Mumoyo’ proves it’s worth investing the time.
We’re hoping there will be more music in the future, if he finds time from his legal profession of course.
But if Mumoyo is any indication, there’s potentially a lot more to look forward to.
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/track/5eXWADSafb32KkYmmTEC3w?si=duXpION0Q_GmEBoICiR7XQ
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