Bamboozled: What is going on with rapper Bamboo and his visions?

His name is without doubt on Kenya’s hip hop Hall of Fame. He is talented albeit controversial. Bamboo’s last moment in the limelight was a decade ago when he released "Compe". He left for the United States and came back in 2012, but he hasn’t had any major impact since then. Nonetheless, his place in Kenya’s rap folklore is still intact.

Bamboo then became a born-again Christian before backsliding, then getting back on the saddle several times. He even changed his name from Simon to Abraham Kimani.

Then the drama started. The musician, one half of the rap group K-South Flava, started having visions. He claimed to have received a vision about sex out of wedlock, which he said “is the social arm of Satan’s social, political and economic system of oppression.”

Two weeks ago, the rapper introduced his Ugandan fiancée, Erika Mukisa, to the world in the strangest way possible, claiming that she, an evangelist, was introduced to Satanism by renowned Ugandan star Joseph Mayanja, also known as Jose Chameleone.

The online community received this news, which came in long Facebook posts, with a lot of scepticism. While some encouraged him to pour out his heart and speak the truth, others brushed off his story, terming it an extreme way of seeking attention.

SO, WHAT IS GOING ON?

After all, this was one half of the super duo K-South that gave us great music back in the day — like "Nairobbery", "Tabia Mbaya", "Tunapenda Zote", "Kumbaff" and his solo effort "Compe".

What is going on with the talented rapper, a pioneer in the game?

When Buzz contacted Bamboo to find out if he has evidence that Chameleone is a devil worshipper, he confidently said the "Tubonge" singer initiated his fiancée into devil worship.

“Yes, I have evidence, Erica’s testimony is proof enough. Her whole family was involved in her deliverance and it’s not a secret; this is well known in Uganda,” he said, adding that he had just returned to Kenya from Uganda.

“I tried to reach out to Chameleone but he laughed off my attempts to speak with him. In a simple text he replied, “hahaha”. It came off as quite sarcastic.”

One of the lengthy posts Bamboo wrote reads: “So the Lord sent me to Uganda where I met this beautiful evangelist Erika, who is now my fiancée… Her grandmother was a witch, so Erika found herself dedicated to Satan at a very tender age... Chameleone of Uganda initiated her and took her to the source of the Nile by force. He got into a boat with her and his assistant who was steering the boat. Chameleone then dropped two eggs into the water, recited an incantation and a whirlwind came with a fish big enough to fit 30 people or so…”

'NOT AFRAID OF LOSING FANS'

With a story this strange, Bamboo is not afraid of losing fans. “People think this is a made-up tale. If someone leaves you for speaking the truth, then they really never were with you to begin with. I have seen people who have sold their souls to the devil. Sin is the number one advertiser in the media. There is a sin agenda and I’m going to talk about it until that elephant leaves the room,” he said.

Online users have also accused the rapper of using these stories to remain relevant in the music industry, but he says these accusations are unfounded. Others have had a field day with his posts and gone ahead to mock the rapper. Erico Mutua said: “Go home, you are drunk.”

Another user, Loukman Ali, was not about to waste his time reading the long post, retorting; “I couldn’t read everything but the first couple of lines show that this person is on drugs.”

Marcos Miel Bebedor simply asked; “What is the moral of this story?”

Though the general consensus of many online users is that the "Compe" rapper is seeking attention, others are fully backing him and condemning those who think it’s a joke.

“Satanism must be exposed. Bamboo, speak with courage and expose those sleeping with the devil in the industry. God is with you,” said Dennis Nthumbi.

Jacob Dangi Odanga wrote: “Amen Bamboo. You will face resistance because of exposing the truth. No selling your soul for vanity,”

Fellow rapper Khaligaph Jones, a friend of Bamboo, says although he does not believe the story, he does not dispute it. “He’s grown up, he knows what he is saying. When you publicise such information and you are the only one who understands it, people will think you are crazy,” Khaligraph told Buzz.

He clarifies that he does not think Bamboo is insane, but says the rapper is coming off as “crazy”. “I cannot continue defending him any more because it looks crazy. This is what I mean... he is in a certain position where he has established himself as a legendary artiste but the problem is that people are starting to forget about that and concentrating on this instead,” says Khaligraph.

Still, Bamboo stands his ground with the message that life is spiritual and that there are things that cannot be explained using logic and reason. In any case, he adds, the two, logic and reason, have failed our society and it is sad that they are what people rely on most.

In 2014, Bamboo was reported to have abandoned his faith and gone back to secular music. But he says he did not backslide. It was a battle where he kept getting pulled back and forth, he says.

“I had no mentor to explain these things to me, to explain what I was going through. People will always try to make you fall, but you have to get back up. Salvation is a completely new life and any Christian is going to fall but he has to get back up,” he said.

Bamboo, in his recent Facebook posts, talks of musicians accepting “deals” to get money, women and fame in exchange for their souls. He calls it bondage.

The jury is still out on his stories. It remains to be seen whether this was just an attention-seeking tactic or he truly believes what he is preaching.

@jmmosongo