Tony Nyadundo is a musician from Kenya. He performs the ''

Ohangla Ohangla is a traditional dance among the Luo community. It was used to celebrate weddings and also in funeral ceremonies as part of Tero Buru. Ohangla consists of more than eight drums played with sticks and a cylindrical, shoulder- slung drum, u ...

,'' a traditional style of music by the

Luo Luo or LUO may refer to: Luo peoples and languages *Luo peoples, an ethno-linguistic group of eastern and central Africa **Luo people of Kenya and Tanzania or Joluo, an ethnic group in western Kenya, eastern Uganda, and northern Tanzania. *** Luol ...

community. He is backed by the Ohangla Boys band. He is now branded the "King of Ohangla".

Early life

He was born in

Kal Kal may refer to: People *Kal (name) *Kal or KAL, Kevin Kallaugher (born 1955), editorial cartoonist Places Iran * Kal, Fars, a village **Kal Rural District, in Fars Province * Kal, Kurdistan, a village * Kal, Susan, a village in Khuzestan Prov ...

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

. Tony's twin sister died while he was young. His family moved to Nyahera,

Kisumu District Kisumu District was an districts of Kenya, administrative district of Nyanza Province in western Kenya. Its headquarters was Kisumu. It had a population of 504,359 (as of 1999) and a land area of 919 km². The main industries were subsistence ...

, Kenya in 1978 and later to Kongoni in Nzoia. He went to Kongoli Primary School and then in 1985 moved to Bukembe Secondary School but dropped out the following year due to lack of funds. He worked as a

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

until 1992.

Career

He also tried his hand in deejaying. His brother Jack Nyadundo formed a group performing Ohangla music, and Tony eventually joined the group after 1996. Later he formed his own group and moved back to Tanzania for a while. In 1998 he moved to Migori District in Kenya and performed for local fishing communities. He also hired

Onyi Papa Jey Onyi Papa Jey (real name Bernard Onyango Ranginya, born in 1982 in Kiyembe, Suba District) is an ohangla musician from Kenya. Onyi Papa Jey started playing orutu while at primary school.Daily Nation, March 29, 2008Onyi Papa - Fitting Replacement ...

, an

orutu The ''orutu'' is a one-stringed vertical fiddle originated in the pre-colonial societies of Western Kenya, especially amongst the Luo community. In Luhya it's known as Ishiriri. The Luo had a strong tradition of stringed instruments and was famou ...

player who has also since become a formidable musician. In 1999 he moved to

Dandora Dandora is an Estate in Kenya's capital and largest city, Nairobi. It is part of the Embakasi division. Surrounding neighbourhoods include slums such as Kariobangi, Baba Dogo, Gitare Marigo and Korogocho. Dandora was established in 1977, with ...

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

but did not achieve much success and then moved to Kisumu, where his brother Jack had become a popular musician.Daily Nation, 7 August 2009
King of Ohangla speaks
/ref> His début album ''Ayaki'' was released in 2002. This marked a turning point of his career and he finally started to gain financially from being a musician. His second album was named ''Kidi Oba e Toke'', which translates "stoned on the back". The name derives from a concert when his band was attacked by thugs who hit his drummer on the back. Several other people were injured too. In 2006 he released album ''Obama''. The name alludes to

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

, the US president whose father is from the ethnic group as Nyadundo. At the

2007 Kisima Music Awards The 2007 Kisima Music Awards took place at ''Marula Manor'', Nairobi, Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 2 ...

he won the traditional music category. He was among 100 most influential Kenyans as selected by

The Standard The Standard may refer to: Entertainment * The Standard (band), an indie rock band from Portland, Oregon * ''The Standard'' (novel), a 1934 novel by the Austrian writer Alexander Lernet-Holenia * ''The Standard'' (Tommy Flanagan album), 1980 * ...

newspaper in August 2007. In October 2009, he released a new album ''Migingo'', named after the disputed

Migingo Island Migingo is a island in Kenya on Lake Victoria. The island was the center of a low-level territorial dispute between Kenya and Uganda and is extremely densely populated. Migingo is a source of fish to the Kenyan and Ugandan fishermen. History T ...

. Tony is recognised for his hits like, dawa ya mapenzi, Obama and many more hits. He has performed in various countries including Germany and the US. He was married but divorced in 1994. He has two children from the marriage.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nyadundo, Tony Living people Kenyan musicians Kisima Music Award winners Year of birth missing (living people)

Early life

Career

See also

References