"Emily Chepchumba" is a

love song A love song is a song about love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. Love songs can be found in a variety of different music genres. They can come in various formats, from sad and emotion ...

written and recorded under the same record label name by the

Kalenjin Kalenjin may refer to: * Kalenjin people of Kenya ** Elgeyo people (Keiyo people) ** Kipsigis people ** Marakwet people ** Nandi people ** Pokot people ** Terik people ** Tugen people ** Sebei people * Kalenjin language Kalenjin may refer t ...

secular local musician Bamwai. It is sung in the Kipsigis dialect of the

Kalenjin language Kalenjin may refer to: * Kalenjin people of Kenya ** Elgeyo people (Keiyo people) ** Kipsigis people ** Marakwet people ** Nandi people ** Pokot people ** Terik people ** Tugen people The Tugen are a sub tribe of the Kenyan Kalenjin people. ...

. The song was inspired by a young beautiful Elgeiyo woman the musician met at Kaptarakwa in Elgeiyo-Marakwet in Western Kenya in 2004. The girl asked him to compose a song about their love. It is a song about two lovers separated by long distances, the longing and the desire by the two to meet again. In contrast, the home of Bamwai and the home of Emily Chepchumba can be approximated to only 250 kilometers and thus, socio-economic themes are manifested in the song. The song has gone on to earn a reputation in Kenya and Uganda as personifying the Kalenjin people as it is a timeless favourite among Kalenjin-speaking people as well as a go-to track in the Kenyan pop culture.

Reception

After its release, it was commercially successful among the Kalenjin speakers in

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 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

and

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

. Kalenjin radio stations played the track for a number of years at their top of the charts. The Kenyan long-distance runner

Ezekiel Kemboi Ezekiel Kemboi Cheboi (born 25 May 1982) is a Kenyan professional athlete, winner of the 3000 metres steeplechase at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2009 World Championships, the 2011 World Championships, the 2012 Summer Olympics, the 2013 Worl ...

danced to the song during the

2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in the ...

Daegu Daegu (; ), formerly spelled Taegu and officially Daegu Metropolitan City (), is a city in southeastern South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; the fourth-largest List of provincial-level ci ...

, after crossing the finish line in the 3000 metres steeplechase and during the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

held in London in August 2012, after crossing the finish line in the 3000 metre steeple chase finals and winning gold. By associating the song with his wins, Kemboi made the song a symbol of Kalenjin community prowess and pride in athletics.

References

2012 songs Kenyan songs {{2010s-song-stub