INTRODUCTION
If one were to ask me, as I have already asked myself, to name the Top 10 pop songs by/featuring East African Divas in 2014, here below would be, and is, my selection. All my selections have a decidedly audio-visual focus, and so only rate music videos.
Of course, the naming of more than one 'like' inevitably prompts the question as to which 'like' comes first, and which next or last. In selecting and ranking my top African or East African 'likes' -- I limit myself to Sub-Saharan Africa -- I have been broadly guided by the following six criteria (each on a scale of 1 - 5, with 5 being the highest score):
1. The creative appeal and musicality of the voice asset.
2. The choice and mastery of the musical instruments in play.
3. The poetic form and content of the lyrics.
4. The artistic and aesthetic depth of the video component.
5. The synchronic quality of the audio-visual product, in terms of: harmony, tone, melody, rhythm, beat and color display.
6. Based on the foregoing, how the entire single, from beginning to end, impresses me -- or makes me feel about my encounter with it. This criterion also serves as a qualitative tie-breaker; that is, a virtual 'casting vote' whenever any other criteria yield a quantitative tie.
RANKING THE TOP 10 SELECTION
9. Go Down Low by Palasso ft. Sheebah (2014):
6. Mimempata by Pam Daffa ft. Mesen Selecta (2014):
5. Chapa Nyingine by Chege ft. Gift (2014):
4. Kookoo by Elani (2014):
3. Njoo by Shaa ft. Redsan (2014):
2. Prokoto by Victoria Kimani ft. Ommy Dimploz x Diamond Platnumz (2014):
1. Ole Themba by Linah (2014):
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