Kiss Daniel's Yeba

In Lingala language, the word Yeba means to know, or to become acquainted with. The music which those of my generation grew up with (and were nourished by) in Nairobi, and other parts of Kenya and the larger East Africa, was mostly Congolese, rendered in Lingala -- with a sprinkling of French and even 'broken' Swahili (nuggets of the latter which it was fun to rummage for). 

All too often, in the course of the lyrics, one would hear the intriguing word Yeba shoot out. We didn't quite pause to ask what it meant exactly. We took it as some kind of exclamation, signalling a moment of 'ecstasy' in the song -- such as was relayed by the 'possessed' vocalist, and such as was allowed in the dance hall and over the radio.

I don't yet know what Yeba means in Kiss Daniel's Nigerian language, but I have my suspicions -- which drew my attention to Yeba, one of his most recent songs, in the first place (so to speak). Having heard the song and viewed the video, what I know already, and all that matters for now, is that this tuneful song is a Looking Glass of sorts (nay, a telescope) by means of which he takes us on a smooth, decades-long journey through musical Time -- abridged though the journey clearly is. 

The video has a magic of its own. It is a montage, inside very confined space, of a galaxy of sped-up movements and slow-motion 'posturings' (a few of which may be a turnoff to a few). Numbered years come rushing at you in one bat-like stream of charged (of awakened) sub-consciousness, if, I'm thinking, you remember them as you were. Littler. Younger. And, all of this, seemingly without a choreography. Seemingly, yes, but in the end everything falls into place as part of a grand design and laid-back artistry.

What excels in the music itself is not so much the beat as the absolutely captivating tune. Still, the beat gladdens the heart and the two (beat and tune) mutually reinforce. And they deliver to us a tropical feast of sight, sound and (techni)color that's irresistible and nourishing and deeply moving. 

Kiss Daniel's signature voice -- lush and always disarming, and here laced with naughty 'phrases' -- is simultaneously at the heart and the outer layers of the song. It is, so to speak then, the icing on this generous and lavish cake.

Click here for Kiss Daniel's Yeba, the video

Here are the Yeba Lyrics

Read: Jasper Efe (September 20, 2017) "Kiss Daniel: Yeba [Music]"










Text in para 4 partially updated (w/ an insert starting at Numbered years and ending with Younger): Nov 26, 2018