It’s a sad day for Kenya as we mourn our very own Benga Kikuyu Musician John De Mathew also Known as ‘Baba Shiku’.Kenyans retired to bed late Sunday night with the sad news of his demise,after a fatal motor accident along Thika Road.
Legendary Benga musician John Ng’ang’a, popularly known as John DeMathew died last night in a road crash at Blue Post along Thika superhighway.#RIPDeMathew #GetTheWholeStory pic.twitter.com/wGyvyLDoLx
— The Standard Digital (@StandardKenya) August 19, 2019
Life is indeed short, you never really know about tomorrow.
Barely a week ago, then now late Benga maestro John DeMathew entertained women leaders of 'Team Embrace' at a rally in Murang'a.#RIPJohnDeMathew #RIPDemathew pic.twitter.com/CCi6bnxebq
— ktn (@KTNKenya) August 19, 2019
De Mathew has been a darling to many Mugithi lovers.With his famous songs like “Njata yakwa”,”Pin Number”,”Korwo ni nii wee”and many more.
Despite his success in the music industry,De Mathew has also had a fair share of problems like finding himself in the wrong hands of the government during the 2013 General elections after he alongside two Kikuyu Musicians,Muigai wa Njoroge and Kamande wa Kioi were arrested for what was termed as hate speech by the National Cohesion and Integration Commision(NCIC).
John De Mathew did a song that raised eyebrows which was tittled ‘Mwaka wa Hiti’ (The year of The Hyena) Its translated version is said to have the following information: “As De Mathew I prophesy and let the stones hear me if men won’t. It is now the year of the hyena. Who will teach you and your ears are blocked? When a
man is seated he sees further than a boy on top of a tree. You are like a greedy hyena seeing a
man walk and following him hoping that his arm will drop off. You follow him till he boards the
train and the arm does not drop and you never eat………”
"Mwaka wa Hiti" is the only one I know and remember. Anyway, #RIPDeMathew
— Robert Alai (@RobertAlai) August 19, 2019
The song elicited a sharp reaction from a section of Kenyans, who chastised the
Cohesion Commission for taking too long before acting. They also added that the songs had been in
circulation for far much too long, and yet still some of them were still playing on some vernacular
FM stations .
De Mathew alongside Kamande wa Kioi and Muigai wa Njoroge were arraigned in court and Charged.They were however released on condition that they compensate the tension they had created by singing peaceful songs.
He will surely be Missed.RIP John De Mathew.