Ogoya Nengo was born Anastasia Oluoch in the late 1930’s, at a small village called Magoya, near the shores of Lake Victoria, of the Nilotic Luo tribe. Born to a family of singers and orators, she soon joined their trade and practice as social messengers and commentators, commonly referred to by the locals as Dodo singers. By age 12, Anastasia had realized much acclaim in her society and graced many important functions including weddings, funerals, and village gatherings. As the last born in a family of seven who were all performers, Anastasia emerged as the favorite and was accorded the status of a full time Dodo singer at the age of 13, and named Ogoya Nengo which means ‘The Priced One’. Ogoya and her sister Nyagor became the rave of their time, criss-crossing the region with their music, singing to great chiefs, warriors and even colonial officers and missionaries who became enraptured by their talent.

Ogoya Nengo’s music is characterized by her powerful, passionate and compelling voice, backed by traditional drums and percussions. Her music is as timeless as it is mystical. At over 65 years, Ogoya is a legendary Kenyan folk artiste who has had an immense career spanning three decades. However, due to limited resources her music has remained in her region, and many people in Africa have not had the pleasure of hearing and internalizing this amazing artiste.

It was with the objective of capturing and eternalizing Ogoya’s music that Ketebul Music Director and Music Promoter, Tabu Osusa went right into the village of Rang’ala to find Ogoya Nengo and her current team of Margaret Arango, Julianne Akoth, Wilfrida Anyango and Pelisse Achieng’ and brought them to his studio, under producers Gabriel Omondi, Jesse Bukindu and Steve Kivutia, to realise this amazing recording of the raw, authentic, passionately intense musicality of the legendary Luo diva, Ogoya Nengo. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.