Elani is an Urban Afro band made up of 2 ladies (Wambui Ngugi, Maureen Kunga ) & 2 gentlemen (Bryan Chweya and Daniel Kibe). They have an upcoming concert dubbed ‘ELANI’S URBAN EXPRESSION’ and I caught up with the members to find out more about them & the event.

1. How did Elani come about & what does the name mean?
We met in January 2008 at the Alliance Française and quickly became friends.
Realizing a common passion for music was shared between them, we
decided to compose a song, merely for the fun of it. we soon realized that our love for music and
performance and the desire to pass on a message of hope, love and
responsibility to the world could become a reality.
The name Elani is a Giriama word, meaning light.

2. Apart from singing what do the members do?

Maureen Kunga, Nairobi University, Law
Wambui Ngugi, Nairobi University, Actuarial Science
Bryan Chweya, Nairobi University, Law
Kimani Kibe, Cornerstone Institute, Information and Communication Technology

We are also ambassadors of CATSI Kenya ( CANCER AWARENESS AND TREATMENT SUPPORT INITIATIVE launched by Nairobi International School in the year 2009 as the main project of their CSR programme), and as such, we would like to raise awareness on the dangers of cancer and its underestimated reach within a society that does not know the extent to which this disease has, and continues to spread.

3. Do you write your own songs?
Yes we write our own songs, about anything, experiences we or others have had, life, love, the struggle to make it in what we do.

4. How many songs do you have so far?
We have a little over 50 songs; some are still in the works.
5. When can we expect an album from you?
We are planning our album, perfecting our art first. We plan for the album to be a masterpiece, and creating a masterpiece takes time. We’re planning our work before we work our plan.

6. Tell me something interesting about Elani
Elani was originally a 5-member acapella group which sang under various names. there was never any big break for us, which is why that story is unknown!!! 2 vocalists left to pursue their own interests, leaving Maureen, Wambui and Bryan. Kim came into the picture, and the rest of the band came into being with time.

7. What are some of the places & events where you have performed?
Elani performed at the May edition of Blankets&Wine, we’ve done shows at the Carnivore, Dass Restaurant in Westlands, the Alliance Francaise, The Serena Hotel, City Hall, Nairobi International School at Soul for Soul (a concert held as the official launch of CATSI Kenya) and various other places in Nairobi. Our first and only show out of Nairobi so far was last month at the Mwea Classic Marathon.

8. Tell me about your upcoming event
Our upcoming event, dubbed ELANI’S URBAN EXPRESSION is our end-of-year big event. We plan to have a large Elani concert at the end of each year, for friends and fans to see the progress made in the course of the year, to be entertained and enjoy themselves, and this is the 2010 edition. It’ll be an awesome show. We’ve worked hard for months to create a show that will appeal to all people, across the board.
It will be at Alliance Francaise, where we met and our musical journey began, on the 5th of November 2010, 7pm. 400bob advance, 500bob at the gate.