Kenyan Afro Pop band, Sauti Sol has opened up on a missed opportunity to release a single with the late Oliver Mtukudzi.
According to the band’s lead vocalist Bien-Aimé Baraza, the group had ignored calls from the African legend’s nephew few days before he passed on.
Speaking to a local media outlet in a recent interview, Bien divulged that they had received an invitation to perform in Zimbabwe but changed performance dates to February 14.
“We were meant to perform in Zimbabwe after his nephew reached out and wanted us to perform in annual festival in Zimbabwe,” Bien is quoted.
However, as fate would be, things didn’t go as planned – the African legend died on January 23.
“We were super sad because we had all the opportunity to record a single together,” Bien said.
“We had like so many platforms, but we admit we wasted time to do something with the African legend,” he added.
The singer couldn’t hold back what he termed a lost opportunity.
“Give people their roses when they can still smell them, don’t wait for them to die, I see it that Sauti Sol would have reached out to Oliver 10 years ago,” Bien said.
He revealed that the band has now resorted to make things right while there is still time.
“Everybody we want to work with in the future, we are reaching out to them now. Oliver did 67 albums. So even to other artists, let us do our best by expressing ourselves in as much as we can,” he concluded.
Oliver Mtukudzi was Zimbabwe’s most successful and internationally renowned musician, known far and wide by his music.
In Kenya, like many countries around the world, Mtukudzi and his band dubbed African Spirits are popularly known by hit song ‘Todii’.
He collaborated with Kenyan singer Erick Wainaina to produce ‘Twende Twende’.
Read:Sauti Sol’s Bien-Aime Proposes To Girlfriend Chiki (Photos)
The man, who was declared a national hero by Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, also produced songs with South African group Black Mambazo as well as Hugh Masekela, the trumpeter and singer known as the “father of South African jazz”.
Mtukudzi succumbed to diabetes in Harare at the age of 66 ending a career that spanned for decades with 67 albums.
Ironically enough, Mtukudzi died on exactly the same day as his friend, the musician Hugh Masekela, who passed away on 23 January 2018.
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