A shallow comparison between Kenya’s Benga maestro Okatch Biggy and America’s rap legend Biggie Smalls.

Big-bodied

One striking similarity between Kenya’s controversial Benga maestro Okatch Biggy and America’s rap legend Notorious BIG is their big sizes. This earned them the nickname “Biggy” or “Biggie” which they adopted as their stage names. Okatch Biggy’s real name was Elekia Mathayo Okach while Biggie Smalls real name was Christopher George Latore Wallace.

Lewd lyrics

Whoever has listened to Notorious BIG a.k.a Biggie Smalls’s songs will agree with me that most of them contain lewd lyrics. The same can be said of Okatch Biggy’s songs. Both glorified big buttocks as is evidenced in their hit singles,” Can I get Witcha” by Biggie Smalls and “Helena Wang’e Dongo” by Okatch Biggy. In “Can I get witcha,” Biggie Smalls says,”…Why you wana get with me? Coz you got a big B.U.T.T…” while in “Helena Wang’e Dongo,” Okatch says “…Sianda madongo tinde aweyo…”

Both died in 1997

As fate would have it, both artists died in the same year; Biggie Smalls in March 1997 while Okatch Biggy in December 1997.

4 studio albums

Another similarity between Kenya’s benga maestro Okatch Biggy and America’s rap legend Biggie Smalls is that both produced four studio albums. Biggie Smalls’s “Ready to die” album was produced in 1994, “Life after death” in 1997 while “Born Again” and “Duets: the final chapter” were produced posthumously in 1999 and 2005 respectively. Okatch Biggy released four albums; Helena Wang’e Dongo (1992), Dorina (1992),  Nyathi Nyakach (1996) and Okelo Jabondo (1996).

Posthumous releases

Biggie Smalls had a number of his tracks released after he had died. “Hypnotize,” “More money more problems” and “ Sky is the limit” are just but a few examples. Okatch Biggy’s “Adhiambo Nyakobura” was released in 1998, a year later after his death.

(Image/www.nation.co.ke)