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On the front night of his fourth album: ´Maisha´

Mad Ice brings African vibes and rhythms from East Africa to Europe

Have you ever heard of Mad Ice? This world music artist and performer, singing mostly in Swahili, is famous in East-Africa and Finland!
Supported by his Finnish wife Niina, Mad Ice aka Ahmed Kakoyi, is one of the stars of the local and Scandinavian ‘world music scene’. His concerts are well-visited and his CD’s and EP’s are sold at major digital stores like iTunes. On April 2nd Mad Ice is about to launch his new album, ‘Maisha’, at a special concert in Helsinki. Because, even though Finland is mostly a rock oriented country, there are plenty of people that love the rhythm and the African vibes in Mad Ice’s music.

Piracy a threat to African artists

Mad Ice: “On pirate street markets and in the small illegal music stores of Dar es Salaam and Kampala, my music is among the most copied. I guess I will have to take that as a compliment.” But piracy is part of the reason why Mad Ice decided to try his luck in Europe. In short: life for African artists is not easy. In Africa artists cannot depend only on selling music, they need to perform to make a living. Mad Ice explains how he decided to try his luck in Finland. “I was born in Uganda but as a young boy I spent a couple of years in Tanzania. There my career as a singer really started. Since I sing mostly in Swahili, the majority has always taken me as a Tanzanian artist. In 2004 I was invited to Finland by a Finnish producer Miikka ‘Mwamba’ Kari who had earlier produced my debut album ‘Baby Gal’ in 2003. I signed a three-year contract with a Finnish label and in 2006 I decided to shift my base here permanently. And I like it here.” Mad Ice has taken root in Finland, where he and his wife Niina now have two kids.

Fourth album

After ‘Baby Gal’ (2003), ‘Mad Ice’ (2005) and ‘Maneno’ (2007), 2011 will be the year of ‘Maisha’. On Mad Ice’s website, fans can find out about his next shows, read about his life and watch concert videos. “I want to invite all Club Africa members to visit my iTunes page and download the music. Also I hope they all enjoy my clip of ‘Te Amo’, the first single of the new album.”

“They want me to come home”

Mad Ice regularly visits East Africa to perform and visit his family. “They miss me there, they want me to come home. Fortunately, it is their language that I sing in. I have not changed much, the sound may be more polished and western – call it Afro with a western touch – than it was before I left for Finland. But the lyrics of the songs and the languages are the same, so are the topics.” Mad Ice gives us the lyrics of his ‘Te amo’ song. The words may be Swahili, but his message appeals to all people. “Moyo wangu uko kwako wee, Mawazo yote yako kwako wee”, it starts, which literally translates into “My heart is with you, my thoughts are all about you.”

Have you ever seen Mad Ice perform live? Please tell us what you thought in the comments below!

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