Armstrong to release mixtape before album
Armstrong, Malawi’s brand new singer who has taken the country’s airwaves by storm with hit singles ‘Ndamusowa’ and ‘Sinditha Kumvetsa’, will first release a mixtape before his highly anticipated untitled album, his record label has announced.
Nde’feyo Entertainment said the 22-year-old Blantyre-based artist’s 10-track R&B mixtape titled ‘BrB’ (Be Right Back) will be released on 4th March, 2012.
In a statement made available to Nyasa Times, the label indicates that mixtape, which features two of the country’s music icons, singer Maskal and rapper Young Kay, will be officially launched at Shire Highlands Hotel in the commercial city where a couple of urban musicians are scheduled to perform.
Coming at a time when Malawians are eagerly waiting for Armstrong’s yet-to-be-titled album which has the two hits that are banging on radio, entertainment joints and other social gatherings, Nde’feyo Entertainment says people should not confuse the mixtape with the singer’s album which will be out later in the year.
“The mixtape is a prelude to his mainstream album which will be coming out before the end of the year 2012,” explains Nde’feyo co-director Khumbo Munthali in the statement.
Munthali adds: “The mixtape is aimed at satisfying the singer’s fans that are so into ‘modern urban R&B’ while the album will be targeting all the audiences transversely, both local and urban.”
According to the record company, which also manages artists Maskal, Piksy and Biriwiri, ‘BrB’ also offers contemporary songs that people outside Malawi can listen and relate to as all the tracks, except one, are in English.
Some of the tracks on the ‘BrB’ mixtape include ‘In love with a DJ’, ‘Don’t wanna talk about it’, ‘Ukhale Wanga’, ‘Without Your Love’, ‘Beautiful’, ‘Here we go’, ‘Hey Shawty’ and ‘Tonight’.
‘Hey Shawty’, which features an up and coming rapper named Skid, is already out on the internet for promotion and the label is expected to release it on radio alongside ‘In love with a DJ’ this week.
Nde’feyo Entertainment is expected to put the ‘BrB’ mixtape on the internet for free downloads after the launch and according to Armstrong’s managers, CDs will be available for sale at K300 during the launch at Shire Highlands Hotel for “cost recovery and all CDs will be autographed”.
Supporting acts at the ‘BrB’ launch will include Maskal, Piksy, Gwamba, DareDevils, Blak Jak, Fredokiss, Rina and Issu.
‘BrB’ has been produced at Joyous Records by KEiM, Pro-Pee Records by Percy Manyozo as well as Tanaposi.
Armstrong was born Sopani Armstrong Kalua in Blantyre. He grew up in the townships of Chilomoni and Chilobwe.
Also a songwriter and dancer, he started his career on a gospel note as a dancer with God Soldiers Dancing Group (G-Soldiers) and won the Sprite Dancing Competition in 2006.
He discovered his rap talent in 2008 and joined a gospel group called BBM Clique (Blessed Beyond Measure). They released a couple of famous tracks like “By my side”, and “Random Thoughts”. He went solo and started working on a secular hip-hop mixtape called “Beyond Limits”.
He then switched to singing in 2010 and in 2011 he released his first two singles as a singer titled “Beautiful” featuring Young Kay and “Without Your Love”.
Currently, Armstrong is the most sought singer that urban artists want to work with and so far, besides Maskal and Young Kay, he has done tracks with hip-hop stars BarryOne, Cyclone, Isu and dancehall maestro Blasto.
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