Translate

Showing posts with label Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony. Show all posts

Sunday, August 2, 2020

(Kenyan music group) Matata - "Ruracio" (video and selected comments about Gengetrap & more )



MATATA- RURACIO (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)  GENGETRAP

MATATA OFFICIAL, June 14, 2020

The name Ruracio means bride wealth or dowry. In many African societies the groom's family presents either money or cows or both to the bride's family as a gesture of his willingness to marry her The payment of the bride price is a sign of the man's commitment to take care of his wife and is seen as a symbolic act and a necessary part of upholding culture, rather than a purchase The song taps from this traditional culture and puts an urban/modern spin to it.

****
Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post provides information about the Norwegian based Kenyan music and dance group Matata.

This post also showcases Matata's June 2020 song/video entitled "Ruracio". Selected comments from this video's discussion thread are also included in this post, with particular attention to comments about how Matata combined Genge (or Gengetone-they're not the same thing) with Trap music beats.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Matata for their musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are associated with this video and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

Click the "Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony" tag below for pancocojams posts that provide information and comments about the Rurario pre-wedding ceremony.

I became interested in that subject after happening upon this Matata song/video as a result of receiving a YouTube recommendation for another Matata video, and then binge watching this and three other Matata videos. 

Click 
https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/08/two-excerpts-of-online-articles-about.html for a closely related pancocojams post on Gengetrap. 
[retrieved on August 2, 2020 at 10:35 AM EDT]

"MATATA is a Kenyan music and dance artists group that consists of 5 members- Marcus Ojiambo, Ken Kimathi, Richie Mathu, Freddy Milanya, and Festus Mwenda. The group was founded in the year 2016 when the members who coincidentally knew each other from before in Kenya met in the city of Oslo where each of them had gone to pursue further education. The members who had been notable figures in the Kenyan dance industry prior to moving to Norway decided to join forces and together started the MATATA crew in Norway which became a recognized brand in the norwegian dance and urban scene performing on television, Festivals, and Even becoming the 2 time champions of measure your crew dance competition. In the year 2017 the group started pursuing music and slowly combining the art of dance and music together in their performances, but it wasn't until 2018 that the group started recording music and in August 2019 released their first single DENGE, which was accompanied by a dance challenge #dengechallenge which went viral on the social media platforms TIKTOK and WhatsApp."
-snip-
This group shouldn't be confused with the Kenyan funk group Matata (also known as "Matata Air Fiesta) hat was founded in 1968. Click https://rateyourmusic.com/artist/matata for some information about that group. 

For people in the United States and many other nations, the word "matata" calls to mind the Lion King movie song and slogan "hakuna matata" (Swahili: no troubles, but usually converted in English to "no worries". My guess is that that song/saying probably factored into the 2016 group Matata's name choice.

****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THIS VIDEO'S DISCUSSION THREAD 
All of these comments were published between June 14, 2020 to August 2, 2020. Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.    

1. Kenneth Kiruka
"What a video dark knight meets matata.vidaa about a broke(joker) amekataliwa coz hana doo ya ruracio he has a plan vile ata pata do oh za ruracio=(heist) then kills them after the heist n gets dooh za ruracio .I stanπŸ™ŒπŸ™ŒπŸ™ŒπŸ™ŒπŸ™ŒπŸ™ŒπŸ™Œ"
**
REPLY
2. MATATA OFFICIAL
"🀯🀯🀯🀯🀯🀯"
**
3. Klint Eastwood
"MATATA OFFICIAL you guys are just on another levelπŸ’―πŸ’―
Love can make you do crazy stuffs πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚
That girl gon get a big ruracio πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚"

**
4. Kelly Price
"Big ups to the person who shot the video πŸ‘πŸ‘"

**
5. Patricia Maina
"Here before a billion views....
Ruracio is such a vibe  ...the beats,dances, customs and props πŸ‘ πŸ™Œ
 ngoma mwoto"
-snip-
Google translate from Swahili to English "ngoma mwoto"=  fire dance [or song]
-snip-
This undoubtedly refers to the African American Vernacular English originated use of "fire" as a superlative.
**
6. MovieSonic 1234

"Kenyans ain't playing this 2020 y'all πŸ’―πŸ”ŠMigos of  Kenya πŸ‡°πŸ‡ͺ πŸ’₯πŸ’₯πŸ’₯International hit✨πŸ‘πŸΌπŸ‘πŸΌ"

**
REPLY
7. Tim Mitoz
"Nope they are Matata of matata don't start comparing it will cap your perspective especially when they are just trying to pop out."

**
REPLY
8. MovieSonic 1234
"@Tim Mitoz i only said that because they gave me Migos kinda flow.. I ment their swag and style reminded me of them..."

**
REPLY
9. Tim Mitoz
"@MovieSonic 1234 LOL its because they have fused gengetone with trap. Thats why they've called it gengetrap in their title up there. Isnt it funny how they hopped into the gengetone sound because they saw its potential while other people were busy creating twerking videos? Now they are trying to expound on it to find their own  style in the gengetone sound that will set them apart from the rest."
-snip-
Several other commenters in this Matata discussion thread and in other Matata video discussion threads compared this group with the African American Hip Hop/Trap trio Migos. Here's some information about Migos from https://www.biography.com/musician/migos
"Migos is a hip-hop trio from Lawrenceville, Georgia, comprised of family members Quavo, Offset and Takeoff. Known as purveyors of trap music, the group has ignited global trends like the dab — the head-dropped arm-bent dance — and their mixtapes and videos have gone viral."...
**
10. Nelson David
"Taking Kenya music world wide ..big up guys😘"

**
11. Moreen Mwendwa
"I love how they keep their lyrics clean and their music videos are next levelπŸ€—πŸ€—"

**
12. Dan Trainer
"Matata,
Choreography 100%
Bars 100%
Creativity 100%
Entertainment 120%"
**
14. Lorian Mona Atieno Okong'o
"This is so beautiful! The Video is a Very creative display of Modern Afrocentrism. Aaand, the GengeTrap tune? Big, Big guys."
**
15. PhilSide
"Hakuna genge hapa hii ni Trap"
-snip-
Google translate from Swahili to English:
"No gang here this is Trap"
-snip-
"Gang" is the Swahili direct translation for the word "genge". However, in that comment "genge" is a  Sheng word that refers to a specific type (or types) of music.
**
16. Dennis Mwenda
"Video ni dope, ngoma ni dope. Amazing talent all through 100%"
-snip-
Swahili to English translation of "ni" = is; ngoma = song or dance;

"Dope" here has its African American Vernacular English meaning of "very good".

**
M M Micheni
17. "Matata taking cinematography to the next level."

**
18. Epic Stevens
"Giving credit where it’s due. The visuals are stunning, the song is just a bangerπŸ’―"

**
19. Lilo N.
"someone call mpasho and tell them how Matata are taking gengetone to the next level"
-snip-
Here's information about Mpasho from  https://mpasho.co.ke/
"Mpasho, The Number one freshest Kenyan entertainment news site, for all your fashion news, music news, videos, celebrity news and Lifestyle News."

**
20. KAMKAN LIMASHEP
"You have leveled up guys, I like this gengetrapπŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯"

**
21. Dj Joe Mtrue
"Different kind of dope."

**
22. Kevin khago
"this guys are lit...taking Kenyan music to the next level"

**
24. Liz Wambui
"This song is mind blowing,everything matata touches turns into Gold walaaa"
**
25. JULIAS ARKADI
"Visuals manze!!!!! And my love for trap!. Guys you made my day"
-snip-
"Manze" is probably a stylized form of the colloquial referent "man".

**
26. Milch Shake
"THIS IS GOING TO BE THE OFFICIAL RURACIO ANTHEM PLAYED IN ALL RURACIOS/KOITOS πŸ‡°πŸ‡ͺπŸŽΆπŸ‘ŒπŸΎ"
"Koito ("To give away")[1] is a Kalenjin wedding ritual which involves the negotiation of a brides dowry"-snip-
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalenjin_people
The Kalenjin are a group of Southern Nilotic tribes indigenous to East Africa, residing mainly in what was formerly the Rift Valley Province in Kenya. They number 6,358,113 individuals as per the Kenyan 2019 census. They are divided into nine culturally and linguistically related sub-tribes: KipsigisNandiKeiyoMarakwetSabaotPokotsTugenTerik and Ogiek.[2] They speak Kalenjin languages, which belong to the Nilotic language family"...
**
27. Capital FM Kenya
"Good music + Great visuals = Matata πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯"

**
28. maki Michael
"Yoh. The whole thing is awesome. I mean audio, video you guys are taking kenya somewhere. Gengetrap is a good idea for the inventorπŸ’―πŸ’―.
Then i think if you would have done it in english and swahili would have been much better. Because the pick of the story is in kikuyu in which I've just understand it through comments.
Anyway congratulations great work guys"
-snip-
MATATA's songs are rapped/sung in Sheng.  Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/05/an-introduction-to-kenyas-sheng.html for a 2015 pancocojams posts on Sheng.

**
29. William Nzeli
"Sheng +Trap =SHRAP #shraptotheworld #shraplife πŸ”₯πŸ”₯"

**
30. Tim Mitoz
"I like how you guys are trying to experiment and blend different sounds apart from gengetone. So far you guys and Chris Kaiga are the ones bringing in fresh tunes from just experimenting sounds in Kenya πŸ‡°πŸ‡ͺπŸ‡°πŸ‡ͺπŸ‡°πŸ‡ͺ.. Keep it up!"
**
31. Munene Kirimi
"Finally musicians who are setting new standards.
Its time the Kenyan music scene left the comfort zone."
**
32. Joy Kinyua
"Kenya isn't even ready for you!! We don't even deserve y'allπŸ˜‚. The choreography, cinematography, storyline...too much!! You are enough prove that we can still have clean gengetone music and good music in general. #TeamMatataAllTheWay.”…
Wow you guys πŸ‘πŸΏπŸ‘ŒπŸΏ"

**
33. Tito kenya
"#kenyan trap next big artists"

**
34. Davy Raphael
"Fact that these guys arent in Kenya makes their songs slap harder😍😍😍"

**
35. Joel Watatua
"Pure creativity! No need for nudity or vulgarity to make it in the scene. I like it."

**
36. Paul Norman
"Clean videos like theseπŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ’―"
**
37. Nelson Mecha
"I always told my fellow Kenyans that they were underrating “MATATA”,.. you guys are liiit πŸ”₯ πŸ”₯,.."
**
38, AplainEast Official
"Who Took This Video He Is FlamesπŸ”₯,Lines Are Perfect Though Message Some Popped Out Of Lane But Still Is Lit ...πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯ Production Always Kwa Point πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯(Is Litttttttt!!!!!πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯) The African Chant Is Also Fire πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯(Creativity Is Flames) .... (Keep On Grinding Matata)πŸ”₯πŸ™ŒπŸ½"
**
39, James Ian
"Eish. Vida imeenda shule"
-snip-
Google translate from Swahili to English: "video has gone to school"
**
40. CPA Robert Mwangi
"Your videos are always of high qualities, from production, directing, lighting, everything, so professionally done"

**
41. shavanga davies
"This is super amazing. The choreography behind it, is top notch. You brought a different touch in the industry. πŸ’―"

**
42. Sam Kinyua
"
Eish!!! Mad visuals, sick beats and top shelf choreography. MATATA never disappoint!!!Hii GengeTrap imeweza."
-snip-
Read a definition for the exclamation "Eish!" in the comment section for this post.
Here's one definition for the exclamation "Eish!"
from https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Eish
**
43. Benson Njenga
"This is a piece of Art.... Beautiful"
**
44. Enock Khapoya
"This here is a gamechangerπŸ‘ŒπŸΏπŸ‘ŒπŸΏ love the visuals, the beats, the music itself. I'm hooked maguyzπŸ‘ŠπŸΏ"

**
45. Evangelical Poet
"This guys are so creative, best of all the gengetone around"
**
46. Nelly Waruguru
"Now we are talking, another video I can finally share with my friends continue coming with the heat, we are here to support you and thank you for not loosing the Kenyan in you πŸ₯°πŸ₯°πŸ₯°πŸ₯°πŸ₯°"
**
47. Johnny Rhymes official
"Eish..!!
I love this crew
Everything on fleek
Swagg straight to the ceiling
#kenyan migos"

**
48. Roy Mweri
"Waah... You guys make me skip that "hakuna Matata" part of the lion King  songπŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚ coz waah Mii sioni life bila Matata y'all fire πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯"
-snip-
Google translate from Swahili to English- "Mii sioni life bila Matata"' "I don't see life without Matata".
**
49. Maxwell Adira
"Content safi creativity hatari"
-snip-
Swahili word "safi"= "fresh"; "hatari" = "dangerous"

**
50. Alex Gichiri"And who directed this song..πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯this video is maaadπŸ™ŒπŸ™ŒπŸ™Œ.."
**
51. jenn wahu
"Them BARZZZZ!!!!!!!!!! πŸ”₯ πŸ”₯ It’s MATATA!!! & U   Can’t tell me nothing!!!!  πŸ‡°πŸ‡ͺ 254  to the world 🌎"
-snip-
In this comment "bars"refers to the rapper's lyrics. "Them BARZZZ!!!!" means that the lyrics (and the way of delivering them) is very good.  "254" =county code for Kenya; "Kenya to the world" is a declaration/boast that Kenya's music deserves worldwide attention.

**
52. ELMUSO SNEH
"LOVE THIS GUYS.VERY UNPREDICTABLE"

**
53. Rhena Adhis
"The concept for your videos and execution is always on point"

**
54. Antonio Kaberia
"Keep it kenya....Nice vibe Genge Trap to the world"

**
55. Willyken Karithi
"New invention who has heard of genge "trap"before pure creativity no copies
New hit makers for sure"

**
56. cia juliett
"I cannot beleive how much matata are a hit and are not even in KenyaπŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ‘πŸ˜πŸ˜anyway Hakuna Matata"
**
57. TUNA salad
"This song makes me wanna tell corona to wash its hands"

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

That Fire LA's Reaction Video & Selected Discussion Thread Comments About Kenyan Music Group Sauti Sol's 2014 Hit Song "Sura Yako"



That Fire LA, Mar 4, 2019
Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post showcases That Fire LA's 2019 reaction video of the 2014 song/video "Sura Yako" by the Kenyan music group Sauti Sol.

Selected comments from that video's discussion thread highlight some comments about Kenya's Ruracio (pronounced ru-RAH-she-o*) ceremony that is depicted in that video. 

The content of this post is presented for cultural and entertainment purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Sauti Sol for their musical legacy. Thanks to Big Ralph and his mother Mama Dee for reacting to this song/video and thanks to thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

*Correction for this pronunciation is welcome. 

This post is part of an ongoing pancocojams series on African dowry ceremonies such as the Kikuyu's Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony that is highlighted in this video. Click 
https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/08/kenyan-music-group-sauti-sol-sura-yako.html for a 2020 pancocojams post about this Sauti Sol video and click the "Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony" tag below for additional posts on this subject.

****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THE DISCUSSION THREAD FOR THAT FIRE LA'S REACTION TO SAUTI SOL'S SONG/VIDEO "SURA YAKO"

This reaction video was hosted by (African Americans) Big Ralph and his mother Mama Dee. Neither Big Ralph nor Mama Dee speak Swahili, the language that is used in this song. Some of the comments in that video's discussion thread respond to Mama Dee's comment that she was surprised that this song wasn't slow since she read that it was a wedding song. Some other comments respond to Big Ralph's question about whether that video was an arranged marriage and/or a real marriage.

All of these comments except for the last one are from 2019. Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.

1. 
Njeri M
"sura yako" means "your looks" , not "your face" . πŸ˜€"

**
2.  
Ms. J
"
Literally if you direct translate it means your face but the meaning is your looks.."
**
3. King David
"The song simply means 'you are beautiful.. ' like your face is beautiful"

**
4.  w4k1- 70wn"This song won song of the year in the Mtv Ema."-snip-Here's information about some awards that Sauti Sol won for their song/video "Sura Yako" from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_awards_and_nominations_received_by_Sauti_Sol

...[Suti Sol won] "Best African Act at the 2014 MTV Europe Music Awards,[3] becoming the first Kenyan musicians to receive the award.[4]
In 2015, the release of their third studio album Live and Die in Afrika saw the group receive continued recognition. The song "Sura Yako" was nominated for 9 awards, winning Most Downloaded Single, Most Downloaded Afro-Pop Single and Most Downloaded Song at the Mdundo Music Awards,[5] while its music video won YouTube Video of the Year at the Pulse Music Video Awards"..
-snip-
Here's information about MTV EMA from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_Europe_Music_Award
"An MTV Europe Music Award (commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) is an award presented by Viacom International Media Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an alternative to the MTV Video Music Awards, which are hosted annually in the United States. The Europe Music Awards are held every year in a different country; it has been hosted mostly in the United Kingdom. The annual presentation ceremony features performances by prominent artists, and the presentation of those awards that have a more popular interest."-snip-
As of August 2, 2020 at 8:20 AM Sauti Sol's official YouTube video of "Sura Yako" (published September 12, 2014) has 10,080,986 views.

As of August 2, 2020 TFLA's reaction to that song/video (published August 4, 2019) has 39,621 views. That is a very high number of viewers for YouTube reaction videos. Reaction videos are a category of YouTube videos in which the host or hosts react to a music video that they hadn't seen before. Commenters respond to that reaction and recommend other videos that the host should showcase. Because the African American hosts in this particular TFLA reaction video showcases a Kenyan song, most of the commenters are Kenyans.However, it appears to me that a large portion of TFLA's reaction videos showcase songs/videos from South Africa. Most of the commenters in the discussion threads for those videos consists of people from the nation of South Africa. 

**
5. 
Rizmoo (Morris Fred)"this is how the ceremony goes down.  The groom goes to the bride's family to pick the bride on the day of the wedding. and he has to pick her form a line of ladies of same body size and height, if he picks the wrong one, then he is fined, mostly a goat. The issue of dowry is done on a different ceremony. The dowry ceremony differs depending on the tre tribe. I am a kikuyu from Kenya, and our dowry ceremony is called 'ruracio'. this link could help you understand it more. https://www.kce.co.ke/dowry.html "
**
6. MUGO MUGO
"
ha ha its so awesome watching you guys decipher this video . its not a real wedding though, actually most Africans dont exchange animals anymore, money is the preferred  option for obvious reasons. great reaction as always

**
7. 
Clement Gitonga
"
In most African traditions you have to do the traditional wedding before the white wedding, in Kenya traditional ceremonies are recognized by the Govt so you can do just that without the white wedding.. either way the traditional ceremony comes first. Different communities have their own procedures for that but it all involves the guy and his family going to the girls family, the girl’s family say how much dowry they want... usually in cows, goats, sheep and for pastoralists camels, they may negotiate etc, full dowry doesn’t have to be paid right away, it’s basically a lifetime commitment and you can bring some every now and then. After getting the blessings in the traditional ceremony you can now proceed to plan for the white wedding. Regarding the video, the theme is on the traditional ceremony, but in the lyrics he is just praising his girl, telling her that she is beautiful ( Sura yako mzuri mama- your face is beautiful mama)"
-snip-
The term "white wedding" refers to the custom of brides wearing a white dress at a (usually Christian) formal church wedding.

**
8. 
Migwi Samuel
"
This is a traditional wedding. The formalities vary with the tribe. We are 43 tribes in Kenya. The standard bethrothing way is a guy taking gifts in cash or in kind to the lady's family. The amount depends on the stage of relationship. White/church wedding may or may not happen"

**
9. 
njeridiva
"Mama Dee is always right on the money. Usually in many African cultures the groom has to demonstrate that he can take care of the wife and future kids so he gives to the family of the bride. It is also a show of gratitude for the parents of the bride for taking care of your wife educating her etc...Its usually opposite of how things are done in the west where the bride gives to the groom's family. The ritual of guessing who your bride is is very common. You should know her so well that you can pick her out of a group of covered girls. In many traditional weddings this is common and you get fined if you pick the wrong girl... Dowry is really not about "paying" as such but more of gratitude and show of ability to provide and take care of your future family. I love how yal just get it. The ancestors are connecting all of us Africans around the world back together again through music. ❤❤❤ Also in the pre-wedding ceremony, it is common for the whole family and friends of the groom to dance their way to the family of the bride to officially "pay" the agreed apon dowry... All this already negotiated before this ceremony... If you are interested in African Traditional weddings and the rituals before and during please youtube "Rurashio" which is one of the Kenyan traditions on dowry day. Ps this is just one of the many ways this is done depending on the specific cultures.

**[The following comment was written in response to a commenter's statement that in Africa the bride's family sometimes gives a dowry to the groom's family]
10. Dorcas Lukoye
"Weh my dear...there is nothing that comes from the girls side not even food at least not in Kenyan weddings..its the guy's mom and aunties who bring food stuff to the girls home.Infact even the food being eaten in most cases its the man who gives his girl money for all the preparations way before the function.The girl's family only foots this cost at their own will...not mandatory...or top up on what the man had given...the girl's parents mainly pay the food items the man and his close relatives should eat traditionally from the girl's mother's pot.e.g in Luhya tradition,its several whole roasted chicken per person,kienyeji vegetables and brown traditional ugali.The other fancy modern meals the man gives the girl enough money as per the girl's family intended budget for the girl to buy and prepare in advance.

**
11. 
Nicole Dinga
"They danced that jam with Obama and taught him how to dance that style lol"

**
12. Clement Gitonga
"This is the song Obama danced to with Sauti Sol when he was in the 254"
-snip-
"254" is the country code (international telephone code) for Kenya, East Africa. President Obama's father was from Kenya.

Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfPiDKKsDNA for a video of former United States President Barack Obama dancing the lipala dance with Sauti Sol during his visit to Kenya in July 2015.
**
13. Nicholas Joseph
"Can't tell you enough how much of a treat it is to have Mama Dee on this channel reacting with you! Your reactions alone are quite s treat but having Mama Dee on is the icing on the cake!! Also a pleasant treat that Mama Dee knows her African roots too coz she was dead on with how she explained the wealth thing! True African Queen!!! I want to take y'all for a trip all the way to South Africa & kindly request you to react to "KHONA" by Mafikizolo"

**
14. Eve
"It's a dowry payment ceremony. That first pick that he messed up, he had to pay a fine. The dowry is the cows and all that were being counted. And yes, it is not the ceremony. The actual wedding comes later." 
**
15. Giggie Njeri
"Nothing like slow songs in an African wedding or dowry payment ceremony.. we have come to eat and to dance till morning."
**
16. Eric Muringa
"My friend almost gave me a heart attack...he couldn't find the gal in the group of girls. I just stood and shouted ",you mess up we ajnt coming back here again to pay the penalty" usually the other girls are the sisters and cousins, it is almost impossible to tell them apart when they are covered.

It was hilarious and for real the gal wasn't among the cast till the next round. Too much fun in these functions."
**
REPLY
17. Mommadeedee That_Fire_LA
"Eric Muringa wowπŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚❤️"
**
18. Rawnsley Chege"
"Momma Dee is wise, Usually the brides father parades all his daughters or some other girls, cover them  up and the groom is supposed to identify his bride, he is fined for every mistake he makes. its interesting. in my tribe this ceremony is called 'ruracio' or dowry payment"

**
REPLY
19. Debbie Mumbi
"Yesss, and it's not an arranged marriage ...the guy has dated the chiq before but for the family to know you know which of their daughters you want to marry..."

**
REPLY
20. Ruby Ring
"Rawnsley Chege same in Tanzania!!"
**
21. Njeri M
"It's a Kenyan tradition, during the dowry ceremony, for the man to pick out his girl. Usually, a number of young women, all covered up  in the traditional "lesso/khanga" , line up in front of everyone and the guy has to pick his girl. If he picks the wrong girl, he gets penalized. He has to do it until he picks the right one."

**
22. Victor Ngigi
"African weddings are anything but "slow".
This song captures the general vibe at Kenyan weddings."
**
23. Evad trent
"Mama Dee got it right. He's supposed to identify his bride and he goofed so he's penalized by giving an offering that the bride's side decides prior to the ceremony."

**
24. Wangari Kenyan
"You have to uncover the right girl's face. If you don't you'll get fined by her family. The ceremonies are always LIT. In Afrika the guy's family pays dowry."

**
25.
 maNcube
"
Oohh wow. I'm glad your marriage meetings are similar. My cousin sent her then boyfriend a text telling him what blanket she would be under. The family was charging like crazy. Eg our family put water on the table, the in-laws started pouring water before it was offered to them. And they were charged for it. Its hilarious  now, but it wasn't then."

**
26. 
Okello Daniel Okwaput
"
this is basically a traditional wedding before the civil or church
so the man's family travels to collect the bride from her family
well the tradition is that you tell your bride from her feet that's why the girls who came out had no shoes on
then he was fined the first time, though of late its kinda more like fun not to get the first pick so you can gift more
the part where they were counting cows is basically the cows the man's family has to pay as brideprice
this process is quite different in most places but they represented the Kenyan way more and I believe the Swahili coastal culture in particular.”…

**
27. Wairimu
"He choose the wrong one. So he was fined. Got off easy. Could have been two or three goats!"

**
28. Dorcas Lukoye
"That dance is called Lipala a Luhya  tribal dance very popular in Kenya in weddings and graduation celebrations.He is yet to wed just proposed to his Nigerian bae a few weeks ago.In African tradition..more so Kenyan or Luhya which is the tribe all the band members come from ..the man is the one who pays dowry...lots of cows mainly..not small animals like goats and the like..and the goat given is to appease the girls family for failing to pick her out the first time..its called a fine...soany fines are handed toen during these functions for so many reasons ranging from lateness or even stubborness of the girls relatives especially uncle and aunties..the man has to pay off everything just to get it over and done with or risk having to come back again.

**
29. frank Rass
"That tradition is long gone now we follow western world..but mama d is correct though..."

**
REPLY
30. Vanessa Rukorio
"frank Rass
I disagree, but I guess it depends on the tribe because every single kikuyu wedding I've attended this tradition has been practised during the ruracio (traditional ceremony)."

**
REPLY
31. Oganga Khadudu
"Speak for yourself. We still practice that"
**
32. Nicole Domtilla
"The dowry is given as  compensation for the contribution and work the girl would have done since she left her home and came to yours."

**
33. Michael Kiptoo Mwaniki
"A lot of times the bride will agree with the groom beforehand to have her toes painted a specific color so he can “guess” correctly πŸ˜‚"

**
34. maria muthoki
"Its dowry payment peeps, all the cows are for the girl's family, and the sheep is for the fine because he picked the wrong girl. dowry is great for the families to meet. P.s Bien broke all our hearts and got engaged  last week, to his long time girlfriend, hes my fave songwriter."
-snip-
"Peeps" is an African American originated term for "people".  "Bien" is the Sauti Sol singer who wore a white suit (and played the part of the groom) in that Sauti Sol video. Notice in the pancocojams post entitled Five Video Examples Of Kenyan Ruracios (pre-wedding customs)  https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/08/five-video-examples-of-kenyan-ruracios.html and in other YouTube videos of ruracios l that most of the brides and grooms to be wear a certain earth tone of brown or that brown with white.

**
35.  Annabelle Olum
"In Kenya when the man is going to meet his future in- laws, it is a big deal. He goes with his uncles and a few close friends/male relatives of his age group. It is a very serious occasion! They come bearing gifts for the family then they have dowry discussions"

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Saturday, August 1, 2020

Five Video Examples Of Kenyan Ruracios (pre-wedding customs)



THE WAJESUS FAMILY, Aug 16, 2017

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post presents five video examples of the Kikuyu's (Kenyan) Ruracio ceremony. The focus of these videos is the lighthearted custom of the groom having to identify his fiancee from a line of women who are covered all over with cloths. 

Selected comments from the discussion threads for two of these videos are included in this post. 

The content of this post is presented for socio-cultural and entertainment purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Congratulations to all of these couples. Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and are associated with these video and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

This post is part of an ongoing pancocojams series on African dowry ceremonies such as the Kikuyu's Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony that is highlighted in this video. Click the "Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony"tag below for additional posts on this subject.

****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Video #1: presented at the top of the post.

Selected Comments (with numbers added for referencing purposes only)
1. noniot alexas, 2019
"Btw i have always wondered, in these types of ceremonies, what happens if the groom picks the wrong woman during the selection?"

**
REPLY
2. malone flamer, 2019
"@alexas you get to pay a fine☺"

**
REPLY
3. noniot alexas, 2019
"@malone flamer ooh interesting. I thought it was just a game with no consequencesπŸ˜‚ and how much is the fine?"

**
REPLY
4. malone flamer, 2019
"haha depends on how much he will be asked sometimes gets

to even ksh10,000"

**
5. TIKTOK videos and More, 2019
"Wow so what happens if you the groom chooses a different woman during the time the ladies covered themselves?...very interesting tradition,in Ghana here,for the akan tribe,they bring different ladies for the grooms family to give more money for "transportation" to bring the real bride...can you please explain what happens if you choose a different woman"

**
REPLY
6. shiku shee, 2019
"You get fined some cash"

**
REPLY
7. Carol Mutua, 2019
"You pay a fine. Get it wrong again you pay a heftier fine lol"

**
8. Fatma Abdul, 2020

"Is brown kikuyus favorite color coz av been watching like all videos bride na bridegroom wanavaanga brown"

**
REPLY
9. 
Pouline Wanjiru, 2020
"@Fatma Abdul ooh my dear that's traditional it's being like that for ages ,our forefathers n you know you can't change tradion,but the colour is πŸ‘Œ don't you think"

****
Video #2: 
Best Dowry Ceremony Ruracio Yvonne + Charlie


  
Ianem Creations Media, May 4, 2018

****
Video #3: Kikuyu ruracio ceremony




Joram Mwai, May 22, 2018


Girls were paraded and the groom was told to choose the right one.


****
Video #4: Ruracio Challenge 2020. Best kikuyu traditional ceremony. Memories we shall miss before corona.


REPLY
3. Mary, 2020
"
Wow! How are men able to detect their wife like that?
It must be a very spiritual connection."

**
REPLY
4. 
Mary Maina, 2020
"
Wanakuwanga wameplan ishipokuwa wenye hawajui"
-snip-
Google translate from Swahili to English
"They have planned it unless they know it"
****
Video #5:  MY SISTER'S RURACIO
πŸ˜πŸ™ˆ



It's Bree Kiae, Aug 21, 2019

This is my sister's ruracio on 10th Aug 2019..


****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome. 



(Kenyan music group) Sauti Sol - "Sura Yako" : A love song that highlights the Kikuyu Ruracio (Pre-Wedding) Ceremony



Sauti Sol, Sept 12, 2014

SURA YAKO (YOUR FACE) - the fourth single and track no.1 off Sauti Sol third album: LIVE AND DIE IN AFRIKA. The video plays out a typical Kenyan pre-wedding ceremony (ruracio). SURA YAKO has been produced by Sauti Sol/ co-produced by Cedric "Cedo" Kadenyi. The video has been shot and directed by Kenyan director Enos Olik of Bokeh Family.

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post showcases the 2014 song/video "Sura Yako" by the Kenyan music group Sauti Sol. The lyrics for this song are included in this post along with several comments that explain this song's meaning. 

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Sauti Sol for their musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are associated with this video and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

This post is part of an ongoing pancocojams series on African dowry ceremonies such as the Kikuyu's Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony that is highlighted in this video. Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/08/that-fire-las-reaction-video-selected.html 
for a pancocojams post that showcases an African American reaction video to this Sauti Sol song/video. Also, click the "Ruracio pre-wedding ceremony"tag below for additional posts on this subject.

****
LYRICS- SURA YAKO
(Sauti Sol)

[Verse 1]
I chose you, to love you
Baby, I don’t want anyone else
Don’t leave me, don’t let me go,
Baby, don’t love anyone else

[Pre-Chorus]
My heart is light,
You got me like a chapati (makes sense in Swahili),
I’m acting out like a madman,
I won’t stop loving you
My heart is light,
You got me like a chapati,
I’m acting out like a madman,
I won’t stop loving you

[Chorus]
Your face is nice baby,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
And your smile is a flower,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
Your face is nice baby,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
And your smile is a flower,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)

[Verse 2]
I will have to take care of you, to keep you,
Baby, so you don’t lose anything,
I have a ring to give you, to marry you,
Baby don’t go anywhere

[Pre-Chorus]
My heart has accepted you,
You got me like a chapati,
I’ll take care of you like a policeman, Eh!
I will have to marry you
My heart has accepted you,
You got me like a chapati,
I’ll take care of you like a policeman, Eh!
I will have to marry you

[Chorus]
Your face is nice baby,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
And your smile is a flower,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
Your face is nice baby,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
And your smile is a flower,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)

[Bridge]
Dance a little, Dance a little,
Dance a little, Dance a little,
Dance a little, Dance a little,
Dance a little,
Your face is nice baby,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
And your smile is a flower,
(Nice baby, nice baby, nice baby)
You’re so so beautiful
You’re so so yeah

[Outro]
(Baby, yeah)
Dance a little (Nice, baby),
Baby dance a little (Nice, baby),
Baby dance a little (Nice, baby),
And you’re figure is like a bottle’s
(Baby, yeah)
Dance a little (Nice, baby),
Baby dance a little (Nice, baby),
Baby dance a little (Nice, baby),
And you’re smile is a flower
(Nice, baby)

It’s you, it’s you, it’s you, it’s you.

-translation by kingorin, https://genius.com/14670290

The KiSwahili lyrics are found on that site.
-snip-
A number of commenters in the discussion thread for that YouTube video shared lyrics in Swahili and their English translations for this song. All of those commenters used the word "mama" instead of "baby". "Mama" is a referent for the woman who is going to be married/ who is being sung to. This colloquial use of "mama" for a female who is a person's love interest probably comes from African American Vernacular English (AAVE). In AAVE, the referent "little mama" is also sometimes used for girl baby/young girl.

Here are comments from that discussion thread that explain the song's line "You got me like a chapati",  

Here are some additional comments from that discussion thread about the traditional African custom of giving a dowry and-more specifically-comments about the Kikuyu Ruracio ceremony. 

(Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.)

1. MsIronandwine, 2015
"
Addicted to this song, No idea what they are saying except for chapati :D love from Ethiopia"

**
REPLY
2. 
Titus Temwo, 2015
"
@MsIronandwine Guys have already discussed on this exhaustively but for u, I wish to just say that the song is directed to a very beautiful lady, in praise, whose appearance is killer-some, sooo hot! Haha

And that part that comes before chapati in Swahili: ". . .umenikalia chapati!" translated as YOU FED ME WITH CHAPATI THAT U HAD SAT ON (Here in Kenya it's believed that some ladies do that with their naked butts btw as a form of LOVE PORTION, to make their men henpecked/submissive to only them)"

**
3. 
Hildah Essendi, 2015
"@shazz286  Umenikalia chapati actually means that the guy is lovestruck by the lady, akin to being given love portion. In Kenya, it is whispered that some women cast a love spell on their men by sitting on a chapati that is then served the man"

**
4. 
cumensu, 2016
..."BTW, in my country, the DRC, is very similar to what I see in this video :-). The groom has to identify which lady is his bride.

-"DRC"= Democratic Republic Of The Congo

**
5. Nnei O., 2017
"God is awesome and africa is indeed one. This ceremony is also done where i'm from in the south of Nigeria. Many ladies from the family are brought covered and the groom must pick out his fiancee :)"

**
REPLY
6. Ronald Mugo, 2020
"
Haha and all have the same size and frame. You miss you loose"

**
7. 
ZONE_254 GIFT SHOP, 2018
"In African tradition (according to ours) it means that the groom (husband) is passing on appreciation to the parents for raising the daughter up in the right way for him as ghe husband  (groom) so now the animals represent gratitude and sorta like a thank you to the parents. Some parents misuse it but when its down to the real purpose of the dowry giving its supposed to be a thank you symbol to the mom and dad for raising the wife for him. In addition it sometimes symbolises repayment of how much they have spent on the soon to be wife"

**
8.  ancilla maina. 2018
"
1:55 when he picks out the wrong girl from the line-up kills me to this day,the reactions in the crowd are so typical of this type of ceremony . Proud of our African traditions:). "

**
9. 
Rehema Mote, 2019
"Ruracio is the ceremony of dowry payment. Of course this is not paid all at once. Its done in installments to ensure that you still get to visit your wife's parents. On this day, the man, his close friends and family visit the lady's home. There is the whole ritual of denying entry to the groom and his family by locking the gate until some demands are met. This negotiation at the gate is done in form of songs.

**
10. 
Benson Njonjo Ndehi, 2019
"
I also had to guess who my wife was at the ruracio. Her toenails were the hint. He he."

**
11. 
nzigou lylian, 2020
"In reality África is just a big country,here in Gabon πŸ‡¬πŸ‡¦ is actually Almost the same according traditional wedding

πŸ•ΊπŸΎπŸ•ΊπŸΎ✌🏽✌🏽"

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.