Mapanya Band

Mapanya Band is a seven-piece band Afro-pop band from Tanzania launched in 2015. The band's style is a fusion of reggae, soul, R&B, Afro-fusion, Arabic and taarab music styles, with hints of Latin and Indian music and lots of hip-hop influences. One of the special characteristics of the seven musicians’ style is the wonderful balance of their voices, everyone singing in ways they were used to from childhood in different types of Islamic singing, church hymn singing, local African traditions from Bagamoyo along the mainland at the Indian Ocean coast and from Zanzibari traditions.

Mapanya continues to evolve with NEW developments always eager to present new songs that integrate solos and individual musical ideas of each of the members of the group. Their debut album "From Bagamoyo to Zanzibar” was released in 2017.

Thus far, the band has played at the Zanzibar International Film Festival in 2016 and 2017, the Nafasi Art Space in Dar Es Salaam in 2017, the Bagamoyo Festival of the Arts in 2017, the Sauti za Busara Festival in February 2018 and the DOADOA showcase in April 2018. During April 2018 Mapanya Band toured Switzerland for two weeks presenting workshops in schools and universities in four major cities as well as a concert series and festival performance in Bern. In February 2020 Mapanya returned to Sauti za Busara.