Kenya: Turkana Sessions set for 21 March release

The project, courtesy of The Artists Xchange, paired a modern composer with four Turkana performers in an explorative journey to reveal the often ignored rich musical tradition of the region.

“After months in the making, our first music project is here!” the project’s director, Jackie Lebo, announced on social media this week. “The first two videos will drop on 21 March on our YouTube channel and will also be available on all platforms.”

Nairobi-based songwriter, composer, producer and arranger Eddie Grey teamed up for the project with Jackson Nakuwa, Mourine Apuu, Jackson Ekori and Elizabeth Korikel to fuse traditional Turkana sounds with soulful guitar rhythms.

The project captures the culture and landscape of Turkana in all its astounding glory as it attempts to dispel the long-held view that the region is nothing but a hub of strife and poverty. 

“The Turkana are the custodians of a rich heritage that can inform a uniquely African thinking for what these natural resource finds mean to us,” Lebo said. “It is time to change the narrative on northern Kenya, show the world its art forms and inspire Kenyans to look to their roots for inspiration.”

Turkana Sessions is the third project from The Artists Xchange and follows photography projects The Flyest Wedding in Africa and Floating, Flying.

The Artists Xchange works on bringing together artists from Turkana and Nairobi to produce art that responds to the various issues facing the region. The selected artists work in various disciplines including music, video art, film, fashion, visual art and photography.

The Artists Xchange is a companion project of the feature documentary Turkana: Races for Resources, which will be released in 2023.

View the upcoming release’s press kit below (PDF).