Nsimbi
- Release
- 09/17/2020
About
Nsimbi is a Ugandan - American international award-winning duo formed by Ugandan hip-hop pioneer GNL Zamba and American world fusion artist Miriam Tamar. Building on the acoustic sounds and indigenous instruments of Africa, Nsimbi blends contemporary elements of "Lugaflow" hip-hop and spoken word with English/Western songwriting and vocals to merge the traditional with the modern. A global sound anchored in the rich universal messages of ancient East African proverbs and folklore emerged with their debut self-titled album, featured on KCRW's Rhythm Planet and Public Radio International’s The World, and noted by NPR’s Tiny Desk/All Songs Considered. Their dynamic style embraces the beauty of dialogue and human connection through music and bridges cultures with lyrics in English, Swahili, Luganda and Lingala. Upon release, Nsimbi quickly charted on iTunes World Music top 5 in the US, Canada and Uganda. Within one year, the album received 2 international awards and 10 nominations.
Nsimbi creates a vibrant interactive live experience that invites us to celebrate around the communal fire, and was an official artist at the SXSW 2019 Music Festival including showcasing for Afropop Worldwide. Sonically and visually dynamic, and at the same time rich in cultural content, Nsimbi has also been welcomed into prominent arts spaces including the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and the Fowler Museum UCLA.
GNL Zamba is among East Africa’s most influential hip-hop artists, credited with bringing rap to the region's mainstream culture by using Uganda’s indigenous language in a style known as Lugaflow. He is the founder and CEO of Uganda’s only hip hop label, Baboon Forest Entertainment, which continues to mentor young talent and organize events. Nominated for over 40 African music awards, winning 17, GNL has performed throughout the world, including the We Love Africa Music Festival in Denmark, Selam Africa Music Festival in Ethiopia, and Sauti Za Busara Festival in Zanzibar.
Fusion vocalist and songwriter Miriam Tamar creates empowering soundscapes that journey through the vibrant rhythms of global culture. Her mix of genres reflects her years of jazz & pop influenced by world travels and the communities she’s lived within, including five years spent in Uganda developing peace education curriculum to rebuild the lives of post-conflict children, in addition to collaborating with artists from different regions of the country. Profoundly transformed and determined to remind people of the beauty beyond borders, Miriam’s solo Firedance EP debuted in the Top 5 of the iTunes World Music Chart and was featured on The Huffington Post .
The duo met in Uganda in 2012, and have collaborated in Africa and in the United States since. As passionate global citizens, Nsimbi create multi-media content and offer workshops tied to the themes of cross-cultural exchange, appreciation, and dialogue explored in their music.
Independent Music Awards 2019 Winner for Best Song - World Beat
Independent Music Awards 2019 Nominee for Best Song - Spoken Word
Independent Music Awards 2019 Nominee for Best Debut Album
Independent Music Awards 2019 Nominee for Best Music Video
256 Hip Hop Awards 2019 Winner for African Rapper of the Year
256 Hip Hop Awards 2019 Nominee for Album of the Year
256 Hip Hop Awards 2019 Nominee for Hustler of the Year
256 Hip Hop Awards 2019 Nominee for Video of the Year
256 Hip Hop Awards 2019 Nominee for Impact Track of the Year
256 Hip Hop Awards 2019 Nominee for Collaboration of the Year
UK Shiny Awards 2019 Nominee for Music Video
Abryanz Style & Fashion Awards 2018 Nominee for Most Fashionable Video of the Yea
Hip Hop/Rap | World Music/Traditional | World Music/Contemporary
Links
Source
“Searching” new release by Nsimbi taps into 2020’s call for more love
“Searching” – a new release by the cross-cultural musical duo Nsimbi – speaks to this tumultuous moment, when so many of us are searching for grounding, stability, meaning, connection and love.
"In these complicated and tough Covid times,” explains writer and vocalist Miriam Tamar, “so many of us can feel isolated - both physically and emotionally. For me, Searching talks about that basic human need for love and connection. Being loved, or giving love, provides each of us the strength to endure and even thrive during the most difficult situations."
Nsimbi is driven by a calling to bring the world a little closer together at a time when we’ve become so divided, both politically and now physically through social distancing during the pandemic. This worldbeat song carries the spirit of searching for connection, offering a chill and hopeful feeling for anyone needing some music therapy.
The music video was filmed at Nsimbi’s US quarantine hideaway by GNL Zamba in his directorial debut, which came as a matter of necessity when the couple was unable to meet any video producers due to Covid-19 lockdown.
"'We're all just searching for love', the lyric goes in this song. All human beings spend most of their lives looking for love and a place where they belong,” said GNL of the song. “The pressure of these times with the Black Lives Matter protests, refugee crisis in Lesbos and chaos in South America tell us that the world needs healing and to replenish our hearts with love. Searching for humanity, empathy and love for all, the solutions lie in going out of our way to feel someone else's pain."
"When I was directing this video, I wanted to show a story of connection. I wanted to show beauty and portray loneliness, because even in the most comfortable setting, we can feel lost until we have someone to share our beautiful journey with. Looking inward and outwards, sharing the mundane and extra ordinary!!!"
Nsimbi is the name given to the cowrie shell in Uganda, a “seed” found on all shores of the world. Named after this original unifying seed, Nsimbi is a cross-cultural musical duo formed by international award-winning musicians and social-entrepreneurs, Ugandan hip-hop pioneer GNL Zamba and American world fusion artist Miriam Tamar. Nsimbi met in Uganda in 2012 in Uganda and has collaborated in Africa and in the United States. As passionate global citizens, Nsimbi use ancient wisdom to inform the present through multimedia arts and events that promote cross-cultural exchange, appreciation, dialogue and unity. It is their different backgrounds, different stories, customs and colors that make Nsimbi a celebration of diversity and champion of bringing people from around the world back together. Nsimbi aims to unify without uniformity, encourages expression without conformity- all represented by the symbol of infinity in the cowrie shell. Nsimbi reflects the limitless beauty of the diverse universe we all share.
Available for streaming and download at: song.link/dfN64rx6Gjp0s
Watch: YouTube link
Dispatch Details
| Preferred Retail Link: | Click here |
| Release Format: | Single |
| Release Type: | Digital |
| Country: | Uganda/USA |
| Release Title: | Searching |
