exploded onto the African music scene in 2010 with his debut LP, Kamwambie, his sole mission was to be able to buy food for his mother. He didn’t realize that his sound and vision would go on to transform both East African popular music and the heights its regional superstar talent could reach.
The massively successful Tanzanian performer behind songs like "Number One," "Kamwambie," "Kidogo," "Sikomi," "Inama," "Baba Leo," "Nana" and "Jeje" took bongo flava, his native country’s genre made up of hip-hop beats; Arabic; African styles like taarab and dansi; R&B and Caribbean influences, and gave its standard "slow, heartbroken songs" more uptempo production.
Unlike his bongo flava predecessors Dully Sykes, Juma Nature, TID and Q Chief, Diamond Platnumz wanted more crossover appeal, so he incorporated more English translations into music that’s normally recorded in Swahili. The BET Award nominee’s breezy sound, celebratory vibes and catchy melodies eventually led him to cameo appearances alongside Stateside acts like Omarion ("African Beauty"), Rick Ross ("Waka"), Ne-
Yo (“Marry You”) and most recently, Alicia Keys ("Wasted Energy")