A young boy singing in church and social events just for the love of music, little did he know that he will become one of the most sought after Malawian artists. He has been releasing hit after hit ever since he stepped into the limelight. From humble beginnings to stardom, this is the story of Nesnes.
Early Life
Fourth child in a family of six, Nesnes was born Kelvin Khuzumba on 15 November 1988, in Thyolo, Malawi. Due to his father's death while he was still very young, family disputes erupted. Nesnes, his mother and siblings were unceremoniously evicted from his late father's house. Therefore, he was raised single-handedly by his mother and knew little about his father.
Nesnes started singing at a tender age. Singing came in naturally for him because he was always surrounded by music. Her mother took him to the Seventh Day Adventist church every worship day where he interacted with friends and fell in love with music.However, he decided to pursue a career out of his talent in 2006.
While in Secondary school, Nesnes' interest in music started to grow as he developed a habit of free-styling on dance-hall instrumentals (riddims). Inspired by Enrique Iglesias, Marc Anthony, Sizzla Kalonji and his cousin Edward Sawerengera, he recorded his first song ever when he was in form 2 but the song never came out.
In 2009, Nesnes recorded another song with his friends at Toxic Records in Lilongwe but again the song never came out. All his efforts to start a career in music turned futile but he never gave up. Nesnes recorded over 40 songs from 2009 – 2013 but only a few were released.
Music Career
In January 2013, Nesnes relocated to Blantyre from Lilongwe and this was the beginning of a bright future. Three months down the line, Nesnes met Edward Kankhomba who had just started a music label called Prime Time Media. Edward sampled Nesnes' music and instantly fell in love with "Chidodo" – a song Nesnes recorded in 2012. Edward was impressed with the talent and signed Nesnes immediately as the first artist under his stable.
Upon signing his first ever record deal, Prime Time Media released "Chidodo". The song put him on the Malawian music map as it became a hit instantly. It was the talk of the town. The song enjoyed massive airplay on local radios and it rocked all the famous clubs all over Malawi. The party anthem announced Nesnes' coming into the game.
As "Chidodo" was still making noise around town, Nesnes recorded his first song under the new label. It was called "Wabodza", collaboration with one of the most gifted Malawian rappers, Barry One. As if time was not enough, Nesnes released another record called "It's not Fair" which became another hit in just a short period.
Nesnes continued to release hit after hit proving that he was a new force to be reckon with and earning him a huge fan base. Releasing "Wina Watenga" cemented the singer's name as the best new artist of 2013. He later released a music video for the song "Wina Watenga" then toured across the country, sharing a stage with Malawian music heavyweights and South African rapper, AKA.
In November 2013, Nesnes was featured on "Bola Kusache" a song by label mate, Gwamba. It became Malawi's biggest song of 2013 amassing more than 10,000 downloads within a short stint. No Malawian artist ever achieved that previously. The song came out at the right time because fans were patiently waiting for the label mates' first collaboration and the response was on point.
Given all the fame one could ask for, growing up without his father heavily affects Nesnes till date. As he explains his happiest moment of 2013, Nesnes shows that he has a big heart.
"My happiest moment was in June 2013. I saw my father's picture for the first time. I grew up without knowing my father's image and seeing his face was an awesome feeling."
Despite relocating to Blantyre, Nesnes maintained his relations with his producers and friends. Most of the songs he released in the year were produced by Lilongwe based Cuff-B and DJ Sley. His humility has also mesmerized a lot of people earning him massive respect. As he cites, his biggest achievement is not fame but inspiring people.
Nesnes is currently working on his debut album which revolves around several genres such as Dance-hall, House, Lovers Rock, Reggae and RnB. His released singles manifest that it shall be a must have album.