Updated at 10:52 on 01/27/23 to add Kithinji‘s stage name, correct a misspelling and add Emmanuel Mopao’s last name.
Growing up in Tanzania, Ben Ndalima grew accustomed to hearing a diverse range of sounds and rhythms. Years later, when he and his friend decided to start a band, he would recall those sounds as a source of inspiration for the music project, Swanglish.
Swanglish was first formed roughly a year and a half ago by Ndalima and a group of friends in Montevallo.
“It’s an intercultural music group that primarily utilizes East African and western music styles,” Ndalima said. “Our mission is to collaborate with our cohorts, musicians and music lovers and to serve and provide music entertainment services within the Alabama communities and beyond.”
The project derives its name from a combination of the words Swahili and English, however the combination of the two languages doesn’t end there.
“What we are trying to do is encourage diversity, not just within our playing, but also within the community,” Ndalima said. “We definitely have a vision of creating a profound music sound that transcends languages and cultures.”
One example of this fusion can be found in in their track entitled, “Mamdo vipi.” meaning “What’s up,” or “How are you.”
“As far as language is concerned, we like to throw (out) terms like ‘mambo vipi,’” Ndalima said. “(Things) that can be relatable and that would be easy for people to pick up and go, ‘Oh, mambo vipi, that means what’s up.’ So, we’ll create more tunes in the future that actually take that same idea but at the same time, in the future, we might even do collaborations with Swahili speaking artists and try to find a way to translate that. As of right now, we’re just slowly introducing the Swahili language into our songs.”
The band has been together for more than a year and the group has already grown into a seven-member project.
The band members include Ben Ndalima, Jo’van Hana (Vahni), Thomas Frost (Big Tom), Ebeneza Lubala (Ebby), Brian Muthuri, Brenda Kithinji (Ms. Rima) and Cash Cotton.
“We met over time, and it’s just interesting how that worked out because I wouldn’t have known in a million years that we would have something as great as we have,” Ndalima said. “Our journeys are different, but we just all came and met together and Swanglish came about after several years.”
According to Ndalima, the band’s sound pulls from a variety of influences.
“(It has) so many influences,” he said. “For instance, traditional African groups that I was raised around—I would hear different tribes because we have 120 plus tribes in Tanzania. So, imagine most of those tribes have their own dances, their own songs, their own rhythms, their own groups, their own melodies.”
Another major influence for Ndalima was his mentor.
“One of my biggest influences, jazz fusion, was (from) my mentor,” he said. “His name is Emmanuel Mopao. He’s Tanzania based. He’s a legendary guitar player. I just used to hang around him and pick his brain and he just really inspired my playing.”
When it is time to write a song the band typically approaches writing in an improvisational style.
“Before we start one of the bandmates introduces an idea,” he said “We meet and build off of that idea. We just have fun, we just enjoy it, we improvise then we create something that’s locked in and then it becomes a tune.”
Ndalima shared his goals for where he would like to take Swanglish.
“We are fanatics of creating personal relationships,” he said. “Not just on stage, but off the stage also because, our music, we want it to ultimately bring a therapeutic experience while initiating unity among people. We create music that transcends languages (and) culture. We’ll be really excited, really elated to see our projects, our music (and) our influence reach all communities, starting in Alabama and throughout the world.”
According to Ndalima, the band is gearing up to release its first full-length project on streaming services in February.
“It’s pretty much done, (we’re) just making final touches on it,” he said. “It’s going to be something that I’d love everybody to listen to. So, just check out our stuff and you guys will really be in for a treat.”
Their debut album was recorded at Dark Horse studios in Tennessee but will be self-released without a label.
“We have some shows coming up, actually trying to lock in one that’s going to be in March,” Ndalima said. “It’s going to be a doubleheader.”
In the meantime, the band can be found on its official Facebook page at Facebook.com/swanglish and on Instagram @swanglishmusic.
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