Rapper Colonel Mustafa made a last-ditch effort to reenter the music industry on June 10, 2022 with the release of a song titled Maloko.
However, this endeavor was unsuccessful because the song only garnered 300 views on YouTube, giving the rapper a sobering reminder that the music industry is always evolving and does not wait for anyone.
With this, Colonel Mustafa’s descent into poverty officially began. Even other family members turned a blind eye while he struggled both emotionally and financially, abandoning him.
Colonel Mustafa managed to keep his troubles under wraps until recently, when a video of him working in a construction site, looking thin and disheveled, went viral.
“Honestly, my life hasn’t been good, I’ve been suffering for a long time and it’s just that I’ve never talked about it. I was struggling to even put a meal on the table. Music was not working. I went to friends in the industry for help, but no one came to my aid,” Colonel Mustafa said.
It all began after he sold his automobile and invested the proceeds in starting a clothes store and funding the publication of a song, respectively. But neither endeavor paid off the way he had hoped.
In order to make ends meet, he moved into a bedsitter in Utawala and began seeking for odd jobs. He claims that in order to conceal his identity, he always donned a sweatshirt and a face mask while working on construction sites.
“I survived on a budget of Sh200 a day. I decided to work as a casual labourer because I realised that no one was coming to help me and if I did not help myself, I would go to bed hungry. I had no choice. I could not believe that this was my life,” he said.
At the same time, he was battling depression caused by a combination of things. One of them was disappointment at the realisation that he was not getting anything out of all the money he had spent to build his career.
“Releasing a song and only getting 300 views? That was what really gave me depression. It is only after the video of me working at a construction site went viral that it has gone up to 40,000 views on YouTube,” he explains.
When he first broke into the music scene as Deux Vultures with Nasty Thomas, all seemed well. They made instant hits including Mona Lisa, Katika and Kinyaunyau, which earned them significant popularity.
But the fame that came with these big hits couldn’t guarantee their survival in the industry. Colonel Mustafa vividly remembers those days when his pockets were full and his celebrity status was the envy of many.
“I sometimes wonder whether my life would be different now if I had done things differently. When my career was at its peak, I made a lot of money. But being a young man then, I did not spend the money wisely. Now I am mature and I know what to do, but I do not have the money,” he said.
News2 years ago
Diaspora2 years ago
Diaspora2 years ago
Diaspora2 years ago
News2 years ago
Diaspora2 years ago
Diaspora2 years ago
Diaspora2 years ago