By Martin Siele (@S_iele)
Wakadinali on Saturday, November 28 finally rolled out their highly anticipated album 'Victims of Madness', their fourth full-length project.
The 15-track record includes appearances from Tray C Mukami, Dyana Cods, Boutross, Breeder LW, Abbas, Elisha Elai and Sir Bwoy.
It is available for purchase on Mookh for Ksh1,000.
Unlike their previous projects, Victims of Madness is Wakadinali's first full Drill album.
The style is hard to miss judging from the production style heard on singles on the tracklist, such as XXXL, Extra Pressure and Morio Anzenza.
The group has characterized their new style as NaiDrill or RongDrill, a uniquely street, Kenyan take on the trap-influenced genre which originated in Chicago in the early 2010's.
Drill was made popular by artists including Chief Keef, Lil Reese and Lil Durk before taking over the world.
UK drill, for example, is one of the most popular genres in the United Kingdom today while similar drill sub-genres have emerged in Australia, France and Ireland.
Wakadinali has come a long way from 2015, when they were considered stars of the underground hip-hop scene in Nairobi.
Back then, they had cult classics such as Toka Mapema and Battery Low.
Now, they have several mainstream hits and classic projects under their belt, including two Ndani ya Cockpit mixtapes and the acclaimed Mtoto wa Mama album.
Scar Mkadinali had one of the most sampled and remixed Kenyan songs ever with Kovu, a grimy single which sparked a viral challenge in 2019.
To put the impact of Kovu into perspective, one of Kenya's biggest groups at the moment, Mbogi Genje, secured one of their first hits - Kidungi - with their take on the challenge.
Ngumi Mbwegze was a hardcore, Sheng' single over the Kovu beat that made Kenyans take notice of the group.
Domani Munga, on the other hand,has established himself among Kenya's coldest rappers with his Mungu series of releases.
His lyrical quality is undeniable, earning him top dog status in Kenyan rap.
The duo also introduced the world to a new collective; ZozaNation/ Rong Rende, which includes rappers, producers, video directors, designers and more.
Dyana Cods, for example, emerged as one of the best rappers in Kenya after featuring on Wakadinali's Morio Anzenza.
Producers who worked on Victims of Madness include long-time Wakadinali collaborator Alex Vice, Ares 66, Chino and Afrvka Beats.
Visual artist Robert Wesley is responsible for many of the group's videos and designs.
Throw in a dramatic beef with Jua Cali along the way, and there remains little doubt that Wakadinali is the hottest group in East African hip hop in 2020.