How Raila Odinga’s campaign anthems became songs of grief

The late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and music were inseparable. His rallies pulsed with anthems that rallied supporters, while musicians and producers worked late into the night crafting songs that defined his political journey.

With every election season came new anthems, their lyrics echoing far beyond the campaign trail.

A year after his death, some of those hits are finding a new audience, rekindling memories of Agwambo. Among them is the late Lady Maureen’s “Raila duogie dala”, whose resurgence has led many to mistake it for a posthumous tribute.

When the heartbreaking news broke from India, where Raila Amollo Odinga was receiving treatment, a song that once stirred celebration suddenly became a cry of anguish.

“Raila duogie dala”, a Dholuo phrase meaning “Raila, come home”, took on a haunting new meaning. What had once been a musical call to Agwambo became a nation’s lament, a desperate call for a son of the soil who would never come home again.

Released 11 years before Raila’s death, the song by the late Ohangla queen Lady Maureen had no idea it would one day soundtrack a nation’s grief.

Source: Citizen Digital