Will Ross reports from Zanzibar and Mombasa on how traditional Taarab music is responding to the challenge of new influences. In the 1930's the great Taarab singer, Siti Bint Saad, was a prized ...

There is also Jahazi Modern Taarab, which is “currently ... adding that it has built a new generation of fans and redefined Taarab music with their hits, including Valentine, Maneno ya Mkosaji ...

She points out that dominant themes in taarab music, whether classical or modern, range from interpersonal relations to politics, religion and lifestyles. "The lyrics we compose as vocalists are ...