Blinky Bill

No one else sounds like Bill Sellanga, the multi-talented artist, producer and DJ from Nairobi, Kenya known as Blinky Bill. His music is a mix of futuristic African beats meets, Funk, hip-hop, Pop, electronica and hint of jazz.

Blinky Bill was raised in Eastleigh, a suburb in the heart of Nairobi. Both his parents are musicians, his mum a guitarist and his dad a singer in the church choir though they humbly prefer to deem themselves as “hobbyists” instead. Blinky grew up listening to everything: gospel, lingala, jazz, R&B and eventually hip-hop. “I was just like a sponge soaking in all of these sounds, that’s fundamental to my music.” In his late teens, he decided to follow his mum's footsteps of being a guitarist and taught himself.

At university, Blinky majored in Sports Science, and after feeling frustrated about his degree, found refuge in his closest friends. “We used music to escape from our realities at the time which [were] kind of depressing.” Then, Just A Band was formed, an art collective and genre-agnostic group, who are widely regarded as the forefathers of Kenya’s alternative music scene. Blinky’s solo musical career boasts two critically-acclaimed projects — We Cut Keys While You Wait (2016) and Everyone’s Just Winging It And Other Fly Tales (2018) — alongside juggling side quests like producing for artists like Nneka and Goldlink.

We Cut Keys 2 is the 3rd highly anticipated studio project by Kenyan Producer/Artist and DJ Blinky Bill, who's been pushing the envelope at home and across the globe for a minute now. Mostly made in Nairobi during the onset of the pandemic, the album continues in the exploratory and experimental nature of the previous projects while tapping into traditional tribal drum sounds, electronic music, hip hop and Jazz.

The opening single of the album Dracula is an urgent call for the world to unite and ‘Get Up Stand Up” for their rights, this tracks shows a signature bounce that overall sonically marks a departure from the previous project Everyone’s Just Winging It And Other Fly Tales in no small part to the project being mixed by legendary engineer Commissioner Gordon who has won several Grammy awards for his work on Lauryn Hill’s Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Amy Winehouse’s Frank, Damian Marley’s Welcome to Jamrock. Mastering of this album was left in the more than capable hands of Tony Dawsey who has mixed Jay-Z Black Album, The Blueprint, Whitney Houston My Love Is Your Love, Jay Electronica, A Written Testimony and many more classic albums.

Second single Get The Paper is signature Blinky Bill, a cocktail of Funk, Hip-Hop and Jazz, the visuals for this single are in Blinky’s opinion the highpoint of of visual career, when you’ve seen his visual journey you know this is a call to rush over to watch the video.

With an impressive track record and a career spanning over a decade, Blinky Bill has proven himself as an artist of great influence.

Blinky Bill's collaborative spirit has allowed him to work with notable artists such as Nneka, Goldlink, Sampa The Great, Childish Gambino and Chance The Rapper, among others. He has also graced the stages of renowned events worldwide, including SummerStage NYC in 2019, TED 22 in Vancouver, Paleo Festival in Switzerland, Bushfire Festival in Eswatini, Afropunk in South Africa, Sauti za Busara in Zanzibar showcasing his versatility and captivating performances.

The album is a box of chocolates, made with the listener in mind with the aim of pushing the envelope for the sounds from Africa. Treat yourself to We Cut Keys 2.

What the Press has to say:

"‘Blinky Bill unleashes a Sonic Revolution with Dracula" - FAME MAGAZINE

"‘We Cut Keys 2’ celebrates the beloved genres inspired by African musical heritage." - MIXMAG

“Groove is the heart of throbbing solo debut from laidback Kenyan rapper” – MOJO

"The rest of the world doesn’t really know us for music. But I feel like East Africa is the next frontier for African Music, because we do things a bit differently." - OKAYAFRICA

“Musician-producer Blinky Bill marches to his own beat with infectious alternative vibes…” – REDBULL

“Showdown distills the essence of the bubbling Nairobi music scene of which Bill is a mainstay” – MEAWW

Follow online:

http://www.blinkybillmusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mrblinkybill/

https://www.instagram.com/blinkybillmusic/

https://twitter.com/HeyHeyBlinky

Management:

Marie Guibergia

E: marie@blinkybillmusic.com

Bookings:

Jess White