“The self-realisation is more stronger now,” Kenyan star Nviiri the Storyteller tells Apple Music of his decision to title his debut album Inside Out. “I’ve gotten to a point where I understand my craft a bit better to express and to pass on a much better message.” Tempering confidence with modesty, the crooner convinces over the 15 songs that showcase his R&B backbone, interpreted through piano ballads, heaving amapiano, throbbing house, Afropop and dancehall. Nviiri (born Nviiri Sande) mines his personal life and his narrative gifts, crafting songs with a retinue of collaborators that include producers from South Africa, Tanzania, Malawi and Kenya, and guest artists from Tanzania, Nigeria and Canada. The result is a confident artistic statement, further supported by Nviiri’s background as a guitarist, producer, songwriter, videographer and burgeoning businessman. “The main agenda is to make sure we’re in that global market as a representative of East African music,” he explains. His business ambitions are informed by an abiding granularity: “I’m very personal with my music because it’s a very personal story,” Nviiri confesses. “Thugs need hugs.” This combination of the serious and the lighthearted is replicated throughout Inside Out, where he pairs emotional pain with winning melodies, and drinking and partying with cautionary brackets. Underlying this manner of song-making is Nviiri’s long-imbibed philosophy: “The real talent comes in when you can make complex music that’s simple for a normal ear to understand.” Here, Nviiri the Storyteller offers insight into key tracks from the album. “Mama (Intro)” “I wrote it at one sitting, and the words kept on repeating in my head and kind of worked as my own inspiration. I’m blessing the album, thanks to my mama. If you want to know about the Storyteller, just go through my music.” “Inside Out” “I am saying, ‘I know myself inside out.’ [On] any song that follows, I’m not asking for opinions or for judgment. Just understand where the art came from, and best believe I’ve touched on different human emotions—from the party side to love and happiness.” “Bwana Sherehe” “‘Bwana Sherehe’ just means ‘I am the man of the party’. I’m basically saying, ‘I am not your man. I’m the man of the party. So, you don’t own me. The party owns me, and I own the party.’ I’m also telling you to enjoy making the money as much as you enjoy partying. You know the way we have excuses. Your priorities should be balanced.” “Leta Pombe” “Africa is a very musical place. And we dance, we speak through music, we communicate through it. We have those beats that kind of just force you to move, and you can blend anything to it, either a sad song or a happy song. We have the way we chant—it’s powerful. Sonically, we have very specific elements that contribute to a sound being a hit. Other than that, it’s purely just our talent.” “Nikilewa” [Nviiri the Storyteller, Bien & Bensoul] “With Bien and Bensoul, we have that in-house competition where, whatever song that is there, we kind of contribute towards it. And if you go through our credits, we’ve worked for each other a lot of times. ‘Nikilewa’ just says, ‘Anytime I’m lit, I end up calling you, I end up sending money. I actually see you; I find you more attractive when I’m lit.’ It’s just funny banter around just being lit. We all know how drunk people get during that period to cope with it.” “Badilika” [Nviiri the Storyteller & Bien] “Here, I’ve come to the realisation that this love interest would never change, and that I also cannot change because it’s a two-way thing. The fact that I cannot compromise to your liking, then well, clearly I also cannot change. But it’s a very sad song.” “Naisha” “This is a very funny story. I was trying a long-distance relationship when I wrote it. ‘Naisha’ means ‘I’m finished; I'm done’. Maybe I was talking to myself, but in the song, I said, ‘Sometimes letting go is easier. Release that heavy load. Do not make life so serious. Holding on is not that romantic.’ So, I definitely needed a bit of direction, and I had it through my music. Even the girl’s mom, who I blocked, heard it. There is some lingering emotion because the song is definitely very personal.” “Wide Awake” [Nviiri the Storyteller & Chike] “I got to a point where I decided to be the first one to create that safe haven for someone. You can decide, ‘Since this person is out, I can also go out. Since this person is doing this, I can also do something else.’ But this is the one scenario where I decided I’ll take one for the team. I’ll stay out. I’ll suck it up and just chill until you’re OK.” “Dancing Shoes” [Nviiri the Storyteller & TÖME] “TÖME is the real-deal R&B. So, it was also more of a challenge on my end to push myself to that sound. Mine is an African R&B, while TÖME’s melodies are a bit Western. I wanted to experiment on that and put it to good use. Personally, if I’m going through it, it’s hard for me to socialise or even go out. The song is a direct translation for what this person is taking me through emotionally. ‘I really miss going out and this is awkward, so we might as well just go back home.’” “Shadow” “I mixed a bit of a R&B, a bit of Afropop and amapiano, and a bit of soul to it. Of course, you could hear the guitars at the end. I’ve been trying to push this whole love agenda because I’m really good with party songs and heartbreak. With love songs, I’m not that vulnerable. But this time, I decided I might as well risk it all in this one project.” “Body” [Nviiri the Storyteller & Bayanni] “We have a Kenyan saying that translates to ‘the sweet things are the ones that got the snake out of the hiding place.’ So, I’m saying, ‘You got it, girl. You got me from that place too.’ I’m the snake. Your sweetness got me from where I was hiding.” “You” “You always have that one [person who] does things to your body that nobody can do. You tend to write about scenarios you’re in—that’s why I really pray that we just enjoy the good life. Because honestly, if we don’t, I’ll make you all sad. If I’m sad, I’ll just make sad music. And trust me, I know how to do that.” “Blessings” [Nviiri the Storyteller & Bensoul] “‘Blessings’ was more of an appreciation of the guys who have stood with us ever since we joined the label. We’ve seen how our family works, and this is what brought us where we are. I just felt it would be genuine and good if you give thanks with the people you are with during the whole process and the struggle.” “Message (Outro)” “Here, I’m telling a love interest that I have a message for your father: ‘Tell him that I will never drink in front of him.’ Now, that’s the plot twist. Then a message to your mom: ‘Let her know that I now know how to cook, but don’t mention that I learned how to cook in her own kitchen.’ In the second verse, I’m talking to the brothers and the sisters. ‘Tell your brothers to stop chasing me around when they see me because that same way that they’re protecting you, I can do much more than that. I can protect you and your brothers.’ The message to your sisters is, ‘Let them know we don’t have secrets between us, and if there’s a secret, it’s just between me and you, not you and them or anyone else.’ The last part of the song, I just sent my own message to her, kissing the ring and just praying that the whole world gets to know about this love.”