Coming out of the crowded dungeons of Kayole-- Nairobi’s most dug up quarry area—is the fastest rising MC on the Kenya underground Hip Hop scene; Khaligraph “Baba Yao” Jones. He earned his Swahili nickname, which translates to “The Father”, from his tight rhymes. Khaligraph was very visible at the legendary WAPI (Words and Pictures) rap battles but his star was truly discovered when he became the 2nd Kenyan runner up at the 2008 Emcee Africa rap competition.

He flows perfectly in both English and Swahili and that distinguishes him from most Kenyan rappers who are limited to one language. He dropped his first mixtape in 2010 titled, “The Takeover”. This was soon followed by “The Undisputed”. Both of them were fire. His latest mixtape, “The Khali- Jones Chronicle” is causing commotion on the Hip Hop streets at the moment with joints such as “Mario” a remake of the classic single by the late Congolese singer Franco.

On this track, Khali experiments with a song not traditionally associated with Hip Hop and for that he earns major points for always thinking out of the box. On the track “Najipenda” featuring Keisha, he plays around with the things that make him happy. And, even though he’s having fun, Khali offers deep wordplay and precise delivery.

He links up with Abbas on “Tema maVerse”, a tight manifestation that Khali can get on tracks with the big boys and still come out shining bright. The top female MC in the country, Xtatic, joins him on “Sing to Me” a mellow Arabian-influenced track and all they give you is top lyrical display. Khali gets on the mic with his partner-in-rhyme, IT, to drop “The Best”.

Rappers can certainly feel his fury on here. Khali gets in a party mood with the dance track “Superfly” featuring F.B.I. This feels like it is aimed at the vast night club market. Overall, the mixtape is tight and Khali is probably one of the most talented MCs in Africa at the moment. He is next -- give him his spotlight.

Listen to Khaligraph here: https://soundcloud.com/khaligraph/get-down-khaligraph-jones-ft