By The Citizen Correspondent

Tanzanian artiste Nakaaya Sumari has been signed to Sony Music Entertainment.

A statement released in Dar es Salaam yesterday said among the record label’s well-known subsidiaries are Columbia Records, RCA Records and Epic records.

Nakaaya, who has acquired a large following and growing fan base across the region, now makes history by being the first East African artist ever to be signed to the second largest record company in the world.

The company’s roster includes internationally acclaimed artists like Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Britney Spears, Celine Dion, Chris Brown and Sean Kingston.

The statement noted that the signing took place late last year when Nakaaya was attending the ‘Music’s Relevance in Third World Countries’ conference in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Sony Music Entertainment spotted the Tanzanian artist during an interview with ‘Deadline,’ on the prominent Danish television channel, ‘DR2.’ It immediately sought to sign her up for a recording deal.

“We are very excited by having signed Nakaaya to our company. She’s an extremely talented artist and we look forward to working with her in the future,” comments Peter Groenbaek of Sony Music on the signing.

Having burst onto the Tanzanian and East African music scene two years ago, Nakaaya’s popularity and recognition as one of the region’s top artistes continues to grow.

Her being signed by a major player in the international music business is a milestone in her career and the East African music industry as a whole.

The lyrical content of Nakaaya’s music is inspired by social issues that have on-the-ground relevance to Tanzanian, East African and indeed African audiences.

It is particularly skewed towards women and the plight of their everyday life. Her musical style is largely influenced by Hip Hop, R&B and some Afro flavour. It is essentially a well-rounded depiction of Bongo Flava.