By Claudia Gardner —-
Reggae songstress Etana is riding high in Kenya.—-
Etana’s track titled “Love Song” topped the list of Most Streamed Songs in the country, eclipsing Ed Sheeran’s “I Don’t Care” and Nicki Minaj’s “Megatron.” The 35-year-old is also third on the list of Top 10 Most Streamed International Artistes, with Ed Sheeran and Nicki Minaj ranking first and second, respectively. The artiste made the announcement recently on her Instagram page, where she praised Kenyan fans and thanked them for their support.
“I wanna express a heartfelt thank you to all my fans across the world and give a special shout out to my fans in Kenya and Tanzania who streamed my music…number four on the most streamed international artists in Tanzania and number three on the most streamed international artiste in Kenya. Also my song “Love Song” is number one on the most streamed song in Kenya. Unconditional Love to all my peeps across the world…,” she said.
Etana’s love affair with Kenya began back in 2012 when she performed there and was fully embraced by the country’s nationals. According to her, the love was fully cemented when she performed at the Uhuru Gardens in the country in May 2019, for what she described as ‘two solid hours’.
The concert, which was dubbed ‘Etana Returns’, attracted scores of Kenyan reggae fans, who braved lower-than-normal temperatures to enjoy music from the esteemed songstress, at the event, which was classed by Kenyan media as “one of the most memorable reggae shows” ever performed there.
“I saw Kenya’s love in 2016 and I saw it before that in 2012 when I performed while I was pregnant. However, in May 2019, it became clear to me that Kenya is my second home,” Etana tld The Gleaner newspaper recently in an interview.
She said the turnout was more than she had expected, and the reception that she got during the performance for songs such as “Weakness In Me,” “Love Song,” “I Am Not Afraid,” and “People Talk,” was at times so loud that she was unable to hear herself.
“I just allowed them to sing,” she explained.
Etana is also highly popular in Tanzania, where Love Song is number four on the Top 10 Most Streamed International Songs, ahead of Forever and Always by Shania Twain; Work by Rihanna; God’s Plan by Drake and the Chi Chi collaboration with Trey Songz and Chris Brown.
The artiste, whose real name is Shauna McKenzie, brought her Reggae Forever World Tour to an end last month, following in Qatar, in western Asia and Carriacou, in the Grenadines. The August Town native is now preparing for her Spread Love World Tour, which commences this month with shows in Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, as well as New Zealand.
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