The Tells Of K!MERA: On Faith and Creating Timeless Music

Sam Kimera is a man you should be crushing on; his enormous musical talent and academic genius is a mix not easy to come by. Rather playful yet dedicated, his spirit towards humanity and spirituality easily flows through his excellent story telling abilities. Whether it be in an Instagram Live, or live music, K!mera will capture you and take you along, and believe me, by the end of the day you will be glad he did.

Who Is Sam Kimera

Kimera is married to a beautiful woman called Esther. Together they have 2 daughters; Thandi, 5 & a half years and Zara, 2 & a half years old. “They are lots of fun and fill my heart with joy,” he tells me.

On his work, he identifies as an artist who is passionate about people. “I love helping people become who God made them to be,” he says. However, he refuses to be put in an identity box, his identity will vary depending on where you meet him. “Someone who has known me from the worship team at Watoto will call me minister or worshiper, yet for one who has known me for my music and albums, I will be called a musician, if you have watched me on Instagram or met me playing with my kids, I’m a father so I am truly many things,” he says.

I am a father, husband, an artist, and in many ways a student, but one thing about me is that I love Jesus and I try to ensure that it comes through whether in my music, when am singing a love song or a Sunday worship song

YouTube and Social Activity

Recently, there has been more activity happening on Kimera’s social media and YouTube, I couldn’t help but wonder whether he was prepping us for a release. Something that he both agrees and disagrees with.

“The initial plan wasn’t much about preparing you for something, but me just trying to be more intentional so I don’t post things for postings sake.” He says and quotes “Don’t speak because you have to say something, but speak because you have something to say.”

Over the last few months he has realized that it’s an opportunity to be able to speak to people and they listen. There is no limit to the things he will talk about, in one Instagram Live, he tells us about his car incident, where he failed to figure out why the car couldn’t start and called his mechanic who fixed everything in about 2 minutes. The lesson from which was, to avoid fixing things that we don’t know how to fix. A lesson I don’t take lightly, being a self-help nerd.

These sessions are propelled by his ability to tell normal stories in a catchy conversational way, but the stories are so relatable since they are from anything biblical, to Instagram Live glitches and car engine failures,

A Little Faith, A Personal Story and Uplifting Tunes

When asked about the song, he recalls being lost in internal challenges. “I needed confidence to know that God still had me on track, I was going through a very difficult moment. I was in a major transition but I couldn’t figure out where God was going with this” he says.
But a man like Kimera knows when to bury himself into the word, and while at it, God brought him a reminder, a little faith is all you need.

In the song you will hear lyrics that go along the lines of; ‘small as a mastered, that’s all the faith you need, you can move the mountain, and reach your destiny.’

He recalls that the requirement for him to trust and have faith, so the song was also for himself. “I don’t know if the song got enough airplay, but I was really happy with it because it was from a genuine place.”

He makes it clear that some songs may not go everywhere but they will go where God needs them to go. And he gets that A Little Faith is probably one of those songs.”

#WisdomOnTheStreets

Wisdom on the streets is an IG Live series hosted on his Instagram. The setting is relaxed and it mostly happens in his car. (I guess that explains the name) I was left wondering how random the nuggets of wisdom he shares are, or whether he prepares the 3 minutes catchy yet candid ted-talks.
“Yes, I do absolutely love doing that.” he says “Although my wife advises that I can’t post many in a week, so I try to focus on one post a week.”

The discussions are not random, they are prepared in a sense. There is reflection, and there is this thing called Reflective Practice, (he laughs and warns me that he is starting to do that teacher thing again, not rather trainer)
All of us can reflect but if you want to make it stick, try Reflective Practice. With Reflective Practice, in addition to thinking about it, taking some time to write about it, or even draw a picture, say it out, record yourself saying it. If you can verbalize and articulate it well then there is a higher chance it will stick.

“I literally took on Proverbs 1:20 which says -Wisdom is calling out on the streets.
I believe that God is always speaking to us everywhere but the question is -are we paying attention? So, I try to squeeze that in a minute or three and I share it in a way that is helpful for someone in the middle of their day” he says.

Juggling life, an MBA, fatherhood, ministry, music, career and family

I was, indeed, super excited last year in regards to my MBA completion (For the record, his pronounciation is -Em-Bee-Yay) which I started 2 & a half years ago. As most people, he largely credits his family who were so patient with him as he worked an 8-5 job and studied evening hours.

Having a life like Kimera’s doesn’t come easy, his crazy work- life balance is complexed by ministry, academics, music, work, family. He refers to the advice of Aaron Lindsey who said something like “…if you think about life as a balance then you are always striving for the perfect balance but if you think about it as rhythm of life, you always find a way of balancing it out.”

He explains life to me as a juggle of balls where, you can hold one at a time and let it go to hold another. Its about knowing when to spend that quality time with family and when to read hard for an exam or be away on ministry workshops.

“I don’t think I balance my life extremely well, but if I do then its by the grace of God. I know that there are people in my life like my wife who flags me out.” He adds, “Like now there is this thing which is big at Watoto called ‘Cantata’ so for the next weeks I may spend a lot of time on that Christmas Production.” he adds while emphasising “But it’s very clear that at the end none of those balls go hanging.”

“Gwe Wange” and writing timeless music

I Promise you, I have watched all the versions and covers of that song, and I never get tired of it. When I ask Kimera about his secret to writing timeless music, he laughs and says, “The thing is, if I answered this question like I knew exactly how, then every song I wrote would be a timeless hit. He tells me that when he wrote ‘Gwe Wange’, he wasn’t even trying to be timeless, “I was trying to be genuine. I was writing it for my wife and how I felt.” Kimera says.

This musical maestro, however, gives pointers and says; the song needs to be relevant but also in a simple way that people can connect with. He, at this point, holds the conversation to tell me about his other conversation with Maurice Kirya about musical excellence where they talked about how some guys [ musicians] don’t to consider that their grandchildren will listen to their music at some point. He continues by stressing the need to be mindful about not simply following trends and saying what everyone is saying or mindlessly repeating what comes to mind because its hot or trendy – there needs to be substance.

He concludes by saying “I can’t say I have a formula. I just think it has to do with genuine human experience but also in terms of music, a degree of simplicity and relatability.”

His Free Song-Writing Lessons

When asked about his free music writing training sessions, he jokingly says, “I’m not sure if you are mostly asking about them being free or actually happening. If you are asking about the song writing lessons then yes, this project stems from my desire of sharing all I’ve learnt with people.”

Although not sure exactly when, he is certain there will be another session, at least one. “We will probably do a free one again, I’m not sure when but it would be nice if we can also have paid ones so that the project can create its own cycle. Hopefully to where we have many people helping out.”

When he organized the first session, he thought there would be about 30 people, but to his surprise, in an hour about 60+ people showed up so 2 classes were organized to divide the numbers. “That was a pleasant surprise, and I think it shows that people are interested and so I’m happy to do this.” Whether one is interested in writing music for church or for their personal expression or for a career in music, he just wants to share knowledge and skills that have been collected over the years with everyone else.

Remix of ‘Echoes’ with Maurice Kirya

“I’ve known Maurice for a few years, but when he released his latest album I listened to it and kept coming back to that song, I don’t know why I just kept coming back to it,” he recalls.

For Kimera, the song tied in with his concept about timeless songs. It was speaking about issues that are real to “where we are and it felt really genuine.” In his review of the song, he talks about how Maurice Kirya even though a good vocalist is not showing off his musicality but renders the message of the song. “That got me” he says , telling me that in his interpretation, when he listened to the original, at the end where Maurice silently lets the music play, it allowed Kimera to have his own thoughts about the subject.

I think that’s an invitation where the musician says, “I have said what I need to say so I will leave time for you, and I will let you put in your thoughts and I listen.”

After listening to the song, he recalls being filled with a lot of thoughts about his physical perspective but also his perspective of the world and where we are.

“I reached home and couldn’t get out of the car until I had written the idea down and later in the evening, I sent it to Maurice and he was like “yooo this is dope”, but it took forever for us to get to it, thankfully we later did”

Kimera, a religious man, believes that gospel artists can collaborate with secular artists. “When the message is stronger than the messenger, we realize that all of a sudden, its not about who did the song but the message because the topic is important to all of us.”

“And that’s why I did the project,” He adds. “It was too important to me and I’m glad that it naturally worked out because usually these kinds of things don’t always just work out.”

Music Awards,

When I ask him about the relevance of award, he pauses for a minute pondering on whether he has any awards, to which he thinks out loud, “I don’t think I have any award.”

He then refers me to the bible where it says “Give honor to whom honor is due” thus confirming that awards are great in a way of recognizing someone for their time, talent and their treasure.”

“If someone has put time and attention in their craft and they are excelling, they deserve the honor. If we have to clap for that guy, lets clap for that guy. If we need to say good job to this lady let’s say good job, so that they are encouraged because awards can encourage you to do what you do and recognize that what you’re doing is making an impact,” he says.

But at the same time, he warns that the concept of awards can be tremendously treacherous if we over emphasize their relevance. “If the goal of doing what is done becomes to get an award, then in my perspective, it could easily distract me from what God has called me to do,” he says. He thinks that God has not called us to simply pursue awards. “But if and when they come, and I hope they come, I will appreciate them and be thoroughly humbled because people don’t have to give you their awards so when they do its an honor.”

“Like Jesus who came to die on the cross, he didn’t do it for an award but we see that in Phillipians Ch.2 when He does that, He is awarded a name that is above all other names and that every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that He is Lord.”

“It’s just important to remember”, he adds “regardless of what ever crowns we have and whatever recognitions, we need to be able to wear them proudly, but have the discipline to come and bowdown to remove the crowns and put them at His feet. As long as we are cognizant of the fact that it is all about God, then God doesn’t mind giving us crowns.”

The devil wants us to focus on the crown and popularity and the fame especially when it comes with money and recognition, if Jesus was tested in those things then surely, we will be tested as well. He concludes on the subject by saying, “What am telling you is to focus on God and what he has called you to do and anything in between is a bonus for which we pause to say ‘thank you’ and then get back to work.”

Access to his body of work.

He starts by almost saying that he is all over the internet, but catches himself between the statement realizing and laughing at the fact that he may not really be ‘all over’ the internet.

“Anyone looking for K!mera, its @kimera516.” In case you are wondering what 516 stands for, he adds, its from Mathew 5:16 that says, “Let your Light so shine before all men that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven.”

He recalls starting his music journey, this verse was an anchor. It reminded him why he had to do what he did, that God may be glorified. “That my light will shine before everyone, and that for me means; church people, non-church people – everyone! That they may see that light through me, in my works and everything I do, and glorify my father in heaven.”

Follow the link to access his Work
https://linktr.ee/kimera516