Onyi Papa Jey is an ohangla

Ohangla

Ohangla is a traditional dance among the Luo community. It was used to celebrate weddings and also in funeral ceremony as part of Tero Buru. Ohangla consists of more than 8 drums hit by a stick and a cylindrical shoulder slung drum played normally to the accompaniment of flute, Nyatiti or...

 musician form Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

Onyi Papa Jey started playing orutu

Orutu

The orutu is a one-stringed fiddle native to western Kenya, especially amongst the Luo community.The term also refers to a genre of music in Kenya which involves this instrument...

 while at primary school. He dropped from Tonga Secondary School after failing to play the school fees. He joined Tony Nyadundo

Tony Nyadundo

Tony Nyadundo is a musician from Kenya. He performs the Ohangla a traditional style of music by the luo community. He is backed by the Ohangla Boys band. He is now branded the "King of Ohangla"....

's band in 1999 and performed with in 2002. Later he performed for a while with Nyamolo traditional dancers. He also led a band called Langasta Stars in Eldoret

Eldoret

Eldoret is a town in western Kenya and the administrative centre of Uasin Gishu District of Rift Valley Province. Lying south of the Cherangani Hills, the local elevation varies from about 2100 metres above sea level at the airport to more than 2700 metres in nearby areas...

 for one year. He then toured with Jack Nyadundo (elder brother of Tony Nyadundo) in Kenya and Tanzania

Tanzania

The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

. While in Tanzania he formed the Super Suba and Koleko Newface band. He left Tanzania after three yars and rejoined the Nyamolo traditional dancers before going solo.

His career catapulted into national fame with the release of his debut album "Raila ODM" and particularly its title track, which was devoted to Raila Odinga

Raila Odinga

Raila Amollo Odinga , also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. He has served as a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, was Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002, and was Minister of Roads,...

, the Orange Democratic Movement

Orange Democratic Movement

Orange Democratic Movement refers to a political party in Kenya, which is the successor of a former grassroots people's movement which was formed in the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum. The erstwhile single party which separated in August 2007 into two...

's presidential candidate at the 2007 Elections

Kenyan presidential election, 2007

A presidential election was held as part of the Kenyan general election on December 27, 2007; parliamentary elections were held on the same date. Incumbent President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner and sworn in on December 30, despite opposition leader Raila Odinga's claims of victory...

. Onyi Papa Jey is signed to the SoundAfrica label.

He was nominated for three categories at the 2008 Kisima Music Awards

Kisima Music Awards

The Kisima Music Awards is an annual awards program that recognises musical talent in East Africa. Despite being Kenyan-based the scheme awards artists from a variety of countries, predominately Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and incorporates a range of music genres.-History:Named after the Swahili...

: Artist of the Year, Ethnic Fusion Artist, and Song of the Year ("Raila ODM"). However, he did not win any of these categories.