Shimaliw' Osatana is the debut album by Namibian

Namibia

Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...

 kwaito

Kwaito

Kwaito is a music genre that emerged in Johannesburg, South Africa, during the 1990s. It is a variant of house music featuring the use of African sounds and samples. Typically at a slower tempo range than other styles of house music, Kwaito often contains catchy melodic and percussive loop samples,...

 master The Dogg

The Dogg

Martin Morocky , known by his stage name as The Dogg is a Namibian multi-award winning musician, producer and actor. He's one of the most outstanding artists in Namibia and is considered one of the pioneers of Namibia's kwaito genre. His debut album Shimaliw' Osatana, released in 2004, was...

, released in February 2004 through RC-Ghetto Records. Shimaliw' Osatana was the first full length kwaito album released in Namibia. The album was immediately hailed as a masterpiece

Masterpiece

Masterpiece in modern usage refers to a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or to a work of outstanding creativity, skill or workmanship....

 by several critics, and is today one of the most celebrated and influential albums in Namibia. Shimaliw' Osatana (in Oshiwambo; Money Is Evil), established The Dogg as one of the most profound lyricists in Namibia, introducing his signature rough attitude style.

Overview

Shimaliw' Osatana combines hardcore hitting kwaito with socially meaningful lyrics. It was released at a time when Namibia was lacking potential musician. The album represents one of the most influential kwaito albums of Namibia, and is considered an archetypal album of Namibia's kwaito genre. The album won the best album award, best kwaito song, and artist of the year at the 2004 Sanlam-NBC Music Awards. It gave Dogg his second chance to win the artist of the year award. Shimaliw' Osatana is also consider as Dogg's best album by several critics. The album also earned The Dogg

The Dogg

Martin Morocky , known by his stage name as The Dogg is a Namibian multi-award winning musician, producer and actor. He's one of the most outstanding artists in Namibia and is considered one of the pioneers of Namibia's kwaito genre. His debut album Shimaliw' Osatana, released in 2004, was...

 comparison to Mandoza

Mandoza

Mduduzi Tshabalala , well known as Mandoza, is a South African kwaito musician.- Early life :Mandoza was born in the Zola South section of Soweto, where he shared a house with his mother, his grandparents and two sisters. He never knew his father, his mother claiming that he was murdered the same...

 and DMX

DMX (rapper)

Earl Simmons , better known by his stage name DMX, is a multiplatinum American rapper and actor who rose to fame in the late 1990s. His stage name pays tribute to the Oberheim DMX drum machine, an instrument he used when he made his own rap beats in the 80's...

, due to his rough voice.

Production and Guest

The album was produced by Elvo and Big Ben. Big Ben produced two songs while Elvo produced the rest. There are no guest appearances on the album. Although Gazza

Gazza (artist)

Lazaruz Karandu Shiimi known by his stage name as Gazza, is a Namibian kwaito musician from Oshakati. As a soccer lover, he nicknamed himself Gazza after famous English soccer player Paul Gascoigne. He is one of the most commercially successful recording artists in Namibia...

 contributes background chorus supporting-vocals on "Mamma", he was not credited as a guest. Elvo also mixed the entire album. The album holds a record of being Dogg's only album without a guest.

Track listing