Since the release of Mwema, a gospel song that dominated the airwaves in 2014, Mercy Masika has become a household name.
And what better way to claim the number one gospel spot than to bag the Best Female Artiste of the Year award two years in a row at the Groove Awards.
Last year, she took home three awards; Female Artiste of the Year, Song of the Year for her song Nikupendeze while Mwema was crowned the Skiza Ring Back Tone of the Year.
This year, she walked away with the Best Female award and her new single Shule Yako won Skiza Tune Most Downloaded Song.
Masika, who gained recognition in the music industry with her 2009 song Amukomete, has achieved what many of her peers have failed to do; longevity, consistency and relevance.
So what is the secret behind all the success that has seen her music appeal to audiences across the board?
“It’s the willingness to work hard coupled with the grace of God,” Masika says. She recalls a time she had “a spiritual fight” with God, because “not everything was going to her plan.”
“The waiting part is the hardest, but you must have faith in Him,” she says.
She also credits her parents, who she says are spiritual leaders, for her success. She says that before her fans get to hear any other songs, she consults with her parents.
“There’s a song I wrote around 2005 or 2006 and I sought their opinion but unfortunately they were not ‘feeling it’. My dad asked me ‘so what’s the message?’ It was shallow. And because I trust their judgement, I did not release it,” she says.
She says that she always prays so that the message in her songs will have meaning to the lives of her fans.
“There’s a confirmation; you have to know your spirit, that this is what God is saying. There are songs that I haven’t released because I’m not confident about them yet, I do not rush the process.”
Joe Ogutu, Director Strategy, Safaricom with Mercy Masika after her song Nifunze won the Skiza Ringtone of The Year at the 2017 Groove Awards.
Of late, gospel artistes have been criticised for being too secular when their music. Masika advises listeners to learn to discern right from wrong.
“There’s a lot going on in the gospel industry, and many are the times the message appears to be lost. But as a listener, you have to know right from wrong because just like there are false prophets, there are musicians who are not genuine,” she says.
Her music aside, Masika’s fashion sense has not gone unnoticed. She says her’s is a blend between comfort, style and chic.
“I try to be decent. But there are different ways of measuring indecency, what is indecent to me could be considered decent to another person, but at the end of the day it’s what I’m comfortable in,”
She says she keeps a tight knit circle of friends who keep her in check.
As accomplished as she seems to be, is there anything she wishes she would have done by now?
“I wish I would have done my doctorate by now, but I trust in God’s timing. I am very far from my mark. There are more songs to sing, more countries to visit,” she says.
