Mary Favour unveils 'Safari' EP, a multicultural Afro-Soul journey across East Africa

Mary Favour recently released her debut EP Safari, a six-track Afro-soul journey blending Swahili, Mijikenda, Congolese and more, exploring love, growth and self-discovery through her multicultural sound.

When Mary writes songs, she is either playing board games at home with family or exploring the cultures of a new city.

These experiences have culminated in Safari, her debut EP and an introduction to her Afro-soul sound, a rich blend of Swahili, Mijikenda, Congolese, French, English and Ugandan cultural words and melodies.

The Mombasa-based Afro-soul and urban artiste held an intimate listening party for Safari on June 3 at Couch Café in Mombasa. In attendance were her supporters, industry peers, and people who own creative spaces in Mombasa.

Safari, whose title means 'journey' in Swahili, captures a season of reflection and transition in her life and years of performance and collaboration in various music stages in East Africa.

“As an artiste and storyteller, releasing an EP felt like the best way to introduce listeners to my world, my sound, and the themes that matter most to me. It's a personal milestone and an invitation for people to walk this journey with me,” she says.

It is a six-track multicultural and contemporary work that takes the listener through themes of uncertainty, self-discovery, love, and growth.

She explains that the project was born from the highs, the lows, the uncertainty, and the growth that comes with moving through them. She wanted to create a body of work that people could sit with and experience from beginning to end and find pieces of their own journeys within the music.

“I wanted enough space to explore different emotions and musical influences while still remaining intentional. I am excited; people finally get to hear my voice fully,” she says.

Safari revolves around six songs, every one representing different stops along the journey of life with lively background vocals woven throughout the project to portray a sense of community.

The title track, Safari, has traditional Mijikenda dialect such as 'mwanzele' and 'hinde' and Ugandan-inspired elements like 'tugende', which Mary incorporated during her time working in Uganda.

“The song is about facing obstacles along the way but doing it together as a community. I wrote the chorus like a chant, inviting listeners to sing along with me,” she says.

The next song, Keep at It, is an upbeat, danceable sebene-inspired rhythm from the Congo that is aimed at motivating your spirits to keep going. Following closely is Butterflies, an intimate, tender love song in Kiswahili and English that lovebirds can enjoy together.

“It is that song you send when you don’t have the words. The kind of song you play when you are sharing earphones with someone you love,” she says.

The next one, Skip, is a song about moving past disappointment, while Serenity blends jazz, soul, and a sultry piece in Swahili, French and English that explores ambition and sacrifice.

The final track, Mkono Wako, is about the unseen strength and divine guidance through life’s uncertainties.

Her approach to music is influenced by her background in theatre and live performance. Though she studied theatre in high school, she did not initially view it as a career path until she started performing in open mic events hosted by Jukwaa Arts Production.

She then ventured into musical theatre and composed original scores for a good number of productions like Lisemwalo Lipo and Nguo ya Krismas, where she has been an actor, singer and musical director.

“It is seamless for me to perform and bond with the audience because I have already been doing that in theatre,” she says.

Her career has taken her to participate in a British Council-supported community engagement in Uganda, the World Cultural Festival in India, and international arts and cultural festivals.

These experiences further exposed her to multicultural expressions.

She has also collaborated with producers such as Vic West and ABH Sounds and worked in various forms of teaching, composing, and live performance direction.