Ssalambwa

Ba pipo nkomyewo, kati many people were asking me what the word “Wamlambez” means from the popular Kenyan urban hip-hop song by The Sailors and also the catchy parts from the chorus, “drinks na mayenx” and “wamnyonyez”.

As always ka mba tabire! You all who have been going around chanting “wamlambez,wamnyonyez” nio nio, first relax, pull a chair, and sit down. Kubanga obwedda mweswaza. Shitama (I don’t know if I said that right)!

Anyways, the words are from Sheng, think of it like slang that borrows from different languages in Kenya and is used by lots of youth in the urban areas of Kenya. Like how some of y’all go on showing off mbu you can do ghetto Luga (y’all sound terrible btw, mututaase).

“Wamlambez” means to lick and “Wamnyonyez” means to suck. Wetegerezza biki, isn’t that what you have been going around singing at the top of your voice? Hehe, let me even laugh ko. I know, I know, the song is fire, even if you wanted to, it’s hard to help yourself. After all, the Kenyans themselves who probably click the meaning are happily shouting it loud and grinding, no harm, no foul.

Let’s dig a little into the probable origins of the words. According to Venas, mbu, it was the tagline for a kiosk in Eastleigh, Nairobi which sells ice cream. The phrase read, “Lamba lolo, wamlambez wamnyonyez sana”.

Wamlambez Ice Cream Kiosk in Eastleigh Nairobi | Spurzine — Wamlambez Ice Cream Kiosk in Eastleigh Nairobi | Image Credit: Venas New Kenya

From the little knowledge I’ve picked up that means, “lick a lollipop, lick and suck a lot” – I am not a linguist so sue me if my Swahili is a little off, but that’s just about the gist. About the song, of course, you can fill in the blanks of what they are talking about. Probably “Ice Cream” wa Sheebah. Who knows, not me!

Oh damn, I almost forgot, I promised I would also tell you the meaning of “drinks na mayenx”. Mayenx usually means pretty girls, guys often say, “Come na mzinga, nikona mayenx” which roughly translates to “Come with the booze, I called pretty girls to the party.”

Btw off-topic, “dundaing” means partying, not what y’all thought. Kwegamba kili bloody. As always, your humble venomous writer to the rescue, Ssalambwa.

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