• Al Kan-I

By CHUSA SICHONE –

AT Radio Phoenix newsroom he is Mutale Kani but at Slum Dunk Records he is known as Al Kan-I.
Mutale has again taken time off his newsroom function as Radio Phoenix deputy news editor to release another Hip Hop single for the year 2014, Untouchables, under his alias, Al Kan-I.
Al Kan-I has been promoting Untouchables, which he features Redwings, on social media like Facebook the past two weeks.
Untouchables, a composition of English and Bemba lyrics, is an addition to Al Kan-I’s 2013 singles: Kwacha, Altezza music and the Wordsmith.
“Untouchables is my latest single. It features a Kasama duo, Redwings. The song is produced by Lusaka producer, Hurricane. It’s a classic Hip Hop track. it’s a song that combines different styles hence me working with Redwings.
“Redwings have got their own thing going and I have also got a distinct style of music that I do, so I thought those two worlds would intertwine and make beautiful music on one song,” he said.
With him coming from Lusaka and Redwings from Kasama, Al Kan-I called their collaboration as musical regional integration, adding that it was testimony that music had the potential to bring people from different places together.
“My long-term plan, although it’s not in the very distant future, it’s in the near future, is to release an album obviously,” said Al Kan-I.
Al Kan-I, who is one of the founding members of award winning Hip Hop group, Zone Fam, said he is likely to unleash another single before releasing an Extended Play (EP) and a Long Play (LP) will follow thereafter.
An EP is an album with a maximum of about six songs usually meant for promotional purposes while an LP is the opposite of that as it has approximately 10 to 12 tracks.
Al Kan-I released his debut EP called the Master Copy Experience in 2010, preceded by his Mixtape Critical Acclamation in 2007 besides being part of Zone Fam’s first album, The Full Script in 2010.
Asked how he is managing to be rapper and Journalist at the same time, he said it was not easy but that he was managing owing to being passionate and focused at whatever he does.
“Obviously it’s not easy but when you have got passion for something that you do, no matter how hard it may be to achieve that undertaking, you will still find a way.
“I sometimes shock myself as well. I wonder how I manage to be an emcee (rapper) and how I also manage to be a Journalist. I guess I have learnt the art of dividing my time effectively,” he said.