Makayla Simpson otherwise known as Koffee in the music industry on Sunday carved her name in the history of reggae.
The rising reggae star, who has a big following in Kenya, won a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album for the album Rapture at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.
‘RAPTURE’
In so doing, Koffee, who headlined the Blankets and Wine event last December in Nairobi, has now become the youngest reggae act and also the first female artist to win the Grammy for Best Reggae Album.
The 19-year-old, released the award-winning album last year. The album features among other songs, her biggest hit Toast, which debuted at the top spot on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart.
Rapture spent an impressive 32 weeks on Billboard’s Reggae albums chart after debuting at number one.
The singer-cum-rapper was born in 2000 and raised by her single mother in Spanish Town, just outskirt of Kingston.
She sang in a church choir as a child and taught herself how to play guitar at the age of 12. She started writing songs in her teens drawing inspiration from Jamaican reggae stars, Chronixx and Protoje.
‘TOAST’
The lead single Toast was arguably the biggest reggae single of 2019, receiving worldwide airplay and being featured by many international celebrities, including former US President, Barack Obama.
On Sunday, while accepting the award, Koffee thanked the other nominated reggae acts, whom she said she had “learnt a lot from”. At the end of her speech, she said, “This one is for Reggae. This one is for Jamaica.”
She has been dubbed the next big thing in the reggae industry and has been featured on Essence magazine. She has also performed on the Jimmy Kimmel show, Kaya Fest as well as in Buju Banton’s first concert since his release from prison.
Koffee has been endorsed by among others Cocoa Tea, Chronixx, and Protoje and the explosion of Toast made former First Couple Barack and Michelle Obama’s summer playlist.
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