Nairobi’s V-Be, the duo comprising rapper Mshairi Spikes and vocalist Tuku Kantu, performing under the full name Vijana Barubaru, have long earned a following for their unflinching portrayals of modern relationships.
Their music draws on pop melodies, spoken-word delivery and East African rhythms to tell stories that resonate squarely within the daily reality of urban Kenyan life. With their new single, “Better Love,” featuring the celebrated Kenyan singer-songwriter Wendy Kimani, the pair venture into more demanding emotional territory: the conversations most couples simply refuse to have.
The track opens on a note of raw confession. The Swahili line “Nikavunja promisi,” meaning “I broke the promise,” establishes the song’s moral compass from the very first breath. There is no deflection, no accusation levelled at a partner. Both voices accept their share of responsibility and turn the gaze inward.
•Wendy Kimani’Much of the song’s emotional depth lies in its exploration of inherited behaviour. Lines such as “Tabia za babako… unaziona kwangu” and “Zinakaa za mamangu,” roughly translated as “Your father’s habits… I see them in me” and “They resemble my mother’s,” acknowledge how the environments in which we are raised quietly shape the partners we become. It is a candid admission rarely heard with such directness in popular music.
The emotional centrepiece of the record is the declaration “It ends with us baby, hapa ndio curse inaishia,” “This is where the curse ends.” It is a statement of collective resolve: two people choosing, consciously and together, to stop a harmful cycle in its tracks.
The chorus distils that resolve into something both intimate and universal. *”We deserve better love,” the pair sing, a phrase that carries the weight of both longing and decision. The couplet “Hii love si ya kuvumilia, hii love ni ya kupigania” (“This love is not for enduring, this love is for fighting for”) makes the argument plainly: real intimacy demands effort and intention, not mere tolerance.
Wendy Kimani’s contribution elevates the material considerably. Her vocal presence brings warmth and conviction to what might otherwise feel like an introspective exercise, transforming the song into a genuine dialogue between two people determined to do better. The result is one of V-Be’s most assured and emotionally mature releases to date.
“Better Love” is available now on all major streaming platforms.
