Singer Gogo Ashley has detailed how a spontaneous TikTok video led to a career-defining collaboration with the popular Kenyan music duo, Vijana Barubaru.
In an interview with media personality Alex Mwakideu on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, Ashley revealed the organic start of the partnership that catapulted both acts to greater fame.
While consistently posting content on TikTok, Ashley came across an a cappella video of Vijana Barubaru’s song, Hivi Sasa. She was immediately drawn to the song’s emotional depth and lyrical quality.
“I came across their video at the time it was an a acapella and I liked it because of how the lyrics were put together, how they made sense, and the feelings they evoked in me.”
Inspired, she decided to record her own a cappella cover in October 2022, around her birthday. Since she had no instruments, she focused purely on her voice.
A few days later, while she was at school, Ashley noticed her phone was receiving an unusual number of notifications.
Upon checking, she discovered that Vijana Barubaru had featured her a cappella version in a duet on their TikTok account, and fans were sharing the video widely.
Fans urged her to reach out to the duo to work together, and the connection quickly became a professional collaboration.
“Within three days, people were confused whether it was mine. They told me to reach out to them so we could do something together. That’s how we met and how the song came out.”
The collaboration on Hivi Sasa proved to be a massive success, with the official stripped-down video featuring Gogo Ashley currently boasting 19 million views on YouTube. The follow-up track, Nakupenda, has also garnered 19 million views.
These projects significantly boosted the careers of both Gogo Ashley and the duo, Vijana Barubaru, who are composed of rapper and spoken-word artist Mwanaa and singer-songwriter-producer Tuku Kantu (V-BE).
The Hivi Sasa and Nakupenda collaborations solidified their presence in the Kenyan music scene and the partnership helped both artists expand their reach and fan base.
Vijana Barubaru welcomed the partnership, appreciating the organic beginning of the project.
Ashley noted that the spontaneous start to the collaboration made the experience particularly special for everyone involved.
