It all started with a radio competition, and a few seconds of panic. There was no carefully planned brand strategy or late-night meeting with a marketing team. Just a moment that would unexpectedly change everything.

The Kenyan Afropop musician David Mathenge, better known as Nameless revealed the completely unplanned story behind the name that has defined his 25-year career.

It started with overalls. He recalls that when he first came onto the scene, he was working in Nairobi’s Industrial Area and would head to performances straight from work, still dressed in his work gear.

People in the crowd began to notice.

“I was called the mechanic for two shows. That was good, I had overalls, so I thought, hey, by the way, that can be a swag,” Nameless said in an interview with Citizen TV.

But the name wore thin fast. “I came down and I was like, hey, that means now all my life I’ll have to be wearing overalls,” he said.

And just like that the mechanic era was over.

Then came the radio competition. He called in, performed, and the host asked for his name. He had nothing.

“I’ve not decided a name, because I’ve not thought through that,” he recalled thinking in that moment.

He could not say he was David Mathenge either, he was working a night shift job at the time and did not want his boss finding out he was on the radio.

So he paused, reached into nowhere, and said the first thing that came to mind.

“I just said Nameless. And immediately I said it, boom. I knew that’s the name,” he stated.

Building a 25-year legacy from that moment was never part of the plan either. It simply happened, one step at a time.

He was studying architecture at the time and genuinely expected to graduate and design buildings for a living.

Music was something he was doing for the thrill of it.

“I was shy, I don’t think I want to be really an artist. I just want to record, have fun, and live that,” he said.

But the years kept coming, the love kept growing, and somehow the career kept building itself. “I just kept doing it and loving and appreciating it and earning from it. And then I’m like, damn, it’s been 25 years, I need to celebrate,” he said.

Does he regret walking away from architecture? Not for a second.

“I’m not regretting. I think God decided, your job is to be an artist. Not an architect,” he said.

But he was also quick to strip away the glamour for anyone watching and thinking the music industry looks easy from the outside.

“It can look easy, but it’s not easy. The discipline required, once you realize it’s as complex as being a neurosurgeon, it’s not easy,” he said.

“You have to read and understand the market. You have to know your value. Sometimes people overvalue themselves, sometimes people undervalue themselves. You have to know what you need to change about your brand, because after three, four, five years, there has to be something that you keep changing and adjusting.”

Getting in is one thing. Staying in, for 25 years, is an entirely different challenge.