Emma Jalamo whose real name is Austin Odhiambo was born in 1980 in Mathare. He was however raised in Sigomre in Ugunja Siaya county. His father was a cobler which made him become unsure of how his life would be. He started his primary education at the age of 12 years but dropped out due to the bitting poverty at their home which forced him to come in to supliment his father in providing for their family.
In an attempt to earn a living, he became a second-hand cloth vendor in Ugunja Market before moving to Nairobi as a nightguard in Ngara. He was staying with his brother in Kayole before he got his own house. The arrest of his brother under unclear circumstances forced him to relocate to a friend’s house in Kibera slums.
He joined Nehema Church choir where he groomed his singing skills. He met Seth Oloo who admitted him to his band as a pianist but, a year later, the band disintegrated and everybody went his way. The late queen of Ohangla, Lady Maureen spotted Emma Jalamo as he was singing with a local band in Umoja. She offered him a chance to join her band where he became a pianist and gradualy rose to become the band’s vocalist and finally Lady Maureen’s curtain-raiser.
He released his first album titled ‘First Lady’, just 6 months of being a curtain raiser of Lady Maureen, in reverence to his wife, Mildred from Nyakach. He got into limelight in 2012 December when he launched his second album – Simba Ja Uriri. His music career has developed over time, with his genre often viewed from the prism of a cocktail of Rhumba, Benga, and Ohangla, thus the name of his band – Ramogi Ohangla Rhumba.
