Bien Announces ‘Alusa Continua,’ a 17-Track Album With 2 Chainz, Joshua Baraka and Oxlade

Bien has a date and a title. The Kenyan singer will release Alusa Continua, a new 17-track album, on 20 November, and the guest list stretches from Nairobi to Dar es Salaam to Atlanta. 2 Chainz, Coster Ojwang, Ywaya Tajiri, Kaycyy, Femi One, Joshua Baraka and Oxlade are among the names attached, making it one of the most ambitious East African albums of the year.

“November 20th Tuko live 🔥 I’ve put my heart and soul into this project ❤️ I can’t wait to share it with y’all,” Bien wrote when he announced the project on social media, KenyanVibe reported. “Tuko live” is Sheng for “we’re live,” and the full tracklist he shared alongside it shows exactly how far he has cast the net.

A name, and a guest list built for the region

The title is personal. Alusa is Bien’s own middle name (he is credited as Bienaimé Alusa), and “continua” reads as a statement of intent: the story continues. The title track opens the album, followed by “All My Enemies Are Suffering,” and the record ends with a short track simply called “Ah.”

The headline feature is “Signs,” which pairs Bien with American rapper 2 Chainz and Papa Gen Z. It is the kind of international feature East African artists have long chased, and a sign of how far Bien’s solo profile has grown since he stepped out from Sauti Sol, the group that made him a household name across the region.

The rest of the list leans into East Africa as one market. Tanzanian star Alikiba appears on “Finale,” the song already released in March. Ugandan singer Joshua Baraka and the Compozers join “Don’t Go.” Femi One and Papaa Maasai feature on “Mayolo,” and Coster Ojwang, the Kenyan benga and ohangla singer, joins Bien on “Kaumbete.” Nigeria‘s Oxlade appears with Ontiri on “How Can I Forget,” and the credits also include Ywaya Tajiri, Bryce One, Kaycyy, Tulwap Kipsigis and Nono Melodies, the last two on the closing collaboration “Success.”

Behind the scenes of “Finale” with Bien and Alikiba, one of the songs on Alusa Continua.

“Finale” set the bar

The album has a head start. “Finale,” released on 25 March with Alikiba, has become one of the defining songs of the year in East Africa. Built on the konpa-inspired sound that has spread across the region’s airwaves, it passed 40 million YouTube views in the months after release, and OkayAfrica called it “the song everything else in East Africa has had to measure up against this year.” Written by Bien and Alikiba and produced by Abbah and Hendricks Sam, it also inspired a wave of dance content, including an official dance video choreographed by Kenya’s The Cluster.

Bien has also been busy as a featured artist, joining Rwandan producer Element Eleéeh and Joshua Baraka on “AYAYAAH,” another record OkayAfrica highlighted as a clear example of East Africa operating as one creative bloc. Baraka himself has argued that artists in the region need to treat it as a single market rather than competing country by country, and Alusa Continua is the most direct expression of that idea yet.

The announcement lands in a crowded week for East African music. Alikiba released his solo single “Natubu” on 22 October, and Mbosso and Harmonize followed with “Kamata II” a day later. Alusa Continua is still a month away, but with “Finale” already in heavy rotation and a 2 Chainz feature on the way, it is set to be one of the region’s biggest releases of the year.