The demise of tyrannical KANU regime in 2002 saw among other things, the incoming administration of President Mwai Kibaki liberalize the Kenyan radio/TV airwaves to an unprecedented level. This was followed by an extraordinary explosion of dozens of private radio stations targeting the diverse Kenyan audiences with varying degrees of tastes and preferences.
With these radio stations set on a trajectory of cut-throat competition for eardrums, alongside came a group that can be termed as the second-generation of Kenyan radio presenters, the first one mainly comprising of State broadcaster, KBC, that served its various radio services.
But with Kibaki the following years would see curtains come down quickly on Idhaa ya Taifa's decades of unchallenged dominance as Kenyans were left spoilt for choice from among the tens of tailored FM radio stations that not only aired their respective content in English and Swahili, but also in different vernacular languages and the popular urban slang, sheng'.
For the first time in Kenya, having a good voice and furnished Swahili or English ceased to be the only 'must-have' primary requirements for one to work in a radio station's continuity department.
Creativity became the mainstay of the next generation of radio presenters' lifeline and on-air retention. The commercialization of radio meant that good audience ratings to attract enough advertisers formed the hallmark of a typical commercial radio station's continued survival.
Consequently, those that failed or were unable to reinvent themselves were yanked off the airwaves and immediately replaced with others dimmed to be competitive in those underperforming niches.
It is from this endless 'shape up or ship out' game of musical chairs, where dozens of charming radio presenters budded and flowered.
As competition grew, behind the scenes radio programme controllers and managers had an uphill task of coming up with innovative and creative ideas to keep their increasingly choosy and selective audiences hooked.
And so one the ideas they experimented with involved bringing together two or more presenters to co-host on-air shows which had the immediate impact of making radio conversational as opposed to monotonous one presenter monologue speaking to an imagined audience.
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And as radio evolved from a strictly formal medium comprising of trained media professionals in order to satisfy rapidly changing listeners' tastes, co-hosting would later see comedians and musical DJs introduced to primetime shows to soar up listenership.
While some may argue that this marked the death of radio professionalism as quacks infiltrated and took over the airwaves, from the commercial perspective of radio managers and owners it was a good monetary gamble.
Yes, a sure bet it was for indeed it is from this move that exciting and seamless on-air radio chemistries emerged and soared to great heights even as others withered and died as soon as they sprouted from the bud.
Here, we focus our lenses on some of the best and seamless on-air chemistries to have reverberated the Kenyan radio airwaves since early 2000s.
While the list draws from different radio stations with varying languages, scopes and audiences, it is by no means exhaustive. It does not also follow any particular order of merit.
1. Shaffie Weru and Kalekye Mumo
This duo of Shaffie and Kalekye was a perfect combination for Kiss FM listeners during the evening drive. The two had an impeccable on-air chemistry that came out so naturally.
With Shaffie playing the comical bully especially on call-in listeners and Kalekye responding with a heartfelt laughter, one could not help but look forward to yet another of their shows.
2. Mbusii and Bonoko
This was another perfect duo during the evening drive timeslot that took the Nairobi radio airwaves by storm through their Reggae show Goteana on Ghetto Radio.
Before Mbusii decamped to Radio Jambo in 2013, Goteana was among the top-rated drive shows in the capital enjoying unrivaled popularity especially among Eastlands-bound matatus that tuned in.
Mbusii's mastery of sheng' slang and Bonoko's runaway and real ignorance on almost everything, made them a perfect hook for Nairobi's ghetto listenership.
3. Caroline Mutoko, Larry Asego and Jalang'o
The trio presented the then Kiss 100 breakfast show, The Big Breakfast, before the Radio Africa Group owned station rebranded to Kiss FM. While Mutoko hanged her on-air radio boots to serve in management at the same media house ahead of the rebranding, the seemless chemistry that the three enjoyed would mark the beginning of Jalango's long radio comedy career.
Co-hosting Radio Maisha's and Milele FM's breakfasts alongside Alex Mwakideu with whom he again found a perfect match, Jalango has since interestingly returned to the rebranded Kiss FM breakfast where it all started.
4. Maina and King'ang'i
They are perhaps the longest serving co-hosts on morning and entire Kenyan radio. Since the inception of Classic 105 in 2005, the two have presented the station's breakfast show uninterrupted.
Maina is credited as he is equally bashed for introducing sex-talk on Kenyan morning radio which became a perfect gamble for urban listenership headed for work in the morning after stormy or serene night.
On the other hand, King'ang'i with his comical and witty 'Kasheshes' well received and complemented by Maina, not only serve to cement their their formidable chemisty, but also bring a sigh of relief to listeners after a heightened hour of bedroom talk that sometimes shoot beyond boiling point.
5. Man Saimo and Katta
There's no doubt that the duo are reigning kings of Kikuyu drive time radio having served in same capacity in all 'The Big Three' of Kikuyu radio comprising of Kameme FM, Inooro FM and Coro FM.
Tapped from Coro's Kumiria in 2010 to replace Inooro FM's CuaCua after the then unrivaled queen of Kikuyu drive time PM Squared returned to Kameme FM drive show, they perfected their on-air artistic chemistry involving rib-cracker humour and endless infectious laughter.
This gained them massive popularity that not only saw them dethrone PM Squared on Kikuyu drive time, but also take over her Humuka drive show leading to her eventual and inevitable retirement from the airwaves.
Today, as some may put it, there is no Man Saimo without Katta while on radio and vice versa. They are simply inseparable twins with perhaps cojoined destiny and fate in as far as radio is concerned.