•She also describes Nyummy music as a new genre that is a mixture of different cultures and the feelings it brings when listening to it.
•The musician has over two decades experience of in live performance on both international and Kenyan stages.
June Gachui alias “the queen of all things Nyummy” is a talented Kenyan musician who doubles up as a lawyer.
June wears many hats including an actor, bilingual MC, show producer and radio presenter at Capital FM.
She serves on the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) as a Director of the Board and the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) Sector Board for Sports, Culture, and Heritage.
She refers to the phrase Nyummy as a feeling that people get when they listen to her music or when they do activities they love.
She also describes Nyummy music as a new genre that is a mixture of different cultures and the feelings it brings when listening to it.
The musician has over two decades experience of in live performance on both international and Kenyan stages.
June has performed in a live show in the United States, France, Australia, the United Kingdom, Uganda and Kenya.
Her notable features include opening for Hill Street Soul in November 2010, Joe Thomas at the Tusker Lite Experience in March 2012, Jazz Under the Stars in August 2014, Pamoja Concert with Owour Arunga in September 2014, Simplified Soul Jam in August 2015 and Koroga Festival in May 2016 among others.
She describes the highlight of her music career as being the moment she launched her album dubbed ‘Twenty Years’ in 2016 when she held a two-day concert.
“My album launch will forever be a massive, beautiful memory in my entire life, there were two bands performing, an all-male and an all-female band. I think we created such magic by being able to release the album and also performing that content on stage was the yummiest thing ever,” she said during an interview.
On the album she released, June featured famous musicians, including Kaligraph Jones and Blinky Bill.
The album was a testimony of her life experience and 20-year musical career journey told in her own style of music, which she refers to as Nyummy music.
June also produced one of the most popular shows called Motown in Nairobi which is staged every year in October, on the eve of Mashujaa Day. Others include ‘The Heng’ a 90s throwback concert, ‘Soul Train’, ‘the Tribute Series’ where fallen musical legends are honored.
The musician has won different awards during her musical career, including Acclaimed Café Ngoma Award for Best Soul Act in 2017.
She also acted in the famous 'Nairobi Half Life' and ‘Project Daddy’. She has been on Phoenix Player for over 10 years and some of the most memorable performances include two one-woman shows namely; ‘My Brilliant Divorce’ and ‘Shirley Valentine’.
In addition, she played major roles in ‘Wife Begins at Forty’, ‘It Runs in the Family’ and ‘Steel Magnolias’ among others.
June was the leading lady in Sterling Quality’s ‘Lwanda -Man of Stone’ a truly Kenyan musical where she played Nyaber.
In July 2016, June played ‘Millicent’ in the three-woman show - “Threefold Cord”, which saw her win the Best Actress Award 2016 called Sanaa Theatre Awards.
June has found a way to structure the art in a way that is professional, entertaining and profitable, by using some of the skills she has gained.
In addition to her entertainment life, June is also an advocate of the high court and practices Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law in Kenya, an area that handles the creative industry.
“I do practice law every day for 12 years now. We have been helping the creative industry by teaching them about their rights,” she said.
June has a diverse experience in all areas of Intellectual Property Law and Entertainment Law, having trained with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
She is also an associate member of the International Trademark Association (INTA), New York.
June is the Principle of June Gachui Intellectual Property (JGIP) consultants that offers services to creative entrepreneurs to allow them to monetize their intangible goods and services.
As part of her work in the IP field, she is a resource person and trainer for the creative entrepreneurs within the creative industries ranging from music publishing, film and TV, software developers, corporate clients, schools, regional and international organizations on matters of IP.
She advocates for the protection of commercially viable exploitation of IP rights.
June will perform in the anticipated Stanbic Yetu Festival alongside American musician and songwriter Anthony Hamilton on July 30 at Carnivore grounds.
This is not the first time the festival is happening in Kenya, it took place virtually in August 2020 during the Covid-19 lockdown, with the digital event aiming to connect the local and global music community during the pandemic.
Other musicians who will be present include Otile Brown and other new vocalist and instrumentalists.
The festival, organised by Stanbic Bank in partnership with Radio Africa Group, seeks to nurture and promote the development of the performing and visual arts in Kenya.