With sick rhymes and tight lyricism, this young man's flow is highly impressive, to say the very least. Born Charles Righa, few could pull off the Taita pronunciation of his second name; hence the stage name Rigga.

He may be new to the music industry, but if his latest single is anything to go by, he seems prepared
to make a big splash in the industry.

Brought up in a small and very tightly knit family, where Rigga was the only child in a single parent home, it's not so hard to see how his mother's spirituality could rub off on him. He might have known about God from an early age, but it wasn't until the 2000 Extreme Weekend that he finally made a decision for Christ.

His mother, whom he credits as a major influence in his life, took an interest in his musical abilities from an early age, even signing him up for piano lessons at the tender age of 8. Yet it was not until high school that Rigga begun experimenting with Hip-Hop music. His mother's work made her travel a lot, and each time she moved with her son. Even though this very importantly exposed him to many different cultures and lifestyles, all which he readily claims he benefited from; it didn't help his studies too much. Moving from school to school and criss-crossing various education systems didn't augur well for him when he finally settled at Sunshine Secondary School . Not only does he claim his Swahili was very poor at the time, he also realized that he had to play academic catch-up with the rest of his class-mates.

Yet amazingly, it was this scholarly tension that led him to try his hand at lyricism. He felt like he had to seek an avenue that would relieve the strain and even temporarily reroute his attention from his studies. It proved to be a masterly stroke, as Rigga soon rhymed with the best of them in school.

Upon exiting high school he sensed the need to take his talent up a notch by seeking out a production house. He attempted both Sakata and Blu Zebra recording studios but realized neither was the place for him. It was not until Babz, a producer he had met whilst in high school introduced him to Kijiji Records C.E.O Kanjii Mbugua. Babz convinced Kanjii to allow Rigga to record a single there usig a non-Kijiji track. Even though it was against company policy there, it was approved. The song, titled About Us was a secular collabo between three upcoming acts, and did very well –receiving considerable air-play at Y FM.

Yet secular was not the path Rigga's heart longed after. He soon chose the gospel music path, one he still follows to date.

Prior to Kijiji, Rigga had recorded a number of tracks with various upcoming acts, working with people like Babz, Gittx and Soulchild Studios. His first single was titled Umenitosha , and featured more the prominent rapper Jael.

This opened the door for him to record an amazing single with KORA winner DNG titled Anza Tena . He also appears on the DJ Moz mix-tape and the track Heal Their Tears by Mellow Dee (a song that he's performed at the Miss India Kenya Beauty Pageant as well as the Kenya Fashion Week ).

Kijiji Records has also opened him up to the world of advertising, where he's done a number of ads with both Kijiji as well as the producer Ennovator.

As regards his career he says:

“ My journey is a strange one because I know that I'm not in the driver's seat and also because I know that it's all God's doing. I'm just at the beginning of his itinerary for me and I believe the best is yet to come. For all past achievement, all the glory to him (coz in truth, he did them, not I!)

Rigga's vision is crystal clear. He would like to see Christian music ministry develop both inside and outside of the traditional church setting. His goal is to see people's lives and situations transformed as a result of music ministry, and for people to encounter Christ and his love through music.

Rigga has now released his full length debut record. Entitled The Awakening, it was wholly produced at Kijiji records and features amongst others, Neema, Kanjii, Chizi, the Hip Hope Family and Brian King.

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