‘The Gate of Heaven’ in Bungoma where gospel artistes find haven

By Isabella Maua
Bungoma town has been famous for many controversial stories latest being the emergence of ‘Jesus of Tongaren’ aka ‘Yesu wa Tongaren’.

However, there’s an upcoming church and production house called ‘The Holy Gate of Heaven’ where upcoming artistes and singers are incubated and nurtured.

Situated at Chepkube, Bungoma – Mumias Road behind Mupeli Primary School, the church is under the leadership of Apostle Alex Lwamba.

As we enter the gates of Heaven (pun intended), we’re received by producer Anunda and Jerillah who share their journey with The Times Newspaper.
Driven by the passion to produce and bring forth quality gospel music, Rev. Cleophas Jomo popularly known as Anunda reveals that he became a producer out of sheer dissatisfaction.

“I had passion for music so one day I approached a close friend of mine who is a producer, the music he released wasn’t up to standard thus it never got any airplay,” recalls Anunda with nostalgia.

He further explained that the music released was rejected at all radio stations he approached and he was advised to redo the song or quit singing after all.

“I got so angry and vowed to pursue a journey of being a self taught producer so that I can perfect the art of ministering to God through quality songs,” recalls Anunda with nostalgia.

Producer Anunda who started his journey in 2021 by learning from other established producers has now enrolled on online courses to master and enrich his skills which he admits keep improving with time.
“It’s been an interesting journey with my brother Jerillah who’s not only a gospel musician but also a minister of God in this church,” divulged Anunda.

Hillary Juma alias Jerillah Muzic is a vibrant and youthful gospel artiste whose origin is in Bungoma but has spread his wings nationwide in the quest to feed hungry souls with the word of God.

“I’ve worked with many top gospel artistes in Kenya across the region but I’ve seen it best to come back home and together with super producer Anunda bring a difference to this industry,” said Jerillah.

Among other artistes he has worked with Jerillah attributes his success to Bishop Ben Bahati whom he idolizes as the icon who nurtured him from scratch.

“I have collaborated with Asembo, Mama Naomi Nyongesa and most recently Boss MOG; many more are in the tunnel but can’t be disclosed at the moment so my fan base should keep ears on the ground,” Jerillah reiterated.

Producer Anunda on the other hand boasted of having produced music for reknown artistes like Betty Lihanda and most recently Evangelist Emmanuel Ushindi of DRC Congo.

“I’m much humbled to have worked with international gospel ministers at this capacity after mushrooming from being just a technician to now a producer and a trainer of music,” commented Anunda.

His advice to youth and any music lover is that passion should be the driving force and with quality music the future is definitely bright.

Echoing his sentiments, Jerillah encouraged upcoming artistes to pursue their dream from wherever they are and disregard the notion that they’ll only succeed if they move to the big cities.

“Being consistent, persistent and investing in quality work is rewarding, this is my greatest piece of advise to anyone whose desire is to join this ever growing industry,” advised Jerillah.

“We welcome all upcoming artistes at Holy Gate of Heaven because here we offer variety of services by God’s grace we have we have drum sets, audio recording, live recording etcetera,” Anunda remarked.

Despite the massive portion of success the duo can point out, they in unison call upon the County and National government to support artistes in various category or calibre so that they can reap the fruits of their labour and keep pursuing their career passionately.