*2024 stock* Taarab is a genre of music popular in Tanzania and Kenya. It is influenced by the musical traditions of the African Great Lakes, North Africa, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent.
 
In the 1970s, a new taarab emerged in the coastal towns of Mombasa and Tanga: in Mombasa, Matano Juma's Morning Star replaced strings with distorted organ sounds, amplified violin or clarinet; and Zuhura Swaleh made the electrified tashkota the dominant instrument in his orchestra, while drawing inspiration from the rhythms and dances of the coastal ngoma. Crossing the border from Kenya into Tanzania at Tanga, the electric guitars and danceable rhythms of the Black Star Musical Club expanded the audience for taarab away from the coastal Swahili towns.
 
From the 1960s to the 1990s, Mombasa was at the forefront of taarab production, largely thanks to the dynamic Mzuri label. They not only recorded and promoted Mombasa artists, but also invited Tanzanian groups such as Black Star and the Egyptian Music Club from Dar es Salaam. In the 1970s, the cassette supplanted the record, and activity shifted to Mbwana Radio Service in Mombasa's old town, soon to become taarab's new production and distribution center. In the 1980s, taarab reached new heights with the voices and successes of Malika and Mwanahela and his Golden Star.

With Kenya's economic and political crisis in the early 1990s, and the simultaneous emergence of Dar es Salaam as the new East African production center, Mombasa began to lose its dominant position in taarab. The very early 1990s saw the emergence of so-called modern taarab, a new style based on drum machines and powerful sound systems, and also on the new fashion for provocative and insulting lyrics. In any case, the musical innovations of Matano, Zuhura and Black Star opened up new horizons early on; and the lyrics of Malika and Golden Star already heralded what was to come in the 1990s. This is why Mombasa-Tanga taarab is now affectionately referred to as "First Modern".