Kenyan-American artist Lovince Mckenzie links Nairobi, Kampala, and Lagos on “Locked In” with Joshua Baraka and Ayo Maff.
The single arrives ahead of his EP “Dance and Soul,” a project built around movement and emotion. Mckenzie brings his Kenyan-American view, Joshua Baraka represents Uganda’s busy pop scene, and Ayo Maff carries his Nigerian roots into the mix. So the song covers East and West Africa in one record. For Baraka, it opens another path to listeners outside Uganda.
The Ayo Maff link is the key. “Light Up,” their 2024 collaboration, introduced Mckenzie to a wider audience, and it picked up millions of plays on Spotify and tens of millions of views on TikTok. “Locked In” continues that bond. Baraka then adds a Ugandan voice and he comes with a credit of his own. His “Nana” has received over 5.4 million views on YouTube and has won him three nominations at the 2023 African Muzik Magazine Awards.
Mckenzie’s sound has also been shifting. His 2026 single “On My Way” moved toward Afro-house and electronic dance production, and it passed 530,000 YouTube views in two months. His goal is a mix of East African roots, Afrobeats, Afro-house, and dance music. “Locked In” fits that plan, and it should help him turn separate collaborations into a clear identity.
For fans of cross-border African pop, three markets on one beat is a strong start to the EP’s story.
Lock into “Locked In” and tell us – which of the three voices leads the song?
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