9th Jan 2026
How Wavvy Wallet Helped Me Track Every Shilling Spent Releasing Swakacha
Ally Fresh and guests during the Swakacha release
Releasing an album is creative, emotional and expensive. When I decided to independently release my project Swakacha, I knew the music had to be intentional, but so did the money behind it. Between studio sessions, launch, marketing, distribution fees, and promo runs, expenses add up fast. The challenge wasn't spending, it was knowing exactly where my money was going. That's where Wavvy Wallet came in.
Most of my spending for Swakacha happened via M-PESA. Payments went out daily in the months leading to the release date to videographers, accommodation, transport, designers, and production teams. Without structure, it's easy for these expenses to blur together. With Wavvy Wallet, I tagged every transaction and budgeted for each phase of the album rollout, giving me a clear, real-time picture of where my money was going.
I broke the album release into clear spending categories and phases inside Wavvy Wallet:
Studio sessions
Mixing & mastering
This was one early promo campaign where I shot a series of DJ mixes in Kilifi under the series Road to Swakacha. I did that in September 2025.
Tagged expenses included:
Video production & filming
Accommodation
Transport
Outfits
Day-to-day expenses
By tagging each cost, I could clearly see what it took to run a destination-based promo campaign.
Behind the scenes of the Road to Swakacha promo campaign
Visuals turned out to be one of the biggest investments in the project.
Sumbua music video
Baba and Jola Jolama visualizer
Ongoing investment in additional video content
With Wavvy Wallet, I could track how much I was allocating to visuals and make informed decisions about timing and scope instead of overspending at once.
For the album's official release, I hosted a launch party at Dau Restaurant.
Tagged costs included:
Venue-related expenses
Event setup and logistics
Media and content capture
MC costs
Additional costs were merchandising printing i.e. t-shirt pins, brochures, and mabuyu for each guest
Seeing the launch party costs clearly helped me evaluate its impact versus spend for future events.
Marketing, Distribution & Miscellaneous:
Digital marketing and promotion
Design, artwork, and unexpected expenses
These smaller transactions often add up fast, tagging them ensured nothing slipped through the cracks.
Happy scenes at the launch party
Tina Ardor signing the guest board
Full visibility into the true cost of releasing Swakacha
Better planning for future videos and rollouts
Reduced financial stress during the release
Smarter allocation of money toward high-impact activities
Organizing expenses into clear categories
Breaking down categories into detailed sub-categories
Tagging transactions with notes and categories
Album expenses were spread across many small M-PESA transactions. Without tagging, it was hard to see the full picture.
It allowed me to budget by phase: pre-promo, visuals, launch, and ongoing content, and track spending in real time.
If you're investing in your craft, track it properly. Financial clarity gives you creative freedom.
