There’s something so unique about the Joka & CDAVE HONCHO duo sound; every time you listen to one of their tracks, you’re instantly transported to a calm, comfortable place – even if the song’s quite energetic. There’s a sense of peace that emulates through their melodies and it’s a massive highlight on the duo’s MUSANGO on the VWOO BUSY (1).
Joka is very relentless in his pursuit for stardom
This particular new release takes you on an emotional journey, as we start off in a warmer place, before we head into darker terrain, and end up somewhere vibrant. The track also flows so well into one another’s verse like a wave slowly building, reaching its arc, and then crashing into the sand with effortless power. It feels easy, nothing is forced and the song vibrates with a signature smoothness making ‘SIP’ so delicious to listen to.
‘SIP’ is originally produced by Kaylis T, one of the producers at Racktide records and it offers a sweet soundscape blending warped synths, light vocals, spacious percussion and lively samples to create the image of life bustling around you as the sun sets. There’s something whimsical about ‘SIP’ that’s carried over from verse to verse, seamlessly transitioning us into a warmer, welcoming and yet energetic atmosphere.
Joka’s is a promising relentless act in Uganda
The energy and diverse prowess exhibited on this new release seems to be unleashed on ‘either way’, Joka comes first with a rather more comfortable tone backed with aggressive response and CDAVE HONCHO wraps up the project with an energetic club banger aura. This track is extremely groovy, It just has a good vibe that’s so infectious and a little intoxicating.
Almost every Ugandan has sung out the phrase ‘Oh nana baby’ which are lyrics from Joshua Baraka’s hit single ‘Nana’. The Ugandan audience is in utterly delighted and happy about the unique talent that the pearl of Africa has to offer to the world.
Joshua Baraka is a Ugandan music artist whose unique blend of musical genres has set him apart in the new generation of artists in Uganda. His rich musical background exposed him to different forms and variations of rhythm and melody. He writes, sings, produces music, and plays piano as well as guitar which he picked up at an early stage. Baraka refuses to be associated with a particular genre and continues to assert that his music style depends on what he wants to say at that moment. With his debut single titled ‘Tomorrow’, he won the hearts of many and continues to do so with his music.
The road to success of Nana
Nana by Joshua is a hit in East Africa playing across various radio stations in the region.
Nana was released on the 20th of January, 2023. A month after, the official video of it was posted on Joshua Baraka’s YouTube channel and that was the same day the video was premiered on NBS after 5, a TV program in Uganda that hosts established and upcoming artists to talk about music related topics as well as share their projects to the public on one of the biggest TVs in the country. The song immediately shot to the top 10 trending music videos in Uganda on that particular day. Interestingly, it was the beginning of the stardom for Joshua Baraka as many got to know about his music.
A few days after he was already trending on twitter in Uganda and also became the most shazamed artist in Uganda which he was for a couple of weeks where he retained the number one spot. He was then also placed onto various editorial playlists on both Spotify and apple music which helped drive up his monthly listeners particularly on Spotify where he moved on to exceed 300,000 monthly listeners down from under 20,000. One can say he became Uganda’s most streamed artist on the internet and set a record as well.
Joshua Baraka refuses to be defined by genres and continues to create simply beautiful music.
He is a big inspiration to the other upcoming new generation of artists doing various genres just like him and are also aiming for international success. Simply put, he has opened the way for others to get noticed and discovered. I could attribute a lot to Joshua Baraka’s success but what sticks out more is his humility and calmness besides his talent and hard work which are all collectively essential for opening doors to success. Ugandans are now generally impressed with the direction in which Ugandan music is headed, as many never thought that the type of music which they yearned for, was made by their own fellow citizens.
I would love to call upon the other underground and upcoming Ugandan new generation of artists to follow the footsteps of Joshua Baraka so as to create their own unique path to global success right from character to work ethics and attitude. God bless all their efforts!
Nana’s music video crosses One Million YouTube streams after 8 weeks!
Baraka is inspired by Bob Marley, Maurice Kirya, Cory Henry and many more artists that have shaped his approach to music. He wishes to make this world a better place one song at a time with intentional lyrics and catchy melodies.
Found Us is a combination that is both original and dependable enough to hold your interest. Like in real life, sometimes the most unlikely alliances result in the best music. A person’s new strengths are revealed and their comfort zone is pushed by the odd couple, the unpredictable pairing.
I wouldn’t have shipped Joka and Elkay the Jaguar as a tag team because they find strength in their individual quirks rather than functioning as a seamless unit. Their collaboration’s brand-new song, FOUND US, strikes a balance between being both intriguing and dependable.
Joka & Elkay teamed up for found us
Both Joka and Elkay are from places with distinctive flows and rich scenes. The thickest English accent belongs to Joka, who also has a strong drawl on the vowels that gives his frequently used singing style a syrupy texture that seeps out slowly like molasses. Elkay’s delivery exemplifies the distinctive relentlessness of New wave hardcore rap, just as it did on his previous single “CONFIDENCE,” and on FOUND US, he hardly lets up to deliver a vivacious yet infused lingual verse and chorus.
I’ m lucky they found us. We running the game like ford cars.
Joka
The title FOUND US is surprisingly literal, as a project that splits the difference between Underground new wave rap and the ongoing illusion for rap music. Despite their varied delivery styles, the artists share a similar sense of hunger and growth. When Joka and Elkay are at their most symbiotic, it’s simple to understand why they are drawn to one another. Found Us achieves an uncommon balance, a fusion of styles without losing any of the distinctive regional flavor that makes Joka and Elkay each so alluring.
Artwork for Found Us
Even though there is room for reflection, the unlikely pair, two rappers who are constantly working to advance their careers, find much to celebrate through their alliance. The most triumphant parts of Found Us shows both artists looking over their respective kingdoms with a hunger still present because neither man takes what he has created for granted.
There are so many people really working hard each day to get out of hardships, pain and various miserable situations. But there’s come a point where we feel like quitting , tired of that life and all you can think of is killing oneself – hoping it will make one free from all the burdens. Waade and DJ KosGabby just want to remind you that you’re not alone, it’s not your fault – take it Easy.
DJ KosGabby
Trust God and continue to ask him “akyusa embeera ” – for he knows what comes before and after us , there’s no need to stress nor fuss over worldly things. Do not think of taking your life for that alone will only bring more problems to you, and those you leave behind.
#MentalHealth #Strongwill #conqueror
Waade
Waade continues to sharpen his pen and mind with thoughtful lyrics and emotional stories to inspire younger artists in the rap game.
Starting with a loud thump, signifying the burden of the perils around you, Waade makes his entrance with a wailing battle cry, calling on KosGabby to come and tackle these demon of depression. KosGabby lays heavy and depressed bouncy Diva pluck single key notes in E minor. Waade‘s vocals continue to ride up on top describing the perils as they lead to a succulent Moombahton cocktail of kick and snare drums with some reggaeton bias, symbolizing the several obstacles that keep hitting you from every side, every now n then.
Waade glides the chorus with deeply inciting vocals hoping you listen to the advice before it comes to the next verse, filled with ethereal vocal chops insinuating all the voices In your head that are pushing you to do away with your life. Waade is observed wailing together with thee “No, no, no” just to restrain you from going forward. He then shuts them out with a strong symbolic cry of “Do not kill yourself” just before KosGabby lays down heavenly airy piano keys that lead down to the outro. The drums die down and the diva pluck continues to play over surrounded by the keyscape piano before Waade seals of the track.
‘Easy’ is one of a kind
They say they made this AfroMoombahton stylicized simply because depressed people do not need to listen to depressing related music, so it’s why we put the message in a bouncy track.
Gabriel Herniel Kitutu popularly known as DJ KosGabby is a Gospel Trapper, Record Producer and DJ specialising in Trap, EDM, Gospel, and Afro-Beat Dancehall. His debut album BlackThunder , a Trap Gospel album, hit the waves in 2017 when he was only 16 years old. He did the majority of the production for the tracks and coursing the lyrics through most of them. The album features rappers Metrican , Malcolm De Urban, Saint Ella and various other producers.
The new DJ KosGabby Logo
Waade “formerly known as Brian Wade IP ” is a Ugandan rapper,Singer ,Producer touted to have a rap flow as slick as Lecrae (American hip hop artist) or Trip Lee (American hip hop artist).With a unique style and a smooth flexible flow. Waade cuts across the complexity of genres and eras with his music. On the journey to become one of the world’s best Artists and Africa’s finest . WAADE , is prolific and has worked on numerous music projects. He has collaborated with artists from Zambia,Nigeria, Malawi and South Africa. When it comes to music production, Waade has played a big part in his music production by producing, mixing and mastering most of his music
This EP is yet another testament to Joka’s brave artistry.
After over a month of anticipation, and a deliberate teasing of an EP release via infrequent social media posts, Ntale Joram released his third studio EP, Louder Actions Vol. 2 (stylised as LXXDXR XCTXXNS Vol. 2. Ntale “Joka” Joram, the Ugandan singer, music producer, and most importantly “FOCUS” crooner, has been a trailblazer in his own right. Finally, he emerges with LXXDXR XCTXXNS Vol. 2, his most anticipated body of work yet.
LXXDXR XCTXXNS Vol. 2 is an experimental five-track genre-blending project which has three features, and shows Joka exercising his sonic range and superb pen game. Joka has always been an outlier in the Ugandan music industry. On the EP, he sticks to being neutral as he embraces genres like Soul, Afrobeats and others to preach his message.
The melancholic track, “WXMXN,” opens the play. It is a hushed Afrobeat song which has a prominent kick, with rising and falling backups. On this track, Joka lets his guard down, becoming vulnerable when he talks about how an undisclosed woman makes him feel. This song was heavily inspired by Soundlykbb’s JOANITA and a careful listener can’t miss the muse once he listens to it.
The EP was released exclusively on Mwonya Stream App early in 2023.
In an industry where artistes follow the trend to crack up hit songs, Joka doesn’t follow suit. It shows a firm believer in his sound despite the noise of the industry or fans. This spirit is splashed on the remaining four tracks. Who is on his mind on track 2? According to Joka, initially the song idea was a clear definition of how Katumba Baker felt an undisclosed girl. Although some parts like the name of the girl didn’t make the cut, Joka and Baker shoulder the bulk of the song and deliver deliciously. Their vocals swim beautifully over the instrumentals, disguising clever, naughty wordplay with romantic, sugary melodies.
“XN MY MXND” is a soft and sweet offering that enlists the silky vocals of Katumba Baker. Wailing strings and a simple afrobeat drum pattern serve as the backdrop for a tale of enchantment to be spun. “On my mind, on my mind” Katumba Baker admits on the catchy chorus.
“XGXSLX” is a fantastic mix of emotions, feelings, and vibes. It is produced by Rack tide Executive producer, GEOX the producer. He bestows Joka with an instrumental in his signature style; a minimalist Afrobeats bop with energetic percussion-driven drums, thick bass runs, and sparse melodic phrases. On this song, Joka displays his mastery of melodies by once again adopting the sonic versatility heard in the first track WXMXN.
Joka is ready to stand alone.
He employs an array of rhythms and tones that keep the listener engrossed and engaged. His singing is surprisingly strong, with smooth vocals and rich supporting harmonies. The lyricism on this track is simple yet witty.
“XGXSLX” embraces lust and remorse at the same time. Joka sings the first verse as he talks about a woman’s beauty and body features not forgetting her chokehold on the creator’s craft. He further expresses desire to be the only choice of this female figure but is slow to act due to an undisclosed reason. Joka seems to be more expressive and appreciative on this particular afrobeat track. This song is mid-tempo, perhaps because of the theme.
On “PXXSXNXXS,” Geoxwill basks on his prowess: his innate ability to rap at the same time creates timeless melodies in a rather alpha male vocal tone. The chorus is delivered as smoothly as the verses and features heavenly choral supporting vocals that lend the song an outer space sensibility which Joka heavily deployed in the execution of this project. The song sees Joka and GEOXwill reminiscing on the folly, infidelity, and toxicity of an undisclosed girl at the same time exhibiting lusty ambitions regardless.
A screenshot of a fan’s favourite on the EP.
The kicker is that the song isn’t approached through the lens of regret, but more along the lines of a cautionary tale that espouses the way of the world. As such, the instrumental is rather upbeat and lively, featuring fast-paced Amapiano drums, pounding basses, and bright chords. He had his hands full on this particular song, and it’s difficult for him to fully articulate his points. He swirls from praising the girl to asking her if she is interested in him or not. “Woba gwe tonfuna ngamba toyagala ngende,” he says. In the next line, he expressed utter admiration for her beauty “ Coz your body is very very, very very good for me”. This song is chaotic, and this EP wouldn’t have been all the better without it.
The EP closes out with “BXNXNX’S XNTXRLXDX” which gets its name from the creative that executed it i.e. Meya Banana. This track is built on smooth chords, and clacking percussions. The original song was performed by Zulitums and this track in particular is a karaoke cover version. This particular track made the cut on this EP as a matter of faith. Joka met Meya Banana in the earlier days of their high school and their creative chemistry has been developing since. Although Joka is unheard on this track and it’s purely Banana from start to end, Joka has faith that the world needed to hear Banana for the soulful singer she can be.
On LXXDXR XCTXXNS Vol. 2, Joka breathes a fresh air to slow-rolling sounds, with his pen game meandering into a deeper state of mind. It’s a moving EP spiced with fresh music, different from what is obtainable in the Ugandan music industry right now. This EP shows Joka is not afraid to stand alone. It is another testament to his brave artistry as said earlier.
In Uganda, we have had a couple of female rappers take up the rap music scene that is widely dominated by their male counterparts. Keko seems to have pioneered this movement and now it is time to hand over the mantle to other talented ladies.
This time round, I present to you Marthabella who has just dropped something for you. Yes, a new project of hers titled Goosebumps. She is part of the urban music scene in Uganda which is a collective of young talented creative artists doing various styles and genres of music.
Marthabella wrote this song at a point in life when she was feeling so low
My name is Marthabella, I am a female rapper l started rapping back then when l was 17. l have got so many inspirations from hardworking women that l look up to. l rap about my life and what l feel so as to inspire myself in all that l do. l wrote Goosebumps at a time when l was feeling low and really needed inspiration so l wrote down something that motivates me and what people can relate to so I hope you enjoy as you listen to it.
DJ Arta born Arthur Okuta is a Ugandan Independent EDM Artist, Producer & DJ. His music is characterized under the genres of Afro Dancehall, Moombahton & House. Having been inspired by Progressive House music, he finds a way to make happy dance music that is slowed down which he calls Afro EDM.
For starters, the other side of DJ Arta is that he is a normal Ugandan citizen who deeply loves music and has just graduated from University with a bachelor’s degree in an engineering course. This is the point where he decides what career path to take as there are two options. At the moment, he still chooses both Music and Engineering but hopes to solely pursue music with love and have it as the chosen career path in the near future. All plans and efforts lead to music eventually and may the stars & universe align so that he can make it in his dream career.
DJ Arta
DJ Arta born Arthur Okuta is a Ugandan based Instrumental Artist, Producer & DJ. Though born in 1998, he started making music in 2017 following inspiration from progressive House DJs Avicii and Martin Garrix due to love for that genre and style of music which always made him happy. His style of music which he calls Afro EDM is largely influenced by Major Lazer and DJ Snake to which he has a similar sound that is characterized by a blend of electronic sounds and native culture-diverse instruments and accompanied by rhythmic percussion. His main goal for making music is to make people happy, feel good, and make them dance as they enjoy the music and have songs on repeat.
DJ Arta brand & Logo
His Afro EDM is characterized under the genres of Afro Dancehall, Moombahton & House. The music appeals to African, Latin and Arabic cultures as this speaks to the diversity of his sound as he is also inspired by unique sounds from those cultures and communities. One can distinctively classify his music by the genres of Afro EDM and Afro House.
He released his first track Dance With Me in 2020, an Afro Dancehall song and has gone on subsequently releasing tracks. Most recently he released a Moombahton song titled Mumbah and another single titled FAV will be released soon. FAV is a house song that will drop at the end of the year 2022. DJ Arta’s style and twist of music is similar to the sounds of artists like Sico Vox, Ikson, Qoee & Kygo to which he is a big fan to all.
“Grateful for being a top fan of five people” – DJ Arta
For now, I believe that I am my biggest fan and hopefully someday others will join me and topple me as regards that position. I will keep pushing out my style of music to Ugandans and the rest of the world in a bid to capture the attention of new listeners who could possibly turn into super fans. Thanks to everyone that listens to my music and I hope that the DJ Arta community grows bigger as we listen and share my music to make people feel good and better.
The Prologue is a separate introductory section of a literary, dramatic, or musical work. This record illuminates the vignettes of a 15-20-year-old Nyende grappling with transition, growth, confusion, and loss. It marks the beginning of a new chapter and revitalization of my faith in God. So much thought, meditation, and prayer went into this song. Creatively directing it from scratch to the final product is surreal.
Nyende has faith in God. Give glory to His name
“The Prologue Is all about my transformation since I last put out music. Realizing that everything you experience contributes to your learning process. At times I found myself thinking maybe I knew it all, but I didn’t. A very humbling epiphany that led me to a point where I felt more confident to ask for help when needed, know my place and make the right use of my curiosity. Learning not to take my low points personally, not to take them as end points, not to attach my ungraceful moments as every thing that defines me. Learning that there are still many pages I am yet to write, yet to see, not to let one bad chapter ruin what could be a beautiful book for myself.”
Nyende
The prologue album cover
“Learning that the presence of my struggles is not an indication of the absence of God and leaning to the truth that some of God’s greatest works are manifested amidst trouble & turmoil. It’s days like this where I’m reminded of God’s grace, all the times I almost quit making music, and all the times I wanted to settle for less. Life has a beautiful way of sorting things out and I’m so thankful to God for Drillz The Rapper, Meerster Rgm, Michelle, and S.I.L who have encouraged me through this process and have worked with me on the record. Realizing now this whole trip was all about a healthy closure. I’ve had peace while grieving and creating this track. Definitely the first of many.”
Sound engineer and producer, Fleak Type releases his first single titled ‘chop life,’ featuring the amazing rapper and singer ‘Shado.’ The amazing song is currently available on YouTube, only as a cover video. He is unwilling to keep you waiting for so long and intends to have it commercially released on all streaming platforms on 16th September, 2022. The track serves as the new anthem to one of the most remarkable raves in the night scene of kampala known as ‘chop life’ that occurs every Sunday evening and night in Kampala. Needless to say, the chop life event is hosted by the impressive ‘Sheilah Gashumba,’ a public figure in Uganda.
Fleak Type is an afrobeats music producer
Chop Life is a simple slogan that means enjoy life. Literally, this translates to spending money on the things you love as a way on enjoying this God given precious life we have here on planet earth. Instinctively, chopping life is associated with consuming good music, food, and alcohol but not limited to clubbing, partying, drinking, as well as chilling around friends and happy people who are sharing the same great experience. As people counting down their years on earth, they are living it away in good style and fashion to make it worthwhile.
Chop Life Cover Art
Waving at 105bpm, the track is a perfect and nicely done touch of afrobeats with underlying chill melodies that send a rush energy of excitement on the first listen leaving you wanting more and more with the afrobeats drum sounds that knock your excitement up to a whole new level. Chop life features Shado as the lead vocalist who punches through with genius lyrics that carry a melodic feel that is quite easy to sing along to, waves you to your feet and lyrics sticks easy in your heart. The song was written by Shado and produced by Fleak Type, who are the primary artists of this track.
Born 1995, Fleak Type is a sound engineer and producer known commonly for his cohesive and vibrant sound and melodies in both his songs and beats. Previously, he has worked with multiple Ugandan urban creatives in the music scene. These budding artists include: Mio, Kavali King, JWatts, Eli litman, Leo Kezi, DJ Arta, and is yet to work with many more of these young and talented creatives who are busy shaping the Ugandan music scene with diverse styles of music. Fleak Type is glad to be a part of the Ugandan urban music scene and community as he works to shape the new wave of Ugandan music.
“Hello, I would really love to appreciate you for the amazing work you do to fire up the music canons in the industry and keeping the energy in the music scene alive. I really hope you get the opportunity to check this out, I appreciate your time”
Like all large beings were once mere embryos, all living elements have a defined growth pattern that they follow to yield into a purposeful composite. Being inspired by the power of how a small sacrifice into someone’s life can grow into a titanic load of good in the most unexpected way, Kyosiga by DJ KosGabby was created. Using melodies, she describes the nature of growth of those particular elements presented into the life of any being.
Kyosiga Album Art
Starting off with a simple coursing ambient melody complemented with euphoric vocals, the pre-hook entry is layered with filtered trombones made of heavenly synths that transcends one into a cheerful array of carefully plastered purity piano key notes that symbolize the planting of seed whilst watering the same – the act of giving. There is an immediate bridge buildup of upbeat UG-X Bounce drum percussions leading into the hook to showcase the excitement of the seed undergoing germination with all the inner components rushing and gushing and bringing life to the recipient. The chorus hits with a mad Stub followed by a dexterous aromatic mixture of House based effects and dance plugin sounds. One can’t fail to skip and jump to the arousing relay of the UG-X kadoodi, hi hats, congas, claps and heart lifting kicks. It totally takes one to a whole new level of embracement for Dance music. The second verse comes in with a somewhat vibrant energy showcasing the youth stage of growth tailored with the anxious desire for diversity from the kin. The simple gliding organ notes accompanied by a resounding Reese Bass symbolizes the friends and the elements that the key subject picks up along the way, moulding its definition as a whole. “Thinking about those days,” a statement that will live to be remembered in that, there was a genesis from where this all begun, oathing to always remember those days. Chaperoned with harmonious keyscape notes, the second verse transitions into the chorus with a lightrous drum build up followed by a short preview of the chorus for about 4 bars. There then, she drops into a trap sensation symbolizing the agile near adult life of the element. Filled with atmospheric mars sounds, its late transition into actual maturity is followed by an artfully saturated chord progression demonstrating the now true aging adult life of the element ready to give back, yielding to thee that sowed. That’s the power of Kyosiga.
DJ KosGabby
Gabriel Herniel Kitutu popularly known as DJ KosGabby is a Gospel Trapper, Record Producer and DJ specialising in Trap, EDM, Gospel, and Afro-Beat Dancehall. His debut album BlackThunder , a Trap Gospel album, hit the waves in 2017 when he was only 16 years. He did majority of the production for the tracks and coursing the lyrics through most of them. The album features rappers Metrican , Malcolm De Urban, Saint Ella and various other producers.
DJ KosGabby
He grew up in Jinja-Uganda alongside two siblings learning piano, drums and guitar from Church. It’s from where he began his journey as a DJ in 2012 for a gospel dance crew where he also was a crew dancer. His unprecedented creative mixing skills got him noticed by club and events managers, careering as an amateur DJ doing gigs and parties.
He continued up with the skill through to College from where he started his production career in 2015 during his Ordinary Level Education. He released his first track, a Remix of Million Stylez’s Miss Fatty which remains unpublished to date. He continued to become the shadow Entertainment minister (KosGabby) and college DJ, upping both his mixing and production skills through to the birth of BlackThunder. In 2019, he retired from turntabling to focus more on Production being inspired by gated synth producers like Timbaland, Alesso, Marshmello, John De Sohn and Nicky Romero causing him to develop a unique emotional dance music style showcased in his tracks Burnt Water, You or Me, False Awakening and most of his latest releases.
Tera Nitric
An EDM Producer/DJ from Uganda, with a couple of releases on underground EDM international labels. Not only is he talented but also hardworking. One cannot talk about Electronic Dance Music in Uganda and fail to hear his name surface or mentioned by someone in the crowd or crew. He has worked his way up and successfully released music with various underground EDM record labels in the US and Europe. Versatility is also one of his strengths as he can make various genres of music ranging from Bigroom house to Afro EDM, to even anything like Amapiano and UGX-bounce.
Tera Nitric Logo
The Story behind Kyosiga
Starting as a soundtrack intended for a feature film by the same name – that never made it out of the production house, DJ KosGabby conjured Kyosiga to fit the pleasure of giving. Intending to sound different from all other sound tracks created before, he intended to give it an African taste of production by building up the percussions being inspired by the kadoodi music artistry. Having cancelled release of the film, he cast the project upon the shelves to be long forgotten or so he thought. On one of his endeavors working with DJ Arta, KosGabby crossed paths with EDM Guru Tera Nitric, Epaphroditus Kerim – and after sharing a lot amongst each other, Tera revealed that he was working on developing a new sound in the EDM vicinity that would change and bridge a lot of music ethnicities world over. But little did DJ KosGabby know that what he had put away long gone on the shelves was exactly what Tera was talking about. Still unaware, the two planned to work together on several projects and after sharing production files including the Kyosiga project, Tera was so surprised to find a producer who understood exactly what he wanted to bring out to the world. Thus after some short excitement and a few late night activities, Kyosiga was born. The song will be released on 12th August, 2022.
Just like all the other beautiful nations in Africa, Uganda has had a culture of music that shaped itself into what it is now. Her recorded music industry began in the twentieth century, back in time when she was still colonized by England. At that time, there was even a record label promoting and putting out the music. Later on into post-independence, Uganda saw a rise of various genres being made and composed traditionally such as reggae and jazz music.
Uganda international Artist Eddy Kenzo who won a BET award
In the 21st century, the music scenery had new artists who came with various styles and the predominant genre was called ‘kidandali’ as this was the new trend of music. From time to time, we have had a stream of artists come into the lime light of Uganda’s music scene. A few years ago, some artists took our own sound to international levels and the most notable ones in this aspect are Eddy Kenzo and Big Trill. It is amazing to look back on how much we have grown our music as a country to gain attention from the world wide community. Everything is improving day by day, the songwriting, the production, the videos, and the press to mention but a few.
The current
To date, the most consumed Ugandan music is by the mainstream local artists who have established big audiences within the country and these artists mainly write music in the most common local language which is ‘luganda’. Since a majority of people speak and understand the local languages, it is no surprise that the local music has its footing in the country. All regions of the country have well established artists who create music of their own origin and ethnicity. However, it is important to note that there is an increased consumption of international music in the country.
Azawi, an urban music Ugandan artist
International artists from the western world dominate radio airplay just as much as the local artists do. To be specific, West African music has taken a toll in the Uganda music consumption as ‘afrobeats’ which originates from Nigeria and Ghana trends more than any other music genre in the country. The charts of radio stations and streaming platforms in the country are heavily dominated by West African artists such as Omah Lay and Fireboy DML. Nowadays even ‘amapiano’ music trends in the country. These trends are driven by the consumption habits of our Ugandan youth who seem to prefer International music compared to local music for various reasons and tastes. Regardless, we are all African so we definitely do love Africa.
The future
We have many artists and styles of music being composed and curated in the country. Given that some are more foreign oriented and influenced, these styles are slow in penetrating the Ugandan audience to which it is new. One notable new style of music is Electronic Dance Music (EDM) which is almost something new to Ugandans as the only close music to it has been ‘amapiano’ which is known by a good percentage of Ugandans ever since the lockdowns caused by the pandemic. We have noticeable talented EDM producers/DJs in the country such as Tera Nitric and DJ Arta who continue to create the amazing instrumental music. Other new styles include gospel rap. Even though hip-hop and rap now have a substantial audience in the Ugandan music scene, gospel rap is something new and growing.
Ugandan EDM Artist, DJ KosGabby
However, a number of young creatives face a serious challenge of having their music heard given that their styles of music are new, hence need more effort in promotion. The beauty of the new future music is that these extremely creative artists have infused foreign music styles with afro and local music elements, hence making it both unique and original at the same time. In summary, the music being put out by these ambitious and industrious young men and women is termed as ‘urban music’, and there is a new streaming platform called ‘urban flow’ that is designed to help promote the various styles and works of young creatives besides just having a catalogue of all the Ugandan music.
Music Matters 