Uganda: Artistes to Watch in 2007

Uganda: Artistes to Watch in 2007

New Vision (Kampala)

December 30, 2006
Posted to the web January 2, 2007

David Tumusiime
Kampala

WHO is going to rule the musical charts in the new year? We look through the artistes who are likely to make it.

Sarah Zawedde

It all seemed to be going so well for Zawedde when she was one of the competitors in the Coca-Cola Real Stars contest that even when she crashed out, anyone with a musical ear could tell that she was one talented girl with a great future. It did not quite work out that way. Down the years, Zawedde was the public relations officer for the National Theatre and a dancer for Percussion Discussion Afrika, all the while struggling to launch her music career. She had the voice, the grit, and nearly everything it should take to make it but she was not cracking in! Until 2006 with the release of her album Kambere Naawe. The song Kambere Naawe itself has been winning Zawedde new fans as well as justifying the faith of her hardcore fans. Passionately performed, Zawedde definitely poured all her frustrations and desire into this album and 2007 will see Zawedde finally take her place as one of the big talents on the music scene.

Lady Mariam

She seemed to come out of nowhere: acomplete unknown whose hit song Tindatiine crept up on us until we could resist it no longer. A simple song made exceptional by Lady Mariam's delivery in a voice so pure, sweet and innocent it could almost bring tears to your eyes. Volumes of naivety drove her proclamations of unending love no matter the trials. Tindatiine seemed to speak of a quality of love many cynical and jaded town-dwellers can hardly bring themselves to believe exists anymore and yet here it was, flowing through the honey voice of this Mbarara songbird.

It's that voice, with more training, that is primed to transform Lady Mariam into a major solo artiste in 2007 with the release of her album and her continued shows all over the country. There is reportedly a collaboration in the works between her and Bobi Wine that should introduce her to an even bigger audience. Long dogged by unscrupulous promoters who have used her name to fill their venues because her face is not well known, all-out fame and recognition in 2007 should put an end to that.

BLU*3

So 2006 was not exactly the kind of year this girl group could have hoped for. While Hitaji still rung a few bells, the year went downhill for them as Iryn and then Judith Babirye swept in with their mega hits and the year was theirs. But the Blu*3 trio are great survivors and have weathered talk of individual members seeming to have more interest outside the band (from Lillian actively pursing a radio career to Jackie reportedly being on the brink of marriage and quitting music). They came out with a new album, Nsanyuka Naawe, a groovy album largely penned by the powerful combo of Steve Jean and Silver Kyagulanyi.

But the girls have not been content with simply stepping back and hoping the album catches on. They have taken up the unique step of arranging an unplugged concert. And you can be sure that this is just the beginning in a major campaign to be one of the major acts come 2007. We can hardly wait for the videos.

Juliana Kanyomozi

Now that she has given us her word, Juliana's second solo album, slated to come out in 2007, will be the most anticipated release of the year. She promises that, "It's going to be a more personal album. It's going to show how much I have matured." Going by what an emotionally shattering year she has gone through, her album should be the hottest all year. And considering that she has enlisted the services of Steve Jean, not only as her manager but also her producer on this project, there is no reason for fans' mouths not to water in anticipation because the combination of these two self-confirmed perfectionists should be the harbinger of great things.

There is also the fact that this album could be Juliana's response to the supposed animosity between her and Iryn Namubiru, the two leading female vocalists in the country. Juliana was the relatively silent party all 2006 as speculation raged about what had really happened between the two. Juliana is often known to let her music speak for her.

Jose Chameleone

2006 was the second year in a row that Chameleone has not been the undisputed king of the local music scene: a state of affairs we all cannot quite get used to. True, there have been many worthy pretenders, from Mesach Semakula who snatched his crown from him to Bobi Wine who had languished in his shadow for the longest time. Could it be that Chameleone has actually fallen off and lost his Midas touch when it comes to minting hits?

Like one renowned music pundit pointed out, it's not that Chameleone has been releasing bad music of late. It's just that in 2006, while releasing some of his best music to date, Chameleone made the error of cluttering the scene with new releases. 2006 was simply not a Chameleone year because there was too much undigested Chameleone around. But Chameleone is a learner, an adapter like his namesake, and 2007 should see the return of a revamped Chameleone dominating the stage again. That should be fun to watch and yes, of course, to listen to.