By Moses Abeka
When one’s vessel overflows with success and fills young impressionable minds with dreams, then the mentor is on a legendary path in the lives of those they inspire.
Before GNL Zamba and Navio blew up like they did, it seemed every young kid wanted to be that “mad muyaye”, that feared unknown boss everybody was scared of.
Now they all want to be rappers. They can get the girls, respect and cars and they can get it all legally.
As GNL prepares to release the Renaissance album, yours truly visited the slums of Kamwokya, Banda, Ntinda and Mbuya to get that hands on experience of the rap renaissance. Like most ghettos, rap stardom has replaced watching the English Premier League as the dominant activity of the youth.
At Eyo-Joe Studios, in Banda, they come gliding in and out, all afternoon, some spotting dreadlocks, young men in their twenties and teens, checking Facebook and taking snapshots before entering the booth, the goldmine.
Most are flat broke bargaining with producer for discount but dressed in box fresh sneakers and browsing the latest smart phones. They operate with a kind of insecurity-driven hyper confidence bragging and jousting to be the next big star…. “You are a writer? Nigga, you better reco ’nize! I’m comin’ with a whole rhyme technology….my sh*t be gettin’ mad respect on worldwide level…BET..MTV, man! When my debut album busts on air, it will be game over!”
The owner of the studio, Joe, a soft spoken rapper turned producer, can’t get off the phone. A new record label Money banks, will be shooting his first video at the boss’ crib.
The tale is almost the same in every street and ghetto, the street fantasy people are chasing with unswerving faith and dedication, by any means necessary.
In Mbuya, I met Pure Natural at his saloon, listening to his buddy Otrix on radio, his collaboration “oli mbuzi” with Don MC was on a local radio countdown. He bragged saying he is next!
In the same hood, Dove MC, an underground rapper narrated how he gave Don MC his first studio experience and how he used to walk from Mbuya to Rubaga to record a song. Today he is a “the gladiator of Lugwere-flow”. He speaks with optimism that his turn is around the clock.
Pounding the doors of fame are hundreds of them, if not a thousand, embracing the computer age to market their music. “I never disappoint, just check me out on reverbnation…,” is one of the lines they will tell you of their progress.
At the just concluded Bayimba International Festival, a little chat with Nellysade Saint, the lugaflow rapper that sold out his debut album and the Abenganda clan revealed tons about the hustle.
“The kind of music we do is real hip hop. An underground artiste must be original to the art to get respect”, said Nellysade.
You can virtually feel the strong faith they have in their art.
The biggest in the industry did not have it any easier. In “Ani yali’ manyi”, GNL talks about how he did not get paid by his promoter, bargaining for transport to get home. Today, the tale is different; he stands as an icon to those struggling to make it through.
Navio, the most award winning urban act, advises upcoming artistes on his social media pages, telling them not to lose their head in the fame, work hard and not relax at the beginning. ‘Pursue a real career’, is his advice. It is justifiable to say, the two rappers are the new leaders of the youthful revolution.
Unlike the 1990s, hip hop today is much appreciated locally as a viable profession. Urban radio stations have popularised the genre. Website giving such content is double advantage. With many young people engaging in the rap, Uganda will soon experience an explosion of the art.
WHAT IS RENAISSANCE?
Renaissance, is adopted from a French to mean ‘re-birth’. It was a cultural movement that spanned from the 14th century to 17th century in Italy and later spreading to the rest of Europe, the era of the industrial revolution, Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelagelo, best referred to as the era of the rebirth of knowledge.
GNL’s album will be released on the 51st Independence anniversary.
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