By Mish Nsereko
Memory lane remix. 25 years ago, in 1991, Yvonne Chaka Chaka was one of the first internationally popular musicians to visit Uganda and she received a heroine’s welcome.
Thereafter Congolese musicians like Kofi Olomidde, Pepe Kalle, Madiru systeme, Papa Wemba, Tshala Muana, Yondo sister et al, rocked the Uganda entertainment industry, supplemented by American and Jamaican entertainers like Shaggy, Chaka Demus and Pliers, R. Kelly, Shabba Ranks etc.
Then Peter Ssematimba’s dungeon boys like Simon Kalema, Shanks Vivid , Steve Jeans, Prim n Propa, Titan Takuba came on the scene briefly and disappeared.
Then in 1999 Dr Jose Chameleone and Ragga Dee kicked the Awilo Longomba’s off the Ugandan entertainment scene…….
When Yvonne Chaka Chaka was interviewed, she had this to say: “I have had a lot of great memories but the one moment that will always stay in my heart was when I went to Uganda in 1991 for the very first time. This was when I was dubbed the ‘princess of Africa’. There were thousands of people waiting for me from the airport to Kampala. I was overwhelmed, I was pinching myself not believing all those people were waiting for Yvonne.”
Ugandans should be classified as the most welcoming people in the world. You ask guys like Gaetano Jjuuko Kaggwa when he returned from Big Brother house with Abby the South African.
Talk of Besigye returning from exile in 2005, Ssebagala returning from an American prison in 2000, Kato Lubwama returning from hospital in India, Museveni entering Kampala in 1986, Lucky Dube’s concert in Namboole in 1995 etc.
Generally Uganda people are in their own class via showing happiness and entertaining themselves.