Ian Ortega
It was a sold out evening at Victoria Hall, Serena Hotel as hundreds of fans filled the auditorium to capacity, perhaps to prove their allegiance to the Maurice Kirya Era. From the start, Maurice Kirya proved that he was on a mission to turn on a dime, literally and metaphorically.
After what seemed like an eternity (actually only about 30 minutes or so), long after Stuart and I had settled into the front row, the legendary founder of Mwoyo music aka Maurice Kirya hit the stage at 8PM, bringing the increasingly anxious crowd of several hundred people to life. He did not disappoint.
Not trying to over-rate Kirya or something of the sort but seeing him perform Angels Carried me, Boda Boda (where he invited the albino girl to stage) and Malaika was enough for one to crown him as a human triad of talent, artistry and musical mastery.
Because the seats filled up before the show even began, people resorted to sitting down as they shared their love for Kirya. And later on into the show, two ladies handed Kirya placards which said: “Marry Me.” He also magically weaved through a song he wrote during the time her mum went in for surgery. His brother, Vampino and long-time friends like Benon and Michael Ross were in the house to cheer on one of their own.
And whoever said people can’t party on Thursday will surely take back his words. Seeing the guitar maestro, Myko Ouma at his peak, DJ Gero of Radiocity in turntable wizardry and the legendary Aaron Rimbui from Kenya marked the rise and super rise of the Kirya era. Edwin Ruyonga did not disappoint as he dropped lines for the ‘don’t wanna fight song.’
Fans sang along word for word as Kirya angelically voiced through songs such as Blue Dress, Missubaawa, Angels carried me just to mention but a few. The sound system and the lighting did not disappoint either, silk events was tuned to deliver the best. If there is an artiste who commands loyalty, then Kirya does, ask the lady who went into an obsession looking into his shoes. The Backup vocals make you want to relive this experience again and again. The Tabu Flow and Turbo dancers had well-rehearsed moves which fused in well with the ensuing musical emotions.
From Ugandan Girl, Nanagira, to Missubaawa, Maurice Kirya had managed to mark an era as Uganda’s king of soul music. When he did “Mulembe Gwa Kirya”, many could not believe that such an experience had come to an end. Not that they felt cheated, but they simply wanted the music to continue. Kirya had given them the ear-gasms, and they were now yearning for more. We did not simply celebrate Kirya as an artiste, we celebrated an era of real music, music that teaches, that plays to our souls, that defines the rhythms upon which we string our lives; we had the feeling of what it means to be part of this Mulembe gwa kirya.