By BigEyeUg Team
Veteran singer and philanthropist Halima Namakula has shared the story behind the founding of Beat FM, one of Uganda’s well-known radio stations.
Speaking candidly, Halima revealed that the idea was born as far back as 2002, thanks to a conversation she had with her eldest son.
According to Halima, her son was the mastermind behind the radio station.
“My son brought the idea,” she explained. “We didn’t want to plead for airplay for our artists.” At the time, they had already established a recording studio, and setting up a radio station seemed like a natural step to support the promotion and distribution of music.
“We wanted a platform where we could easily push music from our studio, especially for local artists who were struggling to get airplay,” she said.
That vision birthed Beat FM — a name that still lives on to this day. Halima also revealed that when they later sold the station after operating it for about two years, part of the sale agreement included a clause that the name “Beat FM” would not be changed.
“Actually, it was in the agreement when we sold it off that they shouldn’t change the name, and I still have shares there but not a lot,” she noted.
The decision to sell, she added, was largely influenced by high operational costs. “The operational costs seemed high so we sold it.”
Even though her stake is now small, Halima remains proud of Beat FM’s legacy — a station started not just to broadcast music, but to empower local artists by giving them a voice.