By Staff Writer
If you happened to pass by Kampala in the early 80s, you would find a country completely conquered by Congolese music and South African music. But even this was hard to come by, not many people had access to radio or television. For those who had access, there weren’t many options to juggle with. It was almost likely, the official national broadcasters at play. You were never sure when they opened or closed, or perhaps, when a new president would take over and announce their ascent to power.
Comedy, music, everything art and entertainment was regarded as the last resort for those whom life had taught the most stringent of lessons. You could bet that there may not be a local Ugandan music video that was shot pre-1986. While there was a liberation war on the political front, the entertainment industry was fighting for its own liberation.
And as they say, the 1986 revolution was as alive in the entertainment industry as it was in other arenas of the country. Afrigo Band, one of Uganda’s most timeless bands would go on to record its first music videos in 1988 at Bat Valley theatre.
The country would go on to extend the popularisation of its own genre aka Kadongo-kamu. At the frontiers of this genre were men such as Paul Kafeero, Fred Ssebatta, Herman Basudde, Livingstone Kasoozi. Not to say that Kadongo-kamu started then, but it’s to say, that post-86, artistes had the ability to sing on a number of subjects. Unlike in the 70s when they had been barred from political commentary. It was a steamy affair in the early nineties as Kadongo-kamu fought its ground with Kidandali that was freshly coming to play.
Entertainment places such as Bat Valley, Pride and National Theatre would get a chance to come back to life. It was a country that would accommodate each according to their interests.
On the streets of DV8, the music artistes of the future were hustling for the stage. Girl groups such as Prim n Propa were changing the style of music. One cannot forget to credit Namasagali college that had influenced many of these music artistes. Juliana Kanyomozi and Iryn Namubiru for example had created the famous I-Jay.
Time forward to the 2000s when Bebe Cool and his Kenyan apprentices chose to return to Uganda setting us into a new system of things. Within these musical returnees, you had the beginning of showbiz as we now know it in the music industry. It was Bebe Cool, Bobi Wine and Chameleone. Newspapers would go on to have entertainment pullouts to satisfy this new growing interest in local celebrities. Instantly Uganda would then have a social industry that created the socialites, and brought a token to fame.
With this 2000 group, congolese music became history, Ugandans would go on to open up to their own music and support it to the fullest. With the exception of Philly Lutaaya who had organised the mega concert at Nakivubo, concerts were not a usual occurence. Today, one can’t keep track of the music concerts. As though that’s not enough, festivals have also taken over the country.
Different music genres are now at play in the industry. If one thinks of pop. there will be numerous artistes in that category, same for RnB and Hiphop.
Where Ugandans waited for months before one of the groups announced their new play, now, one is served to weekly doses of comedy by different groups on different days. To imagine that things like Comedy Store are a normal occurence is something that’s news in the ears of the pre-86 generation.
On all aspects of the entertainment industry, it’s post 1986 that did build what we call today’s entertainment industry. We call it an industry because you have different arms contributing to the value chain and eco-system of this product and service called entertainment.
Uganda Revenue Authority can attest about the cut they get from the gate collections at concerts. You now have music video producers, sound engineers, events managers, artiste managers, mention them all, feeding from this ecosystem of an industry that’s been a result of over 30 decades of work.
Perhaps this January 27th, the country more than ever needs to celebrate the revolution of the Uganda Entertainment Industry. It’s also important to mention that these industries can only rest on foundations of peace and stability, but above all, economic growth to fuel the entry and exits of these industries.