By Ortega Ian
Patches have a limit. Patches when applied to music groups and partnerships have a limit beyond which they cease to apply. 2015 may be one of the worst years in the music industry, a year that is seeing two great music groups break up never to reunite. Those two groups are Team No Sleep and Goodlyfe (Radio and Weasel). It is the latter group that will be the focus of our eulogy. An eulogy that I write with sadness.
When the Goodlyfe fired Jeff Kiwanuka aka Kiwa who was their manager back then, everyone was sure the Goodlyfe had finally diagnosed their problem and applied a cure. Kiwa many analysts thought had been the cause of the failures of the group financially. Thus, we all applauded in unison. With Jeff Kiwa gone, Radio and Weasal were surely headed for the greatest of success in their career. They say, too short-sighted we are that we never see too far, the very causes of our suffering. The Goodlyfe had treated just one of their problems; it was only a matter of time before the actual problems were to surface.
The problem as we all know is that the marriage of Radio and Weasel had come to the end of its life. Its death as you will now read can only be postponed but not saved. The only way to save this duo is to subject them to musical euthanasia, to bring their death closer than it should be. Sooner or later, the Goodlyfe will be no more.
Remember that famous story when the body parts complained to each other. The eyes thought they deserved more credit because they saw, the hands too thought there’s nothing the eyes did, and the ears were not spared. It was an ego contest. The situation is not very different in the Radio and Weasal camp except that in this case, Radio Sekiboggo has been eaten by his ego. In the past months, he feels he’s been bringing more to the musical table than his counterpart. He has constantly accused Weasel of playing a passive role in their success.
The great sages always said; “nothing fails like success.” The failure of Goodlyfe has come at a moment when they currently rank as Uganda’s most successful duo. They’ve been there, done it all. Their reunion with Bebe Cool made us think that the duo was now aiming for greatness. Yet, they say, they become so good that they forget to be great. The good of Goodlyfe will always be remembered as the deterrent to their greatness.
When Radio and Weasel got successful, other problems began setting in. Money doesn’t change people; it simply magnifies more of what they already were. If you were an a**hole while poor, you will become a super a**hole when money sets it. In Radio, success did bring out the worst in him. When he was most successful, that’s when he became the most vulnerable. It could be said that for Radio, success did breed complacency, inefficiency and—worst of all—arrogance. When he got really successful, he fell in love with himself. He stopped innovating, working hard, taking risks and begun to rest on his laurels. He went on the defensive, spending his energy protecting his success rather than staying true to the very things that got him to the top.
In the times when Goodlyfe was beefing with Bebe Cool and Chameleone, everyone chose to side with Goodlyfe. They were seen as the humble group, as the harmless innocent duo. They found their entry into the hearts of the fans because of their good music and their character.
As time went on, Radio began pumping himself with air. He was and is still more likely to resort to punches and abuses than being the composed music artiste that he once was. Today, when invited to a TV show, he hurls more insults than make sensible talk. When Douglas Lwanga invited him to his show many months back, he was forced to do the longest commercial break in history just to cover up the obscenities that Radio was hurling towards Jeff on TV.
The recently concluded Goodlyfe concert saw Radio take on Balaam, the father of music promotion in Uganda. It took the pleas of the crowds for Radio to be calmed down in his diatribe of Balaam. When Goodlyfe fans played a friendly match with the Firebase fans, again, an already drank Radio felt the urge to throw a punch at Ashburg Katto for supporting Firebase in his presence.
Before their show at Africana, two defining incidences marked the end of this group. One, Weasel and Radio had a fight. For those who noticed, the marks of the fight were all written on Radio’s face, he had to cover them up with a red cloth. The fight came about after Radio had disrespected his best friend in public.
In Goodlyfe, Radio has turned into the Alpha and Omega of the group. He’s always right even when he’s wrong. When Balaam hired them to perform in Northern Uganda for 7 million, Radio chose to use almost all the money to buy his plot of Land in Busabala. Weasel got nothing of this money; Chagga was given 500K while Lawrence was given 300K. In the end, Weasel refused to perform and Lawrence was arrested.
On the 23rd Saturday of this month, Radio once again refused to perform at Nkumba University. Why? Because Museveni had not yet arrived and he wasn’t ready to perform for the young chaps aka Nkumba students. Once again, Weasel was forced to sing alone. Radio got in his car and drove off to pursue better interests.
The character flaws of Radio can be attributed to his alcohol addiction and his drug problem. Marijuana many say has been his Achilles heel. When intoxicated, he loses control of his behavior. Talent got Radio to the top. More than ever before, he lacks the character to keep him at the top.
In less than a month, Goodlyfe will be no more. The duo has halted every musical project as far as recording new songs are concerned. It’s now a solo career for both. What will happen when this house breaks apart, no one can tell. It’s now survival for the fittest. Radio wants to enjoy his Museveni campaign money all alone. His song Neera is the official Museveni theme song and he feels that Weasel sharing in the fruits of his sweat is not a palatable idea.
Weasel has already reached out to his brothers, Pallaso and Chameleone. Many say, he’s not ready to go solo. He’s likely to merge with Pallaso as brothers, and if Pallaso isn’t welcome to the idea, he will go back to Leone Island.
For now, we can only say Rest in Peace Goodlyfe. We shall remember the good music, the entertainment. Everything that lives has an end, the end of Radio and Weasel is one that will leave us with tears in our hearts.
(Look out for Part 2 of the series where we talk about the end of Team No Sleep)