By Bash Mutumba

When they were partnered together in this year’s episode of Coke Studio, an official collabo – not of Coke Studio – between the two East African giants started to fancily be expected. Our very own Queen Karma, after covering the Tanzanian star’s smash hit “Atarudi”, got paid back in the same currency as Harmo did justice to her “Mummy Yo” banger.

Gradually, Sheebah Karungi started to build a bond with Harmonize, and after the season was fully shot, she revealed in an interview how she was privileged to have worked with the “Kwangwaru” hitmaker. Months later, after we’ve even forgotten about the collabo possibility, Konde Boy has posted a series of photos on his Instagram account, in what appears to be a music shoot, with him and Sheebah; and he mentioned the TNS songstress in the caption, followed by a Uganda flag emoji.

This is a big step for Sheebah, given Harmonize just received his plaque from Youtube for reaching 1 Million subscribers, and it is great too for Harmo, since it will get him more Ugandan fans. Clearly, his “Pull Up” collabo with Eddy Kenzo must have shown him how much Ugandans love good music.

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Nigerian singer Mayorkun will be one of the performers at the “East meets West” fest.

By Our Reporter

Party goers should brace themselves for the ‘East meets West’ fest that is slated to take place on August 17th at Lugogo Hockey grounds.

Happening for the first time, the event is an afro-fusion day festival that will be bringing East and West African creatives together to not only create art but also make magic happen through music.

The event that is sponsored by Johnnie Walker highball will feature East and West African artists from Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria with acts such as Nigeria’s Mayorkun, Oxlade, Karyn, and Uganda’s Irene Ntale, Lagum, King Saha among many more artists that are lined up to entertain revelers.

Aside from musical acts, the event will also include cultural presentations with opportunities given to fashion vendors, food vendors and arts and craft stalls and cultural exhibitions including a lineup of some of Uganda’s coolest DJ’s like DJ Simples and DJ Teyi.

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By Our Reporter

After three successful editions, the annual picnic style event, Shorts Na Lessu is back for its 4th edition. The announcement was made during a press launch that took place on Thursday at the Dungu Resort Munyonyo lakeside.

The event that includes fusions of modernity and ancient age music focusing mainly on entertainment, culture and art is slated for Saturday August 24, 2019. at Dungu Resort Munyonyo and will be held under the theme “Roots and Paradigms of Modern Living.”

At the launch, Ciroc Vodka was unveiled as the new sponsor of the event which is set to be headlined by Nigerian star Nonso Amadi, a rising star that has garnered respect and admiration in Nigeria by collaborating with some of the country’s biggest names such as Banky W, Maleek Berry and Juls.

“I can’t tell you how happy we are to be part of this property, Ciroc is all about celebrations especially the ones of the modern elites something that ‘Shorts na Lessu’ has much of. I urge everyone to come out it’s going to be an experience like no other with Ciroc,” said Annette Nakiyaga, Head of Whisky Portiflio, UBL.

The star will also be performing alongside numerous Ugandan Artists like Kohen Jayce of Bantu vibes, Route 316 Band featuring DJ Siza , DJ Ssese among many others with an after party to take place at Club Guvnor.

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By Our Reporter

It was a fun-filled evening with lots of music and dancing as party lovers were entertained to a Silent Disco and Karaoke experience at The Gardens, Najeera on Saturday. 

Powered by Tusker Lite, revellers had four music channels to choose from as the Almost Famous DJ’s crew showcased their artistry on the decks. 

The Almost Famous DJ’s crew treated revelers to flavors of Reggae, dancehall, old school, African and urban music as the party went on till late with back to back hits that kept them on their feet all night long.

The Silent Disco and Karaoke night will be happening monthly, with the next edition slated for early September.

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By Our Reporter

Nigerian artist Joeboy, real names Joseph Akinfewa-Donus is set to perform in Kampala at an event dubbed “The Malembe Block Party,” courtesy of Smirnoff Vodka.

The “Baby” hit maker will perform alongside WSTRN, a British musical group consisting of Akelle Charles, Haile and Louis Rei.

You all remember the Mr. Eazi “Empawa” Program he launched in November last year with the aim of empowering 100 African Musicians? Well, Joeboy was the first recipient of Mr. Eazi’s $300,000 Empawa100 fund.

The Nigerian sensational singer is the initiatives’ most visible star, nabbing over 5 million views on the visuals for “Baby”.

The Malembe block party will be going down this Friday, August 16th at the Guvnor Parking Lot, from 5pm to midnight. Entrance fee is 50k for ordinary and 150k for Golden Circle VIP access.

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By Bash Mutumba

Any 90’s kid, if asked about their favorite Ugandan female musician, will either say Iryn Namubiru or Juliana Kanyomozi. The two old friends and former I-Jay duo band-mates, ruled the music scene for many years from the dawn of this millennium.

Kiddos who have learned about music in the second decade though, never seemed to understand why the rest of us idolize those two divas ahead of the current names, like Sheebah Karungi — and Iryn’s cover of John Blaq’s “Makanika” hit song has shown them exactly why.

In a viral video of a studio session with Daddy Andre, the producer of the song, Iryn is seen belting out all those notes she became famous for in songs like “Nkuwe ki” on a track, however doing John Blaq’s lyrics this time round.

The video has received very positive feedback, with many teens sharing it incessantly, and bombarding the songbird’s social media comment sections with praises, on her vocal prowess and how she has made John’s obscure words clearer to them, others begging her for an official video to which she replied,“This was just a cover and not a single, so that(the studio session video) is all you will see.”

Also, it’s great to see her YouTube channel finally getting the traffic it deserves, so we hope she capitalizes on that and produces more music. That’s what they call good music, youngins.

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By Our Reporter

The fifth edition of Kampala’s biggest restaurant showcase, the Kampala Restaurant Week came to a grand end with a lavish awards ceremony held at Skyz Hotel, Naguru on Monday evening, to conclude the 10-day food bonanza.

The annual food event offered thousands of the city’s food lovers a variety of mouthwatering meals offered by the 40 participating restaurants at affordable prices. This year’s 10-day food showcase that ran from August 1-10 was dubbed the ‘Three Course Edition’ with restaurants offering starters, main course signature dishes and desserts. The meals were washed downed with a complimentary Tusker Lite; the beer of choice for food pairing.

The climax of the event was the awards ceremony where the best restaurants as selected by foodies who patronized the restaurant week that was organized by Pearl Guide in partnership with Tusker Lite were recognized.

Speke Apartments’ La Cabana Restaurant walked off with the coveted accolade, the Top Signature Restaurant for the second year running. Other winners of the evening were Izumi Restaurant with the ‘Innovation Award’ for their deliciously unmatched Thai Massaman Curry, Cantine Divino with the ‘Outstanding Service Award’ and Olives Restaurant with the ‘Top Casual Dining Restaurant Award.’

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Beenie Gunter rehearsing for the All-Star finale concert.

By Our Reporter

The 2019 All Star Tour is approaching its end and the amazing lineup of artists has been knee-deep in rehearsals for the finale concert to be held on 23rd August at the Lugogo Cricket Oval.

This year’s concert will feature Jamaican reggae and dancehall legends, Christopher Martin and D major in a show that has been described by those involved in preparations as “never before seen”.

Throughout the week, Spice Diana, Beenie Gunter, Nina Roz, Daddy Andre, Sheebah, Vinka, Chozen Blood and more have been locked in the studio painstakingly going through their stage routines with the support of a wonderful team of talented instrumentalists and vocalists headed by Myk Ouma.

Themed, “Celebrating the Fresh and New”, this year’s All Star Tour is the brainchild of Bell Lager’s musical platform – Bell Jamz – and featured unforgettable regional concerts in Mbarara, Gulu, Kabale, Masaka and awaits the finale in Kampala next week.

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By Our Reporter

Wine and Whisky lovers are in for a treat with the latest addition to the list of festivals on the social calendar. This follows launch of the first ever “Wines, Cocktails and Whisky” festival. This was during a cocktail and wine tasting ceremony held at Sheraton Hotel gardens on Thursday evening.

The festival themed “A Toast To Greatness” will have a variety of activities which include wine and whiskey tasting, auction sessions, classic music, wine and whiskey connoisseur sessions. It is slated to take place on Sunday September 1, 2019 at Sheraton Kampala Hotel gardens.

“As Evolve Uganda, we decided to partner with a high end hotel like Sheraton Hotel to bring an annual festival to wine & whisky enthusiasts to taste different wines, whiskys, cocktails coupled with their classic music and favorite food,” said Martin Mukama, the event organiser.

Unlike other festivals, this is an invite only event, but it is simple to get yourself an invite. All you need to do is buy four cocktails at Sheraton Hotel Equator bar or purchase a bottle of your preferred wine or whiskey from Jumia using the Jumia food app.

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By Our Reporter

Maureen Rutabingwa most commonly recognized as Mo Roots has been in the entertainment industry for several years notably as a member of the Qwela Band before moving on to creating her own music band named “Soul Deep.” She is a multi-talented instrumentalist, singer and songwriter who has performed at many different gigs around the city.

She will now be releasing an 11-track album titled ‘From the sun’ next Saturday for lovers of afro-based music. The album launch will be held on Saturday, August 24 at The Square and will be powered by Tusker Malt.

“This concert means everything. It is the truest representation of who MoRoots is in this moment in time. A glimpse into the transition and love I’ve experienced these last few years. The sound is different. It’s rock. It’s funk. It’s electronic. It’s soulful. It’s cinematic. It’s all the things I love.” MoRoots noted.

The show will be her first public performance of songs from her debut album From The Sun exploring themes of home (Uganda), love and transition. It will be an eclectic blend of MoRoots’ vast musical ability to combine soul, jazz, funk and classical music with soulful vocals.

The concert will also feature the highly acclaimed CTRLAD band starting at 7 pm at The Square Place.  Tickets to the show go for shs50,000.

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By Our Reporter

Kampala party lovers who turned up at Lugogo Hockey Grounds on Saturday were treated to one of a kind party as artistes from West Africa alongside their East African counterparts performed at the inaugural Afro-fusion festival dubbed ‘East Meets West’.

Sponsored by Johnnie Walker, the event was a delightful mix of sounds and rhythms from across the continent as the different musicians took to the stage. From Nigerian acts like King Perry to Kenya’s Ben Soul to Uganda’s Irene Ntale, revelers had a fun experience as they were kept on their feet dancing and singing along to their favorite songs.

To keep the crowd entertained, there was also showcases from different spin masters including DJ Simples and DJ Teyi with the party going on till midnight.

Aside from the musical performances, the event also included cultural presentations with opportunities given to fashion vendors, food vendors and arts and craft stalls and cultural exhibitions.

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By Our Reporter

It was a fun-filled Friday evening as the Smirnoff Vodka sponsored Malembe Block Party went down at the Guvnor parking lot featuring Nigerian sensation Joeboy and UK rap group WSTRN.

Deejays Ciza, Spinny and Edwizzy Selector were on station to entertain revellers who started flocking the venue by 7pm.

Before guest artists took the stage, Cosign, Big Trill, A Pass and Hip Hop duo Bantu Nation warmed the crowd with hit after hit before Nigeria’s Joeboy stepped on stage and performed his chart topping singles. During his performance, Joeboy premiered a new single which he said was being performed for the first time ever.

Afterwards, UK chart topping trio WSTRN, held the stage for close to an hour as they went through some of the crowd’s favourites like Ben Ova.

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By Our Reporter

Nyege Nyege festival has quickly grown into Uganda’s most recognized brand attracting tourists from all over the world. The fun-filled festival now also doubles as a business centre.

First things first, Nyege Nyege has an international presence so it is widely attended by a lot of people from other African countries, as well as people from Europe, Asia and the Americas. This boosts the country’s tourism sector and these tourists come with foreign exchange, and some stay for a little longer to go and visit other attractions in the Pearl of Africa.

Nyege Nyege is attended by every tribe as different cultural performances are included in the festival’s lineup, so it promotes regional integration.

The locals look forward to the festival as businesses in town boom leaving all the hotels in the area fully booked. The money spent by the festival attendees leaves the entrepreneurs’ pockets smiling throughout the festival.

From creating jobs for the locals to supporting the craft shops, hotels, and the massive shopping carried out during Nyege Nyege, the festival indeed doesn’t leave them the same, and that is why they are always looking for the next edition as soon as the current edition ends.

The four-day camping experience, returning for its 5th edition, is slated to take place from 5 – 8 September at Nile Discovery Beach in Njeru, Jinja.

The post Nyege Nyege Festival: A big boost to tourism and local business appeared first on BigEye.UG.

By Our Reporter

A Ka Dope, a multi-art show that took a hiatus earlier this year, returned over the weekend with its seventh season and did nothing but steal hearts.

Dubbed the A Ka Dope Fusion, the Uganda Waragi – sponsored collaborative experience featured the legendary Tom Mayanja, popularly known on the Ugandan music scene as The Mith as mentor to upcoming artists Riddym 256, a young dancehall king; Lamu, a vocal powerhouse and one of the ambassadors selected for Mr. Eazi’s Empawa Project; and Shirley May, an upcoming rapper and nominee at the UG Hip Hop Awards.

The A Ka Dope band brought on the energy and set the pace for the performances that turned out to be hearty and engaging; filled with renditions of oldies from way back. When The Mith finally stepped on stage to perform collabos with the individual artistes, the crowd went into overdrive.

This season of the show will feature three episodes, all of which shall be headlined by a Mentor Artist whose role is to support the growth and development of the upcoming performer. At the end of the season, all three artistes will battle it out to select a winner. The finale will be held in December this year.

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By Our Reporter

As the 2019 All Star tour nears its end, organizers hosted a shindig to celebrate the success of the roadshows thus far.

Held at Sky Lounge Rooftop on Thursday last week, the pre-finale party was a fun-filled affair which attracted different actors in the music industry including musicians, media personalities and top socialites.

Revelers were treated to snacks which they washed down with the free-flowing beer as they danced away the evening. The party concluded towards midnight with a performance from rapper Feffe Bussi.

This year’s Bell All Star tour which was themed, “Celebrating the Fresh and New”,  featured regional concerts in Mbarara, Gulu, Kabale, Masaka and will culminate with the finale in Kampala on Friday, August 23rd.

The All-star finale will be headlined by Jamaican reggae and dancehall legends, Christopher Martin and D Major. They will share the stage with a host of fresh artists including Spice Diana, Beenie Gunter, Nina Roz, Fik Fameica, and Vinka among others, who have been performing on the roadshows.

The All-star finale will be held at the Lugogo Cricket Oval.

The post Fun-filled affair at All-Star Tour pre-finale party appeared first on BigEye.UG.

By Our Reporter

Musician Ykee Benda was the star attraction at the Maverick cocktail fiesta which happened on Saturday. Hosted at Sunrise beach in Bunga, revelers enjoyed a thrilling performance from the music star.

Ykee stepped on stage at 9 o’clock amidst ululations and screaming of applause from his fans in the audience. He had the crowd dancing and singing along as he performed several of his hit songs such as Kyenkyebula, Farmer, Byonkala and Singa among others.

The singer also mingled with the fans to take selfies and danced with them mid-performance, much to the delight of the crowd.

Meanwhile, the Floral and funky themed event which kicked off at noon saw revelers served free Uganda Waragi cocktails as DJs LL and Chapati got them grooving to the hottest music.

The party later continued to Illusion bar at acacia mall where the after party had been organized.

The post Ykee Benda lights up Maverick Cocktail Fiesta appeared first on BigEye.UG.

By Our Reporter

Nigerian singer Nonso Amadi is in town. The “Tonight” hitmaker landed on Ugandan soil in the wee hours of Wednesday morning.

Nonso will be the headlining act at the much-anticipated “Shorts Na Lessu” event that is taking place at the Dungu resort in Munyonyo this Saturday.

“I am humbled with the love I have received from Uganda. All I can say is come to the show and expect the best from me,” he said on arrival.

He will be performing alongside numerous Ugandan artists like Kohen Jayce of Bantu vibes, Lamu and The Four Homies, Lagum, and Route 316 Band among others. The event will also feature top deejays including DJ Sesse, DJ Irakooze, and DJ Ciza.

There will be an after party at club Guvnor where all the event attendees will be guaranteed free entrance to the club.

The post Nigerian singer Nonso Amadi in town appeared first on BigEye.UG.

By Our Reporter

After a long spell of silence in West Africa, super talented diva Irene Ntale has returned to Uganda both physically and musically with “Nyamba”.

In the Afro Pop masterpiece, she appeals to her lover to help her believe in her love for him. Ntale fuses styles from East and West Africa, which explains the fact that she got signed to Universal Music Nigeria, which is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group.

On a modest beat prepared by the talented Marcel Akunwata, who also did backup vocals, Irene pulled off vocals that prove her musical maturity over the years, and we hope she produces more music now that she has broken the silence.

Listen to the song via Tidal or iTunes. 

The post Irene Ntale bounces back with new single — “Nyamba”. Listen to it here! appeared first on BigEye.UG.

By Our Reporter

Nigerian star Skales is in the country. He arrived at Entebbe International airport in the wee hours of Thursday morning ahead of the much-anticipated 23rd edition of Blankets and Wine slated for Sunday, August 25 at Lugogo Cricket Oval.

The “Booty Language” star who was warmly received by organisers of the show, House of DJs, and media revealed that his early arrival is due to a planned schedule to shoot a video for his new song titled, “Bomblast” featuring Uganda’s hitmaker Beenie Gunter. This will be their second collaboration, their first song being a remix to “Pon Mi” which hit air waves early last year.

Skales, real name Raoul John Njeng-Njeng also expressed his excitement upon being in the country to entertain his Ugandan fans once more promising a “lit party” for them at the long-celebrated picnic-themed event powered by Tusker Malt this Sunday.

This will be the second time the Nigerian Star is performing in Uganda. He returns with a fresh load of tracks for fans to party to that are sure to leave many thrilled.

Blankets and Wine will also feature a number of performances from top Ugandan artists like Kent and Flosso, MoRoots ft CTRL Ad Band, Gloria Achillah and many more.

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Vivo Energy Uganda’s Managing Director, Gilbert Assi addresses guests during the launch ceremony.

By Our Reporter

Vivo Energy Uganda, the company that markets and distributes Shell branded fuels and lubricants has announced the 5th edition of the famous Shell Gas Tokosa Food Festival. The event takes place annually and aims to position Shell gas as a clean, safe and affordable cooking solution among customers that included food enthusiasts, home owners, hotels, restaurants, cafes and institutions both public and private.

The Shell Gas Tokosa Food Festival will take place on Saturday. 14th September at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel gardens. This year’s festival has several activities lined up including live entertainment, cooking competitions for the children and adults, various Tokosa offers, food & wine tasting and an exhibition by invited restaurants and cafes.

The event will feature some of the best chefs and food experts who will provide live cooking tutorials to festival-goers. There will also be entertainment from Lillian & the Sundowners, live performances from Vinka, Winnie Nwagi and Joh Blaq, Zumba flash mobs and live DJ Mixes.

Speaking at the media launch held at Sheraton Gardens Kampala to announce this year’s festival, Vivo Energy Uganda’s Managing Director, Gilbert Assi said the 5th edition of the Shell Gas Tokosa Food Festival is about celebrating diversity of cultures, food and relationships.

‘‘In Africa, every meal served is a celebration. Through the Shell Gas Tokosa Food Festival, Vivo Energy Uganda aims to not only celebrate this fact with our customers’ families and guests but to further enhance every cooking experience by providing safe, clean and affordable cooking solutions. Shell Gas is here to bring on all these good times and to build beautiful lifetime experiences. Choose Shell Gas for these moments,” he said.

Assi added, “This annual festival offers us an opportunity to appreciate our Shell Gas customers as they enjoy good times at the festival. As a special offer for our customers, we have reduced further the prices of refills for all packed gas. We invite you to take advantage of this offer which is valid until 30 September 2019.”

Proceeds from this event will go towards improving the wellbeing of children under two charity organisations; Grace Villa which is located in South western district of Kabale and to Bless A Child Foundation, Uganda.

Bless A Child Foundation provides palliative cancer care services for terminally ill children. Through the Foundation, the children can access shelter, education, care and warm food for free. The Shell Gas Tokosa Food Festival will supply the Foundation with piped gas for a year. This will help to address the challenges that it currently faces by using unsafe methods for cooking such as firewood and charcoal. The Festival proceeds will include donations of food, clothing, learning materials and domestic items.

Grace Villa, a home in Kabale provides disadvantaged girls with life skills training and support. The home recently started the ‘Wateeka Initiative’ to offer free lunch to school-going children that are unable to afford it. In 2018, the Home recieved a new kitchen with a year’s supply of Shell piped gas from Vivo Energy Uganda. This year, the company will use the proceeds to construct a new dining hall for the Home in addition to continued Shell Gas supply.

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