Brian Solis once said, “Social media is about sociology and psychology more than technology”, and in relation to today’s world, it has become the birthplace to a new breed of celebrities that include the likes of IShowSpeed, Logan Paul, Khaby Lame, Kai Cenat, and more.
In Uganda the social media space has changed the world of one Saad Ssozi, 11, who has become famous globally due to his hilarious content. Known by his social media name Tenge Tenge, Ssozi is having the time of his life, and has already travelled the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda, and he is just starting.
When The Observer recently interviewed Ssozi at Badongo along Salama road (he stays in Lwasa, Salama), he was clad in a white baggy shirt and black trousers, in the middle of a skit that was soon to be posted on social media.
When one sees the skits and goofy life Ssozi leads on social media now, one might think this boy was born in glamour or with a silver spoon in his mouth, but as he tells me, for him life has always been a hustle.
Before becoming the star he is today, this young boy had stopped going to school due to poverty and had resorted to collecting scrap to help earn a living and support his parents who were impoverished. But then Providence knocked on his door one day and his life turned around when he met his manager, Michael Kabonge, in 2018.
Kabonge was training more than 60 children, teaching them how to dance at the Wembley Mo Foundation – the same foundation that has birthed stars like the Ghetto Kids.
According to Kabonge: “Most of the kids who had come for the dance lessons were not settled and were a bit stubborn. Unlike the other kids though, I was impressed by Saad’s consistence and determination to learn what I was teaching him, though I was shocked to learn that he was not in school and was hustling with life through collecting scrap metal at such a young age.”
Despite Ssozi’s circumstances and age, he showed up and demonstrated to Kabonge the potential he had, and he always believed he could become a big star like the Ghetto Kids.
Kabonge shared that initially before posting the videos of him on social media, Ssozi would spend time training and honing his dance skills, but he later on decided to post his video where he was dancing in the bush with the words tenge tengelele in the background, and that is how his well-known alias Rango Tenge Tenge was born.
“At first I thought the video that my manager posted wouldn’t get lots of views but I was shocked when the video got over 162 million views which made me feel happy and proud of my work,” Ssozi said in Luganda.
He said with the 162 million views he got from his first video, he continued to follow his manager’s lead and create more hilarious content that caught lots of people’s attention “which provided me avenues to travel to other countries”.
From a hopeless boy picking scrap metals for sale, Ssozi was now Tenge Tenge with TikTok followers and fans in destinations beyond his wildest dreams!
“My TikTok fame has enabled me to travel to countries that I never thought I would ever travel to. It felt good boarding an aeroplane and going to countries like Kenya, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates which has so far been a good experience. I have also been able to have live stream calls with international celebrities like Chris Brown, Tiwa Savage, IshowSpeed, Kai Cenat, Davido and Jason Derulo, which was exciting!”
Ssozi, who has since gone back to school at Tal Islamic Model Junior school, added. He is in P4. Ssozi said whenever the opportunity avails itself to travel, he always gets permission from his school in advance and is given homework to carry with him to ensure he does not miss much when he is away.
PARENTS’ REACTION TO SAAD SSOZI’S FAME
Ssozi recounts that initially his parents were skeptical and so cautious about his fame due to the comments people were making in the community. His father Edrisa Ahmed Kikomeko and mother Aisha Namuli were understandably protective over their pre-teen son being put ‘out there’.
“At first my parents had no problem with me posting videos but my dad had a big issue with it because he didn’t understand exactly what I was doing on social media. But now he finally understands exactly what I do when I make skits on social media and he has no problem with it. They are so supportive, which I am grateful for,” he said.
MAKING THE TIKTOK VIDEOS
Looking at the process followed when creating videos, Kabonge noted that their content creation begins with brainstorming, where they come up with an idea for the video concept and talk about it and then execute it into video format if it is good.
“For equipment, we mostly use smartphones as the capturing device but what majorly changes is the attire Saad dons and the location where the videos are shot.”
“Currently, Tenge Tenge’s social media handles have more than nine million followers, with his YouTube alone commanding more than 4.2 million followers. On Instagram, he has 3.2 million followers and his Facebook has over 1.8 million followers,” Kabonge said.
These social media platforms pay people with big followings like Ssozi’s, and just like that, Tenge’s past life of lack and destitution are indeed behind him. His manager Kabonge for now manages his finances on his behalf and also secures the lucrative deals and endorsements for him.
Ssozi said he wants to give hope to people that they can do anything they put their minds to, just like him who came from zero to being the international mega star. He still has the desire to live a much better life and achieve his other dreams like buying land and building a house for his parents and family.
Many fans get attracted to Ssozi’s Tenge Tenge character first because of his peculiar appearance, but in person Ssozi spots some changes in appearance; Ssozi said he has not had any surgeries to change his appearance; he has only acquired braces to help align his teeth and also, he is trying to fix a tooth that grew in the wrong way.
“The surgeries I have had are to fix my dental issues,” Ssozi, who is very outspoken and self-aware (the first question he asked me before the interview was: “What am I going to get out of this?”), said.
CHALLENGES
Speaking about the challenges Ssozi has faced, so far, Kabonge said they have had problems in the past with naysayers who talked the boy’s parents out of dealing with social media, which led to them putting a halt to Ssozi’s content creation journey when he was just becoming an internet hit.
“There was a time when it was rumoured that Chris Brown would come to Uganda when Tenge had just had a TikTok live conversation with him. People started spreading rumours that I was making big money from such celebrities and these words reached the parents, which made them take Saad away and put a pause to making TikTok content.
This problem was solved when the parents understood that it was mere propaganda. They later allowed him to continue making videos.” Kabonge added.
In his free time, Ssozi enjoys dancing with his friends at the Wembley Mo Foundation and like any 11-year-old, he still also enjoys playing and talking to his friends.
FUTURE PLANS
Looking at the future, Ssozi sees himself becoming a better content creator than he is today.
“I hope to one day become one of the powerful and prominent businessmen in Uganda.”
When it comes to children who look up to him and want to enter the world of content creation, Ssozi advises them to always listen to their parents and managers and always work hard.
“At first you might not see the rewards from the videos you make, but with discipline and following the instructions of your manager, you can reach greater heights.”
So, there! For some who doubted that Tenge Tenge was even Ugandan, the young boy from Salama just set the record straight.
ebenezernsubuga405@gmail.com
Nice work
mashallah brother 😅