At first it was unsettling to hear another fete, Yella Cultural festival, was coming to Kampala.
Held at the Design Hub, a yet-to-be-opened art space in Industrial area, the show managed to disprove skeptics, thanks to an intimate line-up that featured Suzan Kerunen, Sabar Zibula, Giovanni Kiyingi, Haka Mukiga, and Cissoko Mamoudou from Senegal.
It was the kind of a brilliant formula that has been tested and proven before; for instance, these are literally some of the most sought-after artistes on the regional festival circuit and they have a following.
A brainchild of Senegalese/Ugandan percussionist and musician Mame N’diack Seck Thiam, the festival aims at bringing together young people to embrace cultural heritage and diversity through the arts.
It could be because of this that the organizers opted for artistes that have a traditional African feel to their music; from Kiyingi to Kerunen, the sense of belonging through sound and language was key.
Through their songs, the artistes told us about their cultures and about Uganda. Kerunen, performing for the first time since giving birth at the beginning of last October, made sure fans appreciated nature by doing minimal dialogues about different bird species in one of her songs.
Haka Mukiga, a protégé of Kerunen’s Pearl Rhythm Stage Coach, is interesting to listen to; while he starts most of his songs with traditional Rukiga vibes, he fuses it with reggae, which makes a beautiful listen.
And he always brings his home spirit with him;t Yella, he and the band were dressed in bark cloth. The festival starting earlier in the day had multiple activities including poetry, contemporary dance, acrobatics, visual art showcases and general merrymaking.
The collaboration of Zibula and Mamoudou was the headlining act that brought together fusions of jazz, funk, bakisimba and kora sounds.
Mame N’diack and Mamoudou have a profound chemistry from performance to language; when they were not speaking French, they were speaking what
was presumed to be Mandingo.
Some songs sounded sad and generally on a low tempo; but as they went on, the energy picked up and got the crowd on its feet.
The show ended a few minutes to 1am and a few technical issues with the microphones and sound aside, Mame N’diack launched a new festival on a triumphant note.
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