Coke Studio Africa

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Coke Studio Africa is a music television series produced by Coca-Cola featuring live studio-recorded music performances by various African artists. The one of a kind music show brings together artists from different genres and regions to create a modern and authentic sound through musical fusion. The purpose of Coke Studio Africa is to reinvent the way music can capture the spirit of a continent, opening hearts and minds. The series features a line-up of legendary African artists including Salif Keita from Mali; King Sunny Ade, MI, Waje, Jimmy Jatt and Bez from Nigeria; Octopizzo, Miss Karun and Just a Band from Kenya; Hip Hop Pantsula, and Tumi from South Africa; Boddhi Satva from the Central African Republic; Diamond Platinumz and Lady Jaydee from Tanzania; Joel Sebunjo, Qwela and Lillian Mbabazi from Uganda; and the Culture Music Club from Zanzibar.

Producer David Sanders and Coca-Cola representative Otome Oyo discuss the concept and motivation behind Coke Studio Africa. The interview is from the program “AM Live” on NTV in Kenya.

Afro-funk fusion band Qwela from Uganda and soul songstress Waje from Nigeria perform the classic Papa Wemba song “Rail On” during an episode of Coke Studio Africa.

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Coke Studio Africa invites you to experience the incredible creative journey of a truly unique and modern African sound.

How I Met Maurice Kirya

While traveling to Uganda in 2007, I met a young unknown musician. He went on to become an award-winning international musician and actor. This is the story about how I met Maurice Kirya.

One of the things that I enjoy doing when I travel to Uganda is visiting with friends and people that I know. There were Ugandans who I had met in Dallas that moved back to Uganda. When I would go to Uganda, I’d make sure that I’d visit them. One of these friends from Dallas, I had made arrangements to meet at Garden City Mall in Kampala. Café Pap. It’s a coffee shop that’s a common meeting place. With my friend was a friend of theirs. His name was Maurice. I had never met Maurice before. I didn’t know anything about him. This young man carried his guitar with him everywhere. We spent about an hour together talking and catching up.

After our friendly meeting, I needed to go to the restroom for a short call. While I was in the restroom, I was approached by two Ugandan men who started questioning me.

So you know Kirya. How do you know Kirya? Who are you? Are you an American? Are you a music producer? Do you promote international music?

It was an awkward situation because I was doing my business. It was just the three of us alone in the restroom and these two men were blocking the door. I was starting to get nervous about the whole situation. I didn’t know who they were talking about. The young man who I had met with the guitar I simply knew as Maurice. This young man was Maurice Kirya. He was a rising musician.

Through social media, when I came back to the United States I was able to keep in contact with my Ugandan friends like Maurice. His music inspired me so much. He had so much talent. I don’t describe him as an entertainer. He is a musician. He plays multiple instruments. He sings. He’s a songwriter. He knows music. It is in his blood.

Out of the sheer necessity and inspiration that he gave me, I decided to help promote his music, especially in the United States. He came to the United States in 2010 and did some festivals and performances. We did a mini-tour through New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington DC so people could hear his music. Soon after that happened in the United States, he was awarded by Radio France International the annual Discovery Prize for Best New African Artist. He won the award over 500 musicians from Africa in 2010. That gave me interest in learning about music and creative talent from Uganda.

It was an accidental experience. It’s been very fulfilling. It brings me great pleasure to expose people, especially in the United States, to music from my friends. These are people who I’ve built relationships with and people that I personally know. It’s wonderful to get people to hear their talent.

The Story of Uganda Sings

I shared my story on the Atlanta Broadcasting Network program “The Voice” about the serendipitous series of events that led me to meeting Ugandan superstar Maurice Kirya and the musical collaboration with several other Ugandan musicians to release Uganda Sings.

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Treat yourself to a “superb safari of sound”. The music is available on these websites:

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Africa Let’s Go Crazy

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Coca-Cola has launched a new advertising campaign dubbed “Africa Let’s Go Crazy” aimed at celebrating and inspiring individuals who do “Random Acts of Kindness” and share happiness in their everyday lives.

The inspiration behind the African-themed campaign is the notion that those who practice kindness seem to be viewed as strange and crazy. The campaign emphasizes that kindness is just the craziness the world needs for change. Coca-Cola aims to use this campaign to tell the stories of people whose lives have been changed by receiving kindness while celebrating those who continue to share themselves with others.

If being kind to strangers is crazy, then Africa is the craziest place on earth.
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The commercial features photographer Edward Echwalu from Uganda, world laughter champion Belachew Birma from Ethiopia, community leader Douglas Rori from Kenya and traffic officer Corporal Sebul Audu from Nigeria.

Ugandan musician Maurice Kirya is the voice of the commercial. He sings the theme song titled “Continent of Kindness”.

The advertising campaign successfully highlights the greatest natural resource that Africa has to offer; her people.

The commercial is reminiscent of the groundbreaking 1971 Coca-Cola television commercial titled “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke“. The commercial featured a positive message of hope and love provided by a multicultural collection of teenagers singing “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing (in Perfect Harmony)“.

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The Book of Kirya

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Ugandan superstar Maurice Kirya has released the follow-up to his debut album “Misubbaawa“. “The Book of Kirya” features 14 fantastic new tracks written by the award-winning singer/songwriter from Uganda.

The new album takes listeners on a musical journey through Kirya’s growth as a person and musician. It shares the things he has learned throughout his life. The album also reveals the playful and wild side of the “king of mwooyo”.

Kirya wanted to create an album that anyone could find interesting. He combines serious subjects of philosophical introspection like “Mulembe Qwa Kirya” and “Don’t Wanna Fight” with the love stories shared in “The Blue Dress Song” and “Sent From Above”. He pays tribute to the women of Uganda with “Ugandan Girl”.

The songs on “The Book of Kirya” successfully reach into the listener’s soul to provoke an emotional response. Whether you smile from ear to ear or shed a tear will depend on which song connects with your own personal story. Do yourself a favor and treat your soul to the gospel of “The Book of Kirya“.

Maurice Kirya launches his new album “The Book of Kirya” at a press conference in Kampala, Uganda.

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Click link to purchase: “The Book of Kirya“

Uganda Sings

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Uganda Sings is a collaboration involving some of the most talented musicians in Uganda. Five musicians contributed two songs each to the album.

Uganda Sings commemorates the golden anniversary of Uganda’s independence (1962-2012).

Proceeds from the sales of the music will benefit Uganda Speaks. The initiative is an online social media project founded by Ugandans to take back the global narrative about Uganda. It will allow Ugandans to share stories with the world from their own perspective using their own words and images.

The collection of songs takes the listener on a musical journey through Uganda. The diversity of artistic styles cover subjects that are uniquely Ugandan. The album begins and ends with songs about cities. In between are songs about relationships, struggles, and the natural beauty of Uganda.

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Uganda Sings hopes to transcend national borders to help facilitate peacemaking and understanding throughout the world. The music is available for purchase on the following sites:

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Tshila

Tshila

The BBC World Service had a talent search called “The Next Big Thing” in which they named Tshila as one of the 20 best unsigned artists in the world. Her music was complimented by one of the judges as being “a perfect soundtrack to nice summer day” and “delightful”. A judge reviewed her song “Namboozo” and said “the mix of traditional African sounds with poetry and hip-hop works perfectly for Tshila” and “overall a conscious, upbeat vibe and the most original song in this competition”.

Tshila was born in Kampala, Uganda. She didn’t grow up around musicians. She never had music on the curriculum at any of the schools she attended as a young student. However, her passion for music resulted in her being one of the most noteworthy talents from east Africa.

She truly developed her musical talent after she finished her university education in the United States. She received a bachelor’s degree in software engineering in 2005. As a college student in America, she frequently spoke for African causes. Through the subtle and indirect influence of music, she wants to be a force of change in Africa.

Four months after graduating university in 2005, she returned to Uganda with the hope of developing her music and fusing it with rich traditions to create a sound that transcends cultural boundaries with enchanting rhythms and conscious lyrics. Her mother used to sing folk songs for her when she was young, which caused her to be keenly interested in her mother’s ethnic culture and music from the Gisu people of eastern Uganda. She picked up a guitar and began to sing and perform in different venues in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.

Tshila has collaborated with a diversity of artists, including Uganda’s groundbreaking hip-hop group, the Bataka Squad. She is included on Uganda Sings. a compilation of music from Ugandan musicians.

Tshila is featured in the mini-documentary “Raw Truth“, which highlights the inspiration and ideas behind her music.

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Stay updated with Tshila’s latest music and news:

            

Maurice Kirya

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Maurice’s music is an uncommon blend of R&B and Afro-fusion which he prefers to call “mwooyo” which means “soul” in his native language of luganda. It is influenced by the beauty and unique spirit of his homeland, Uganda.

Maurice made his first American concert performance at the prestigious South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Festival in Austin, Texas USA during March 2010. He has been exclusively featured on The Africa Channel‘s “Soundtracks @ Red Kiva” program. The show is taped live at the popular The Red Kiva nightclub in Chicago.

In September 2010, he was named the winner of the Radio France International (RFI) Discovery Prize for “Best New African Artist“. They chose him ahead of ten finalists from across Africa. Over 500 musicians entered the competition.

Maurice embarked on an extensive world tour in 2011. He performed in over 30 countries in Africa and Europe, including the legendary New Morning Jazz Club in Paris, France. He also performed several shows in the United States which included a concert with American Idol winner Jordin Sparks.

He has been profiled by CNN International, the Voice of America, and the British Broadcasting Corporation.

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Stay updated with with his  latest music, concerts, news, and updates on these websites.

                 

Acholi Culture

Acholiland

The Acholi people are an ethnic group who are located in the northern part of Uganda.  The area is commonly referred to as Acholiland. They have a rich and diverse cultural heritage that is expressed in a wide variety of music and dance that has been passed from generation to generation.

Unfortunately the Acholi culture was stifled for two decades while the region suffered from a horrific conflict that traumatized innocent civilians.  The displacement of people from their villages caused social degradation that threatened the survival of important Acholi traditions.

Now that peace has returned to the northern part of Uganda, the Acholi people are revitalizing their culture as it existed before the war. Elders are now teaching important traditions to the younger generations once again.

In December 2007, I traveled to Gulu, Uganda to attend a large community event that celebrated the Acholi culture in music and dance .  The celebration lasted from early evening until sunrise the next morning.  I documented the event with pictures and video. Being able  to witness a community rising from brink of extermination is something that I will never forget.

I would like to dedicate this video to my Acholi friends who are now rebuilding their culture and traditions.

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Acholi resources:

Acholi Community of North America

Acholi Times: The Voice of the Acholi People

Hope North

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Sam Okello is a choreographer, musician, writer, actor and the founder of Hope North.  The school is a haven for escaped child soldiers and other young victims of Uganda’s struggles.  In his youth, Sam and his brother Godfrey were abducted and forced to serve as child soldiers.  He managed to escape his ordeal but his brother was killed.  In honor of his brother, Sam purchased a large tract of land to serve as a sanctuary for youth in peril.  This was the beginning of Hope North.

Hope North is dedicated to facilitating healing and peace building.  Over 1500 youth have found safe haven at the school over the years.  Students receive the education necessary to help them reintegrate into society and build a better future for Uganda.  Hope North operates a fully accredited school and offers vocational training in carpentry, food production, tailoring, and programs in arts, music, theater, dance, and sports.

The long-term vision of the school is to become a model education center for other cultures dealing with the aftermath of conflict. Hope North is an active experiment, implementing best practices, and aspires to be part of a global community with shared interest in contributing to peace dialogues.

Sam Okello and James McAvoy in “The Last King of Scotland”

Michael Kirkpatrick and Sam Okello in Uganda

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Sam Okello performs a beautiful song at the 2011 Global Action Forum in Los Angeles while images of the students at Hope North are shown to the audience.