Over the last one week, artists- mostly musicians, have been paying tribute to one of the finest musicians that ever graced the Uganda music scene- Moze Radio. I am not a musician, and so I don’t have the tools to reconstruct the songs that Moze Radio made with the precision of these guys. However, I thought I could write down something to honour and remember the phenomena that Moze Radio was.
At a time when Kampala needed a new vibe, Moze Radio emerged, tore the rule book, broke all convention, and served Kampala’s elite with a new buffet of music. His sound, with an unconventional playfulness in it, just brought a new vibe to the town. Kampala was not the same again. Moze almost became a rebel on the music scene- leading a secession from the conventional music- creating a new sound that just ate our ears with such purity and sublime simplicity.
As Uganda needed a WBS to improve TV, Kampala needed a Moze Radio to bring music back into the music in Uganda. The importance of what would lay in Moze Radio’s voice had earlier been noticed by Jose Chameleon and his brother Weasel. These were the wings that brought the wind called Moze Radio to town. As they say, the rest is history.
Moze Radio became the magnet that pieced together Kampala’s young and old as they ate away the joy of Kampala’s night. There was a new voice in town. There was a freshness…a sweetness…a positivity that Moze Radio brought to this town. It was felt, near and far.
Kampala’s music scene is very dynamic and it’s hard to keep up with its speed…but Moze Radio was the change himself. His music became the rule- and the exception. No change left Moze or took him away. He remained relevant, becoming better and better with time.
Moze Radio served this town with a stew of music that melts hearts today as it did years ago. He overthrew tradition in the music industry, firmly establishing himself as the new sheriff in town and bringing a golden age- of sorts. His music- deceptively simply, created an effect so powerful that a new breed of Radio-like musicians started to breed and crop up.
The 2000s were a watershed moment in Uganda’s music development. While the Jose Chameleon’s (Maximum respect) had set a fire, Moze Radio created the oxygen that kept the fire burning and even gave the fire-new color and vigor.
His music oozes with simplicity but also complexity. My mind strains to write words that describe, with nearness to the fact, the complexity of Moze Radio’s lyrical prowess and his genius at bending taste in ways that almost alter one’s mind. He served, we ate. He lived, we lived. He died, but he lives.
Few musicians have music with that ‘wow’ factor…with that sweet playfulness…a drama…a gripping effect on us. Moses was just exactly, that. His music served all genders, crossing ages and classes. His music enveloped us all, bridging our emotions and connecting us in ways we couldn’t resist.
Moze Radio was everything Kampala and Uganda needed. He is the thing we miss. His music haunts…his life inspires…and it’s as though he lived ahead of time, leaving us with music for the present. Each of his songs still dazzles and electrifies as though it was created for today.
His music inspired tears, laughter, and contemplation. No matter how you felt, there was a Moze Radio piece of art that spoke to you. In ways we can’t fathom, we found ourselves in Moze’s music.
His songs were the color and fiber of our feelings, our hopes, fantasies, fears, and everything near, between, behind, or inside those. He was more than an artist…he was a brother…who spoke what we could not find the words to put to….both the joys and pains of living. He sang life…and in him, life found a way to express its form and matter.
Moze Radio – what a voice, what a force!
Uganda will never be the same without you. We will always remember you.
Rest in Peace Soldier.
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