Karole Kasita challenges Ugandan musicians to look beyond local fame

Karole Kasita challenges Ugandan musicians to look beyond local fame.

Singer Karole Kasita has challenged fellow musicians to stop treating Uganda as the beginning and end of their musical ambitions, arguing that local fame means little if artists are not making efforts to break into international markets.

Speaking on a podcast, Karole acknowledged that Uganda has a strong music audience that supports local artists financially. However, she believes musicians should not become too comfortable enjoying domestic popularity while overlooking opportunities beyond the country's borders.

To drive her point home, Karole shared an experience from a trip abroad, where she discovered that a song she considered a major hit in Uganda barely registered with the people she encountered.

Having travelled with the confidence of a star whose music was making waves back home, she expected some recognition. Instead, she got a reality check: not everyone outside Uganda knew her or her music.

“Sometimes, no matter how big your song is in Uganda, those people don’t want to know. I went there with a hit song, thinking they would be excited, but they don’t even know some Ugandan musicians. "I told them about the song, and they asked who I was,” she narrated.

The experience, she suggested, should serve as a wake-up call for Ugandan musicians who mistake local popularity for international recognition.

Karole was quick to acknowledge that the Ugandan audience remains valuable, noting that local fans provide musicians with the financial support that keeps their careers running. However, she questioned why artists should be content with competing for the same audience when there are millions of potential listeners beyond Uganda.

She also observed that international musicians are increasingly targeting Uganda's music market, making it even more important for local artists to reciprocate by taking their music to other countries.

“One thing we need to do as Ugandans is we should stop fighting for only our audience. Our audience is very good to fight for because it’s what gives us money. Even those international artists are fighting for our audience, but for us, why are we comfortable fighting for only our audience? We should fight beyond borders for other audiences,” she added.