Kataleya and Kandle quit Theron Music, change name

After a six-month break, singing duo Kataleya (Hadijah Namakula) and Kandle (Rebecca Nabatuusa) have returned to the music scene with some news. They have left Theron Music management and are back under a new name, K and K Music.

 The singers announced their return early Thursday, May 30,  through their new social media accounts - K and K Music - with photos of themselves sporting shirts printed with the words “Back Like Never Left.”

Accompanying the images was the caption, “Who missed us?”

The duo’s absence from the music scene followed a departure from their former management, stemming from an initially silent dispute that later became public early this year. 

 Kataleya and Kandle hit the music market as a singing duo with the release of their debut single Muzibe wa Love in 2021 after joining Theron Music. 

In January 24, 2024, rumours started swirling that their management had installed cameras in their house against their will and had defaulted on payment of their services since August of 2023.

The singers claimed that Theron Music management used intimidation tactics against them, which violated their rights as artistes.

However, Theron management released a document, denying the accusations.

During a phone interview with K and K Music on Saturday June 1, the duo thanked Theron management for pushing their career.

"We credit Theron team for real trusting us with its money and making us a sound brand. We shall always respect and credit their effort although we had challenges together," they said.

"We are young, cute, attractive and sexy ladies, which attracts every kind of man and it  is okay. With Theron management, some teammates whose names we do not want to disclose began hating us once they failed to woo us with love offers.  The problem started from upcountry where we had gone to perform and they wanted us to sleep with them in the same hotel, which we did not like. Some men on that team  had planned to take advantage of us. They wanted us to sleep  with them  as we were in Mbarara for a show where we had been booked. We decided to get our own place. We ordered the driver to take us to University Inn Hotel, where we spent a night," they said.

The girls said from then on, bad blood began brewing between them and the team members.

"They said we were not respecting the management. They lied to our boss, Theron, that we were not respecting the team in the field. In a meeting which was later called, I defended myself, which annoyed the boss, Theron. He punished us by cutting off some priviledges which we were getting from the management. He stopped paying us. He stopped releasing new projects, which was our job. He stopped us from performing anywhere and we could not have any income since stage is our source of income," Kataleya said. 

Kandle revealed that Theron installed cameras in their house without their consent.

"In our own house that  we pay rent for by ourselves, he installed cameras against our consent. We were also tracked. We were not not allowed to move anywhere. We had no money. Our YouTube channel was taken and its content, where all our songs were, were copyrighted. We tried to create a new one and they also hacked into it and stole the rights. That's why we decided to leave them and start our life afresh," the 26-year-old said.

Kandle expressed optimism that they will still do great without Theron.

"We are open to any kind of business as K and K Music managed by Ray Promotions, but he does not receive our bookings. All our bookings are made through our social media handles. There is someone who handles that section. We are in studio recording new music," she said.

Kandle promised to release "quality songs produced by experienced producers."

She revealed that under Theron, they were limited from releasing music release. 

What Theron management says
Efforts to contact Theron music chief executive officer David Kalemera failed. When we further tried to contact his office reception, we were told that he was out of the country. We, thus, conducted the general manager, Navit, to answer to the allegations made by Kataleya and Kandle.

"David (Kalemera) got tired of music management since it was wasting his money. He decided to go abroad to do other businesses. Theron music management is no more. It was not making him money like he wanted.  He invested a lot of money in it, but he got less. It's only Theron Events that exists and he left it to someone else to run it in his absence. The purpose of signing artistes was to make them brand ambassadors for Theron Events, where they were supposed to market his events company as the money they make would cater for their facilitation, but things turned around. He put in a lot of money to buy songs, buy expensive clothes, pay audio studios for recording new music, which is expensive. He used to do for them expensive and videos with big budgets. He paid their rent at an expensive house. He bought for them a car. He paid workers who were on their team and it was big team," Navit said.

Navit noted that Kalemera treated Kataleya and Kandle like his "own daughters and he really never wanted anything bad to happen to them."

"They used to make mistakes like another person, which annoyed David and he would punish them with the intention of them coming to him and saying sorry, but they would not. They showed him that they can do without him as they were unapologetic. He waited for them to come to him and say sorry, but they refused," he said.

Navit urged Kateleya and Kandle to inform Kalemera of their departure from Theron Management.

"If they have decided to go, well and good. However, they should look for him or  call and tell him that they have moved on for his blessings on their new journey since he is like their father. Kalemera does not have a bad heart. We have all learnt a lot of things from him. He always advised us as his sons. He has the capacity to fail them in whatever they want to do, but he is a good man and he cannot do anything to hurt Kandle and Kataleya," he added.