Reggae is yet to gain full appreciation by not just the musicians, but the fans, too, according to reggae/dancehall musician Bebe Cool.

"Reggae music has been silently a part of our industry, but when did Ugandans start to embrace reggea? Just recently, and they have not even embraced it fully," he said while appearing on a televised press conference on February 27, for the upcoming concert of English singer Ali Campbell slated for March 2. 

Hip hop musician Navio also supplemented Bebe Cool's comments, saying reggae music, especially in the late 1990s and early 2000s, suffered from the take-over hype hip hop.
 
"Back then, hip hop was just as big as anything else, mostly done by younger lads in the industry. We would step on one stage after the other." Navio said during the presser held in Naguru, Kampala.

Bebe revealed that he had to do a hip hop song, during his earlier years in music, in Nairobi, because the genre was "close to the actual music that was playing in Uganda then.

Bebe Cool added that for Ugandans to understand and appreciate reggae, they have to first of all acquaint themselves with the the core of the genre. "Reggea music is music for the soul with a message, not like any other genre," he said.

Thanks to music promoter and reggae/jazz musician Tshaka Mayanja, reggae music in Uganda has always stayed alive with concerts by international reggae acts such Buju Banton in 1997, UB40 in 2008, and Morgan Heritage in 2017, among others. 

Even though it is still hard to mention several mainstream reggae musicians besides Maddox Ssematimba, several other musicians have started fusing reggae in some of their music. 

Bebe Cool will be one of the local acts set to perform at Ali Campbell's concert at Kololo Independence Grounds.