Fille: I'm complex, but Kats is patient with me

Give her a beat, she’ll sing the hell out of it. Give her a song, she’ll punch life into it. She happens to be one of Uganda’s most sensational and gifted female artises. Fille Mutoni has powerful vocals, has graced the music scene and managed to cut a niche for herself.

Fille Mutoni has powerful vocals, has graced the music scene and managed to cut a niche for herself.  She has several tunes that have dominated both radio and TV charts. Ahmad Khalil Muto had a chat with her...


Why Fille Fiye and what is your real name anyway?

I’m Fille Mutoni. I use Fille because it’s my real name.


And what is this ‘Fille Fiye’ business we hear people calling you on stage?

I don’t know who added the ‘Fiye.’ Plainly, I am Fille.


Has music always been your dream?

Yes, I always loved singing. I always loved music and it was always my dream, although I didn’t think I would ever do it professionally.


What do you look for in a relationship?

Loyalty, honesty and support.


Would you rather go for an ugly but loaded, or handsome and broke guy?

I don’t think I have a choice. All my life I have never had a thing for physical appearance. I never mind about how people look. If you speak to me and you sound intelligent and have the qualities, it doesn’t matter.


What do you think men love about you?

Most say I’m friendly and talkative, not boring.


Does someone’s past really matter in a relationship?

Not really, the past is the past. If someone is willing to change and move forward, I don’t care about their past.


Is it true you and MC Kats are dating?

I don’t want to talk about me and Kats. All I can say is that we are good friends. Whether we are dating or not should be left to us. Let’s not go into the details.

There is this mystery surrounding the number of kids he has...

He has five children. Three boys and two girls.


What is that one thing you love about Kats that you didn’t find in other guys?

He is patient with me. I’m quite complex but he is really patient. He believed in me and my talent and see where he got me. I think that’s what I love about him.


Do you get nervous on stage?

Yeah, I’m always nervous before I go on stage. I think it’s because I am still new in this business.
I had never sung for huge crowds before and I always wonder whether I will deliver to the crowd’s expectations or whether they will like me. When I think about all that, I get a little shaky.


What’s your greatest fear?

Being betrayed.


What is your opinion on teens having sex?

I blame the internet. It has exposed teens to a lot of sex. Teens have easy access to the internet and with that comes the influence of the Western culture. The Hollywood stars whom we look up to are always involved sex scandals. They get married today, divorce the next day and marry another person there after. Teens read about all this drama online and think it’s cool. Through the internet, Western culture has taken over and is a major factor as to why the youth behave they way they do. They believe they can have sex with anyone at anytime, which is not right.


Where do you see yourself in five years?

I hope to have started several businesses. I don’t want to depend on just one thing-music. But I also hope to take my music career to another level, like doing songs with international artistes.


Given a chance to change the Ugandan music industry, what would you do?

I would make artistes love and support each other, and encourage them to be original. If we believe in ourselves then we shall be able to sell our talent to the world and become a force to reckon with. Then there is this business of bigger artistes thinking up-comingartistes are a threat rather than a blessing to the industry. I would want that to change too.

Lately, there is a tendency for artistes to recycle nursery school rhymes like you did in Husband. What’s up with that?

Ha ha ha... Well, I don’t know, those are not nursery rhymes, those are rhymes we used to recite when we where young and once in a while you want to feel young. What’s wrong with that? And let me tell you something, the moment you do a song, it doesn’t matter what you put in there, the moment the crowd likes it, stop criticising; enjoy the song, enjoy the artiste.

What’s your swagg?

I’m very comfortable with what I wear. I don’t care if it’s trendy or not. If I look at it and it’s appealling, I roll with it. I’m also not a good copy cat. I’m myself and I don’t know how to be another person.

You spot your house on fire (God forbid). What’s that one thing you would save?

If there is a human being inside, I would save them first. The other things are materialistic. So really, if there is no one inside the house, I would let in burn, because if I get in, I will get burnt myself (chuckles).