Omona releases Luo hit

By Sebidde Kiryowa The young and urban local music scene seems to be pulsating with creative verve, but at a closer look, there is actually less talent than we give it credit for. Most of them seem to take the easy way out, producing simplistic but commercially packaged products that guarantee them easy popularity. To make it worse, many young urban musicians to whom Luganda is not a mother tongue tend to sacrifice uplifting their own cultural heritage at the altar of commercial success. It is not marketable to sing in English, so the natural choice for many becomes Luganda. But amid this muddle, one young artist has boldly come up to hold high the flag of his little ‘marketable’ Luo heritage. Tempra Omona is his name. Though he has been around since 1998, Omona only really made a palpable impact on the local scene early this year with the release of the first single off his upcoming second album. Years of honing his craft on the city karoake and mini-concert scene finally paid off in the form of Party Time. Released in July 2001, the song was recorded in B.K studios and produced by Arthur K.D, whose role in putting together last year’s singing sensation I-Jay is still a selling point. The song is upbeat and lively. The song is typical urban get-up and dance offering with a slice of hip-hop, courtesy of Arthur. Although the song initially caused a stir, climbing up on the charts of three major radio stations, it never quite got the necessary rotation to propel Omona to popularity. Fault? It was an all-English song and most radio stations soon dropped it like a hot potato. “The song was big but did not really hit the limit because most Ugandan radio stations are targeting something that sounds ‘Ugandan’ from local artists these days,” Omona says. He got his hint. When he went back to the studios, he decided to do something in the language he knew best-Luo. His next offering was a zouk-flavoured treat titled Nen Awene. The popularity of this song in Kampala not only proved that he had talent, but also served as a signal to young Luo artists that they could exploit the rife market in this part of the country. He embarked on a promotional tour in September and hopes to be through with Kampala by Christmas this year. ends