Semkdee returns from South Africa with new tracks

Sep 22, 2006

Ugandan artiste Abed Semakadde a.k.a Semkdee who went to South Africa in 1990 seeking greener pastures is in Kampala doing final touches on his night club. He was doing well on the music scene in South Africa, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

By Vision Reporter

Ugandan artiste Abed Semakadde a.k.a Semkdee who went to South Africa in 1990 seeking greener pastures is in Kampala doing final touches on his night club. He was doing well on the music scene in South Africa, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

The 28-year-old recently appeared on MNET’s Rock Down Africa performing with Mary J Blige in Cape Town.
Many only recall him as the little child who used to walk along Gayaza Road while playing the fiddle. Semkdee, the son of an acclaimed guitarist, grew up performing at weddings.

While in Johannesburg, he worked as a baker’s apprentice. But the day he discovered the late night Kwaito gigs in the townships, Semkdee decided to give music a try.

“I spent all my savings on a set of second-hand instruments and then formed my own band,” he says. He says much as he did not succeed, he was inspired to venture into production. He is the owner of World Music Promotions International.

Semkdee’s famous single Wammalamu Jennifer (You mesmerised me) was nominated for last year’s KORA Award. Weebale made it to Simba FM’s Top 20 Charts for four months last year. The gospel song, which he sang in Tswana, has a throbbing beat and the chorus is irresistible. You know, Semkdee’s latest release, has taken Zambian dance clubs and radios stations by storm. “I played this song to the native drumbeat of the Shona people, perhaps that is why they love it,” Semkdee says.

Done in Luganda and English, the song is a man’s humble way of telling an obstinate wife to pack up her bags and leave. Semkdee’s earlier releases are still enjoying tremendous airplay on local FM radio stations.

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