Oryem sings for his motherland
In the brink of concluding that all northern Uganda contemporary artistes sounded the same, Frederick Oryem aka DMC has made pundits pause in their tracks.
By Alex Balimwikungu
In the brink of concluding that all northern Uganda contemporary artistes sounded the same, Frederick Oryem aka DMC has made pundits pause in their tracks. Oryem sounds different: beautifully different. The 32-year-old, who hails from Kitgum, has not been to his motherland in 20 years and lives like a hermit in Jinja town.
His music style is different from the Kidandali beat many artistes thrive on. He has an amazing vocalisation that is bound to drag one into his songs like a religious experience.
His songs are just beautiful, even when one doesn’t understand the lyrics.
As if to atone for his prolonged absence and search for musical identity among his folks, Oryem, also a celebrated batik artist and Deejay, has sung for his motherland. His six-track album, An Abalo ngo (What have I done?) tells of a young man who commiserates with the plight of his suffering folks in northern Uganda. Even in the other tracks Kuc Myaka Kumi na Tisa (19 years of war) and An Freedom fighter (I am a freedom fighter), done in hard core rap and dance hall, the feeling is all there.
Oryem has no kind words for the Government and LRA’s Joseph Kony.
“My music is about life, peace and unity. If the gun has failed to end the war in the north, let us try the microphone,†he says.
In the brink of concluding that all northern Uganda contemporary artistes sounded the same, Frederick Oryem aka DMC has made pundits pause in their tracks. Oryem sounds different: beautifully different. The 32-year-old, who hails from Kitgum, has not been to his motherland in 20 years and lives like a hermit in Jinja town.
His music style is different from the Kidandali beat many artistes thrive on. He has an amazing vocalisation that is bound to drag one into his songs like a religious experience.
His songs are just beautiful, even when one doesn’t understand the lyrics.
As if to atone for his prolonged absence and search for musical identity among his folks, Oryem, also a celebrated batik artist and Deejay, has sung for his motherland. His six-track album, An Abalo ngo (What have I done?) tells of a young man who commiserates with the plight of his suffering folks in northern Uganda. Even in the other tracks Kuc Myaka Kumi na Tisa (19 years of war) and An Freedom fighter (I am a freedom fighter), done in hard core rap and dance hall, the feeling is all there.
Oryem has no kind words for the Government and LRA’s Joseph Kony.
“My music is about life, peace and unity. If the gun has failed to end the war in the north, let us try the microphone,†he says.