Bella comes of age

May 12, 2006

Hundreds of revellers last Friday stopped referring to Bella Ndagire as the former Shadows’ Angel and begun considering her as the new kid on the local pop music block.

Hundreds of revellers last Friday stopped referring to Bella Ndagire as the former Shadows’ Angel and begun considering her as the new kid on the local pop music block. That was at the G-Power concert at Steak Out, where Bella launched her maiden album, Bwooba Oli Nange. Her dance strokes and vocal prowess sent the audience wild.

Performing Faasi, the hottest dancehall track off the album, Bella pranced and leaped across the stage, while belting out to the hard-hitting beats! Faasi definitely has the hooks that all party animals seek.

That said, the true allure of Faasi is the singer herself. Her voice, tacked high on top of the percussive beats, sounds impressive. More so her rapid-fire delivery.

Bella is not new in the music business. She has hit it big time on the radio charts before. Her Annekutte, a duet with Yvette Seguya had everyone all over town buzzing in 2003. She has frequented late-night jams all over the city and awed crowds at several street bashes. But last Friday, was definitely a highpoint of her music career.

Unlike the extremely popular Faasi, the title track to Bella’s new album flows along a much softer pulse. Bwoba Oli Nange is so smooth it almost slips away! In the song, Bella layers an earthy seductive voice and immediately hummable tunes to produce an R‘n’B hit.

But while Faasi is raging in all discotheques, Bwoba Oli Nange is doing the same on the radio charts. Bella’s new nine-track album is guaranteed to absorb any listener from start to finish. It brings a variety of music traditions in the mix. Come on Galz, featuring Trishla, is typical Afro-Caribbean dancehall that could easily be mistaken for a hit by Patra.

My Lover, featuring Bobi Wine is a feel-good blend of Afrobeat and reggae. It is such a spontaneous record that will have listeners nodding their heads and tapping their feet.

The beats for Don’t Leave seem as if they just came out of South Africa, by way of the Dream Studios. The man’s tones give the song more gusto. Again, the song will leave one wondering at Bella’s musical versatility.

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