KALIBALA’s STAR IS RISING
<br>She stills continues to be an underrated talent, striving just to get hired to perform. But, make no mistake. Singer Priscilla Kalibala is definitely on her way up.
By Sebidde Kiryowa
She stills continues to be an underrated talent, striving just to get hired to perform. But, make no mistake. Singer Priscilla Kalibala is definitely on her way up.
She surfaced on the local music scene in 2004 when she released a four-track compilation. However, it was in 2005 that she made a palpable impact.
Guminkiriza, probably one of the most heavily rotated local songs on Sanyu FM last year topped the station’s East Africa’s Finest. It also topped CBS FM’s Coca Coca Countdown. Meanwhile, the video of the song has featured a lot on EATV and WBS TV.
Guminkiriza, which can broadly be classified as the usual Afro-beat fare, tackles the issue of long distance relationships. Kalibala talks of the pain of not seeing her lover, who is in the UK, but assures him of her devotion.
After the success of Guminkiriza, Kalibala attained the level of recognition she needed to get around.
Hot on the heels of Guminkiriza is another chartbuster Mwana Gwe, off her eight-track debut album Let’s Pray For Africa.
Produced by Good Enuff Productions, Mwana Gwe is an uptempo Afro-beat song. Released less than two months ago, it has already made number one on East Africa Radio. It has also scaled charts on EATV and Sanyu FM.
For Kalibala, the most obvious benefit of the spotlight her songs have suddenly cast her in would be to get enlisted by concert and music festival promoters. That however, is proving a bit of a tall order.
“Becoming a working artiste in Uganda is increasingly becoming challenging because of the competition. Promoters usually rush for artistes who will draw in audiences. It is hard for an upcoming artiste to hold up,†she says.
However, Kalibala also thinks that her relative low profile is no cause for alarm at this stage in her career.
“I don’t think my career has really kicked off. I have been more of a dancer than a singer. It will all happen in good time.â€
That notwithstanding, Kalibala has had quite a workload this season. She performed at most of the Christmas and New Year’s festivals in town where she made a big impact on revellers.
As she continues to make an impact on the local music scene, Kalibala hopes that both promoters and corporates can appreciate her talent enough to hire her.
Like the majority of Kalibala’s other songs, Nkwagala Nyo (sang in Luganda and Swahili) and Let’s Pray For Africa (an English track in the league of the mid 1980s South African vibes), Guminkiriza was done by notable producer Joe Tabula.
The exception is Kalibala’s flagship single, Dancing. This is an afrozouk/socca treat, which attained moderate radio and dance floor success. It was produced by Eric Mushoka, the Kenyan producer behind the defunct Kenyan Coca Cola Popstars trio, Sema.
She stills continues to be an underrated talent, striving just to get hired to perform. But, make no mistake. Singer Priscilla Kalibala is definitely on her way up.
She surfaced on the local music scene in 2004 when she released a four-track compilation. However, it was in 2005 that she made a palpable impact.
Guminkiriza, probably one of the most heavily rotated local songs on Sanyu FM last year topped the station’s East Africa’s Finest. It also topped CBS FM’s Coca Coca Countdown. Meanwhile, the video of the song has featured a lot on EATV and WBS TV.
Guminkiriza, which can broadly be classified as the usual Afro-beat fare, tackles the issue of long distance relationships. Kalibala talks of the pain of not seeing her lover, who is in the UK, but assures him of her devotion.
After the success of Guminkiriza, Kalibala attained the level of recognition she needed to get around.
Hot on the heels of Guminkiriza is another chartbuster Mwana Gwe, off her eight-track debut album Let’s Pray For Africa.
Produced by Good Enuff Productions, Mwana Gwe is an uptempo Afro-beat song. Released less than two months ago, it has already made number one on East Africa Radio. It has also scaled charts on EATV and Sanyu FM.
For Kalibala, the most obvious benefit of the spotlight her songs have suddenly cast her in would be to get enlisted by concert and music festival promoters. That however, is proving a bit of a tall order.
“Becoming a working artiste in Uganda is increasingly becoming challenging because of the competition. Promoters usually rush for artistes who will draw in audiences. It is hard for an upcoming artiste to hold up,†she says.
However, Kalibala also thinks that her relative low profile is no cause for alarm at this stage in her career.
“I don’t think my career has really kicked off. I have been more of a dancer than a singer. It will all happen in good time.â€
That notwithstanding, Kalibala has had quite a workload this season. She performed at most of the Christmas and New Year’s festivals in town where she made a big impact on revellers.
As she continues to make an impact on the local music scene, Kalibala hopes that both promoters and corporates can appreciate her talent enough to hire her.
Like the majority of Kalibala’s other songs, Nkwagala Nyo (sang in Luganda and Swahili) and Let’s Pray For Africa (an English track in the league of the mid 1980s South African vibes), Guminkiriza was done by notable producer Joe Tabula.
The exception is Kalibala’s flagship single, Dancing. This is an afrozouk/socca treat, which attained moderate radio and dance floor success. It was produced by Eric Mushoka, the Kenyan producer behind the defunct Kenyan Coca Cola Popstars trio, Sema.