Who’s on Uganda’s top 100 celebrity list?
Oct 29, 2010
MANY Ugandans, especially among the media, trash the idea that we have celebrities in this country. It is a pet kind of thing, if you are a writer and want to get noticed, bash a celebrity.
By Vision reporter
MANY Ugandans, especially among the media, trash the idea that we have celebrities in this country. It is a pet kind of thing, if you are a writer and want to get noticed, bash a celebrity. We forget that if there were not some kind of celebrities we would not be bashing them, anyway.
So, what makes a celebrity? According to Wikipedia.com, “... a celebrity (or celeb) is a person who is easily recognised in a society or culture. Generally speaking, a celebrity is someone who gets media attention.â€
Using those criteria, a loose measure of how many times a personality has appeared in the media between October 2009 and October 2010, the City Beat Magazine has released its second annual list of Uganda’s Top 100 celebrities.
Not surprising, the greatest number are musicians, almost 50%.
Bebe Cool has been more notorious than positive, but still that got him many mentions and appearances in the media, and he tops this year’s list of celebrities, tipping last year’s winner, Buganda’s Kabaka Ronald Mutebi, into second place.
Bobi Wine again nips Chameleone, and they are number three and four respectively. Double-gold medal winner Moses Kipsiro comes in 5th, but if his feat had come much earlier in the year he might have taken first place.
The duo Radio & Weasel follows Kipsiro in sixth place.
Former Blu3 member Cinderella Sanyu is the highest ranked female, at number seven, closely followed by hip hop artists GNL.
The highest climber, and a huge surprise, is Rachel K, who comes in at number nine. Apparently as many people hate her as love her, but all that adds up to a lot of media attention.
She is also one of three parent-offspring pairs, her mother Halima Namakula, coming in at 63.
Other pairs are Maggie Kigozi, chairperson of the Uganda Investment Authority, the highest ranked business person (12), and her son Navio (28); and the world’s youngest king, Omukama Oyo (14) and his mother Queen Best (56).
Patrick Bitature (33) is the second highest ranking business personality, followed by Sudhir Ruparelia (35), while fugitive businessman Michael Ezra is ranked 37, James Mulwana 40 and Gordon Wavamunno 46th.
David Obua (11), who plays professional soccer in Scotland, is the highest ranked sportsman not doing track, followed by Brian Umony (16), and rugby’s Robert Seguya (16).
In fact there are four rugby players in the top 100, including Allan Musoke (53), Timothy Mudoola (66), and Adrian Bukenya (79).
The only other soccer player ranked is the Cranes Captain Ibrahim Sekagya (26), who plays in Austria.
Last year’s top ranked female, Juliana Kanyomozi (6), has dropped to 25, while designer and African Woman proprietor Sylvia Owori drops from 10 to 46. Other designers are Sarah Kizito (56), Stella Atal (64), Xenson (79), and Santa Anzo (93).
Sanyu’s Fat Boy (71), beats last year’s top ranking radio presenter, Crystal Newman (78); other radio presenters featuring are Vision Voice’s Siima Sabiiti (85), and Capital Radio’s Allan Kasujja (93), and Alex Ndawula (100), who ties for the 100th place with singer Jamal Wasswa and Blu3 members Lillian Mbabazi and Mya Nganda. But then Blu3 as a group came in at 29.
Straka (46) and Big Brother housemate Hannington (64) are the only TV personalities that make it to the Top 100; Pablo Kimuli is top comedian (19).
Others making the list are Pastor Robert Kayanja (37), socialite Judith Heard (45), Bebe Cools’ wife Zuena (53), chef Salim Uhuru (56), fashion stylist Brenda Nanyonjo (93), and Peter ‘Dings’ Wacha (93), owner of SteakOut.
The entire list can be found in the November issue of City Beat, currently on the streets.
MANY Ugandans, especially among the media, trash the idea that we have celebrities in this country. It is a pet kind of thing, if you are a writer and want to get noticed, bash a celebrity. We forget that if there were not some kind of celebrities we would not be bashing them, anyway.
So, what makes a celebrity? According to Wikipedia.com, “... a celebrity (or celeb) is a person who is easily recognised in a society or culture. Generally speaking, a celebrity is someone who gets media attention.â€
Using those criteria, a loose measure of how many times a personality has appeared in the media between October 2009 and October 2010, the City Beat Magazine has released its second annual list of Uganda’s Top 100 celebrities.
Not surprising, the greatest number are musicians, almost 50%.
Bebe Cool has been more notorious than positive, but still that got him many mentions and appearances in the media, and he tops this year’s list of celebrities, tipping last year’s winner, Buganda’s Kabaka Ronald Mutebi, into second place.
Bobi Wine again nips Chameleone, and they are number three and four respectively. Double-gold medal winner Moses Kipsiro comes in 5th, but if his feat had come much earlier in the year he might have taken first place.
The duo Radio & Weasel follows Kipsiro in sixth place.
Former Blu3 member Cinderella Sanyu is the highest ranked female, at number seven, closely followed by hip hop artists GNL.
The highest climber, and a huge surprise, is Rachel K, who comes in at number nine. Apparently as many people hate her as love her, but all that adds up to a lot of media attention.
She is also one of three parent-offspring pairs, her mother Halima Namakula, coming in at 63.
Other pairs are Maggie Kigozi, chairperson of the Uganda Investment Authority, the highest ranked business person (12), and her son Navio (28); and the world’s youngest king, Omukama Oyo (14) and his mother Queen Best (56).
Patrick Bitature (33) is the second highest ranking business personality, followed by Sudhir Ruparelia (35), while fugitive businessman Michael Ezra is ranked 37, James Mulwana 40 and Gordon Wavamunno 46th.
David Obua (11), who plays professional soccer in Scotland, is the highest ranked sportsman not doing track, followed by Brian Umony (16), and rugby’s Robert Seguya (16).
In fact there are four rugby players in the top 100, including Allan Musoke (53), Timothy Mudoola (66), and Adrian Bukenya (79).
The only other soccer player ranked is the Cranes Captain Ibrahim Sekagya (26), who plays in Austria.
Last year’s top ranked female, Juliana Kanyomozi (6), has dropped to 25, while designer and African Woman proprietor Sylvia Owori drops from 10 to 46. Other designers are Sarah Kizito (56), Stella Atal (64), Xenson (79), and Santa Anzo (93).
Sanyu’s Fat Boy (71), beats last year’s top ranking radio presenter, Crystal Newman (78); other radio presenters featuring are Vision Voice’s Siima Sabiiti (85), and Capital Radio’s Allan Kasujja (93), and Alex Ndawula (100), who ties for the 100th place with singer Jamal Wasswa and Blu3 members Lillian Mbabazi and Mya Nganda. But then Blu3 as a group came in at 29.
Straka (46) and Big Brother housemate Hannington (64) are the only TV personalities that make it to the Top 100; Pablo Kimuli is top comedian (19).
Others making the list are Pastor Robert Kayanja (37), socialite Judith Heard (45), Bebe Cools’ wife Zuena (53), chef Salim Uhuru (56), fashion stylist Brenda Nanyonjo (93), and Peter ‘Dings’ Wacha (93), owner of SteakOut.
The entire list can be found in the November issue of City Beat, currently on the streets.