Jaq
In an industry where the ability to communicate is almost everything, a song just may be that little bit harder to sell, if many listeners will not hear what is sang. And yet it is also very true that the language of music is universal, in the sense that even if your ears cannot pick a thing, your musical receptors will be humming away in sync with the music, which is why many a Ugandan enjoy the kadodi dance or Jamaican music, even when they cannot decipher a thing it says. Good music knows no language barrier.
It is not yet clear which route KFM presenter, Jaq Deweyi’s single, Okawamunabi, will take. It is an Afro-beat do, with a familiar rhythm to any Ragga and Zouk consumers. Jaq seems keen to stick to her roots and it helps her sound authentic and in her natural set. Her voice does not sound misplaced or stretched beyond its auditory habitats.
She is singing in Gishu, offering lines of inspiration to the tune of “don’t give up,” and “God will see you through.” She even spares a line for landslide-stricken Bududa and its people, saying God will protect them. The song will make you realise just how little a music contribution has been made by the Mount Elgon region to national charts. And you will wish that with this song, that trend will change.