Willis Austin Chimano (R) of Sauti Sol dances with a fan last Thursday. PHOTO BY EDDIE CHICCO.
Last Thursday evening was the third time Kenyan award winning group Sauti Sol performed in Uganda. Unlike the previous performances when they sang at Kampala Serena Hotel and Sheraton hotel respectively, this time they were in Club Guvnor for the inauguration of the Ciroc Frost Party.
Initially, there was speculation that the show would take place on the street near Guvnor just like it was during D’Banj’s show last year but management opted to have it inside the club.
Being a Thursday, people started accessing the hangout late but this in part was due to the fact that there were other shows happening that evening. For the few who passed by Guvnor before 1am, they were quick to think it a flop. We can forgive them for such assumptions because the club got full after 1.30am.
The guest performers came in at 2am when some people were actually tired of waiting but nevertheless, they were in a celebratory mood as the Sura yako artistes who came dressed in white attires, the dress code of the evening hit the stage.
They first paused for pictures on a blue carpet before entering the club. They were ushered in by comedian Salvado and first greeted the crowd before taking their seats.
Thirty minutes later, party goers received surprising news that Ali Kiba was also outside the club. The doubting Thomases rushed out to “see” for themselves. When he eventually got in the club that is when the party started. And when Sauti Sol got up, the air was ecstatic. They began with Live and Die in Africa then Nishike before doing other songs like Shake yo bam bam and Nipe nikupe. All this while randomly picking some ladies from the audience to dance with. They then invited the Aje musician with whom they performed their Unconditionally Bae that got the ladies screaming.
The musicians took a break and promised to return on stage after a few minutes but the audience had received much more than what they had bargained for as they continued dancing to the grooves by Deejays Brian and Selector Jay till the wee hours.
Going by the reception they received, Sauti Sol have joined the list of musicians like Shaggy, Nyanda and Konshens who have a crowd following whenever they come to Uganda for a show.
issejjombwe@ug.nationmedia.com