Great beginnings: 2022, Eddy Kenzo became a Grammy nominee for the Best Global Music performance for the song Gimme Love alongside American RnB artiste Matt B. Although the singer did not bring the Grammy home at the weekend, the opportunity open doors for him and Ugandan music.
When Eddy Kenzo recorded Sitya Loss with Diggy Baur in 2013 and later released it at the beginning of 2014, he may not have known how far the song could go.
Yet, shortly after it went viral and a BET Award later, the man’s career changed for good.
Last week, seven years after his win at the BET Awards in 2015, Eddy Kenzo was back in the US for yet another award show – the Grammy Awards.
In 2022, Eddy Kenzo became a Grammy nominee for the Best Global Music performance for the song Gimme Love alongside American RnB artiste Matt B.
Gimme Love was nominated alongside Arooj Aftab’s Udhero, Rocky Dawuni’s Neva Bow Down, the thought favorite Burna Boy for Last Last and the eventual winner, Nomcebo Zikode, Zakes Bantwini and Wouter Kellerman for Bayethe.
Bayethe is a single by singer Nomcebo Zikode, the voice that gave the world the lockdown song, Jerusalema alongside Master KG, who has been embattled for the past few years.
For much of that time, she was suing Master KG’s label, Open Mic, for not paying her due for contribution on the two versions of Jerusalema; the original and remix with Burna Boy. While giving her acceptance speech, she talked about giving the world a big song and never getting a nomination at the time.
Nomcebo was a nominee for the first time and in many ways seemed an outsider compared to last year’s winner Arooj Aftab or Burna Boy and Rocky Dawuni who have been nominated elsewhere before.
Yet, even when Nomcebo had never been around the Grammy family, with a thought after collaboration with Wouter Keller, a South African composer, flautist, and producer, her stakes raised.
His world-renown status has earned him invitations to perform at high-profile events in France, Australia, China, India, and Russia. He has previously won a Grammy for Winds of Samsara, his 2014 collaborative album with Indian composer and producer, Ricky Kej.
Raising stakes is definitely what Matt B, Eddy Kenzo’s partner on Gimme Love did both for themselves and the local music industry.
Like it was the case with the BET Awards, after Radio and Weasel’s nomination in 2013, every Ugandan artiste started working towards winning something.
This saw an upgrade in both audio and video productions.
There was almost a big debate when Eddy Kenzo’s nomination was announced, there was a school of thought that he was the first Ugandan to get a Grammy Award nomination, while others stretched the mark from Somi to Michael Kiwanuka to remind people that some people have done it before.
Yet, even when Somi and Kiwanuka could be farfetched, various artistes that identify as a Jews community from Uganda were featured on a John Servies’ album, Abayudaya: The Music of the Jews of Uganda, for Smithsonian Folkways, non-profit record label of the Smithsonian Institution.
The 2004 album was nominated for the Best Traditional World Music album for the Grammy Awards ceremony that was held at the beginning of 2005.
Will Kenzo have another shot?
But just like the Ugandan Jews, even Kenya and many African countries’ Grammy nominees and winners have been strange to music listeners in the countries they come from.
For instance, before Burna Boy, WizKid and Tems won Grammy Awards for Nigeria, only Sikiru Adepoju had won it for the country.
But the three have been the first mainstream Nigerian artistes to bring the accolade home and so is Kenzo for Uganda.
This opens up the industry in more than one way; knowing that one does not have to be exotic or play a traditional instrument to win or get nominated for the award.
Of course, no one knows whether Kenzo will get another nomination but a fact that he has been nominated, many things are likely to play in his favour thereafter.
The year 2014 was a career-bending year for Eddy Kenzo, who released Sitya Loss, a song that later became viral and gave him a BET nomination a year later. After tasting some international success, he did not want to let it go that he has been strategic and collaborating with people that matter.
For an artiste who surprised himself with Stamina and later Sitya Loss, there are chances he still has the creative juice to get a Grammy nomination again, directly or through a collaboration.
The Grammy voting system is a mess. With thousands of voters around the world, it is very possible many of them do not understand half the categories for which awards are given out.
Because the voting base is large and semi-unregulated, the absolute best way to win a Grammy is to gain enough name recognition that the voters will know you by reputation and check off your name.
With Kenzo already a nominated artiste, his name rings a bell among Grammy voters if he chooses to submit music for consideration later this year.
Ugandan music
But for Kenzo’s blessing to spread, collective effort is needed.
For instance, when Burna Boy got his first nomination at the end of 2019, many Nigerians in the music business saw the importance of becoming members of the academy.
To become a member of the academy, one has to be recommended by a member of the academy or someone working in the music industry.
Between Burna Boy’s Twice as Tall win in 2021 and July 2022, a number of Nigeria artistes were accepted into the academy.
Veteran Nigerian singer and songwriter, Tito Da Fire, rapper and Big Brother Naija winner, Laycon, music executive Bizzle Osikoyaas, and stars, Ikuforiji Olaitan Abdulrahman aka Oxlade, and Praise Ugbede Adejo aka Praiz all joined the academy as voting members of the class of 2022.
This was a year after other artistes, DJ Spinal, Bankuli and gospel songstress Osinach Egbu, alias Sinach, joined the academy, also as a voting member.
Kenya at the moment has two voting members, brothers and Jabali Afrika members Joseck Asikoye and Justo Asikoye.
Most of the time, the bigger the representation at the big table, the bigger the chances of having people familiar with an artiste and their sound.
Nigeria has lately been very serious about joining international academies with more than 10 filmmakers from the country joining the Oscar academy in the past three years.
Thus to begin dreaming of a nomination, Uganda like many other African countries, needs more seats on the table.
On the production side of things, artistes need to understand the importance of producing quality music over hit songs. Collaborations and message in the music are key.
Motalani Alake, a Nigerian music expert, says when it comes to the Grammy Awards, sales and popularity do not matter, thus the music must be intentional.
“On Twice as Tall, Burna Boy created an album tailored to win a Grammy Award, he was very particular with the message and collaborations, he basically sacrificed hits for a Grammy,” he says.
Alake says things Burna Boy sang about, such as gun violence in Real Life alongside British rapper Stomzy and Monsters You Made alongside multi-Grammy award winning Chris Martin, the frontman of Coldplay were not meant for the Nigerian audience.
The song is a fiery rebuke to European colonialism in Africa, which finds Burna Boy tackling miseducation, systemic racism and social unrest.
These projects were not meant for the Nigerian audience, they tapped into the conversations that were making rounds in the West and Burna Boy managed to make himself a poster boy for such a message.
What next for African music?
The Grammy Awards that took place at the weekend will not turn African or Ugandan music into an immediate success but will open doors.
For instance, Burna Boy’s successful album Love Damini lost to Masa Takumi’s Sakura, and there was outcry that the academy probably does not understand Afrobeats that much.
The same sentiment had been shared by supermodel Naomi Campbell in 2020 after Burna Boy had lost for his album African Giant.
According to Justo Asikoye, one of the Kenyan academy voting members, African members are trying to come together to campaign for an African leg of the Grammy Awards.
If this is successful, that means Africa will be able to host a fully-fledged African ceremony the same way the Grammy Latin Academy does. But there are also plans to include an Afrobeat category for the future.
All these, however, can only be achieved if Africa at large has more seats at the table.
For now, win or lose, Africa still benefits from the platform that is the Grammy Awards. For instance, in 2021, when WizKid won a Grammy Award for Best Video alongside Beyonce, his video of Essence’s viewership increased by a million on YouTube, since his nomination almost two months ago, Eddy Kenzo and Matt B’s nominated enjoyed a bump on streaming services and so did Kenzo’s entire catalogue.
After winning over Eddy Kenzo, Nomcebo, whose song was at 148,000 views on YouTube, had a Grammy bump to more than 250,000 views in two days.
But besides sales, some artistes gain socially, more followers and recognition, it even becomes easier for some artistes to bargain for a better deal after a nomination for a win.
A win-win situation even when you lose.
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