Lionel Richie. PHOTO/ REUTERS
Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Mr Norbert Mao on Tuesday revealed that American singer, producer and writer Lionel Richie is coming to Uganda for a performance in the Adventure of humanity concert.
The Democratic Party (DP) principal and former presidential contender said this in a press conference at the Uganda Media Centre, stirring excitement and debate on social media and mainstream media.
“Lionel Richie is coming to Gulu in June. And sister Sledge is also going to be performing in the same concert. Why Gulu, because this concert is about repairing the world. It’s about climate change. It’s about uniting the world,” Mr Mao said.
The concert will be held at Kaunda Grounds, with official authorisation granted by the mayor of Gulu City. The permit for the use of the venue has been approved for May 30 to June 9 marking this as a historic occasion for Gulu.
We have, however, learnt that during the said period, Richie will be on his ‘Say Hello to the hits 2025’ tour which will be commencing on Saturday May 31 to Saturday 2 August.
The three months tour will see him performing in Belfast, Dublin, Glasgow, London, Netherlands, German, France and Portugal, among others.
The artiste’s official travel schedule indicate that he will be starting his tour on 31 May at SSE Arena Belfast, then head to 3Arena, Dublin on June 1st. On June 4th, he will be performing at the Ovo Hydro in Glasgow before he heads to The 02, London on June 6. On June 8, he will be at the Utilita Arena Sheffield while on June 9 he will be at the Utilita Arena Birmingham.
It’s against this background that some Ugandan revelers have questioned the credibility of the minister’s announcement about Richie’s visit.