Just a year ago, performing on a big stage with a big name artiste was a distant and hazy dream for Victor Rukotana (real name Mporera Victor). It was some kind of wishful thinking. 

His dreams however came to fruition last year, when he participated in a music talent search competition dubbed ID Competition. ID is a music management label owned by local musician King James. Rukotana performed well and was among the two winners selected from the competition. 

"We did so many gigs and projects with King James,” he recalls with pride. 

But more doors were yet to open for him as shortly after that, he enrolled for another talent search contest called the Abbey Star Project. 

"It was a music competition organized by some Indians. There were three judges and Intore Masamba was one of them and that’s how I met him,” he reveals. 

Noticing the young man’s talent, Masamba soon offered him a place in Gakondo Group.

"It was like a dream come true. All my life I had dreamt of the day I could meet that man and the day I would perform with him on the same stage,” Rukotana reveals with pride. 

The 20 year-old is currently studying Journalism and Mass Communication at the Catholic Institute of Kabgayi. 

He was born and bred in Ngoma District in the Eastern Province, where his parents still live to this day. Being a staunch Christian family, his parents enrolled him in Sunday school at an early age, and when he grew up he joined the worship team "where I learnt so much about music”.

Since April this year when he met Masamba, Rukotana has been singing with the Gakondo Group, of which he speaks highly;

"The best part about being with Gakondo Group is having a permanent venue where I can sing every Friday. It’s not easy to find an artiste who can sing as often as he wants. If you’re not invited you can’t perform so you stay at home and practice. But with Gakondo I have where to perform, even at government events and at weddings so with Gakondo I’m getting much experience. 

Gakondo is there to help me give my fans what they want. I perform for them live, because in Gakondo there is no playback, so it helps me in many ways because it’s a big brand, so when you tell someone you’re from Gakondo Group, it opens doors for you.” 

So does he perform only with the group?

"Of course you can invite me to perform as a solo artiste and I’ll make it. Even at weddings I sometimes perform alone. So I’m with Gakondo when we are making something for Gakondo.”

In September this year he took a decision to launch his own career as a bona fide musician. He recorded his first single, Yabare. 

"Yebare comes from the Runyankore word called Webare which means Thank you. It’s a love song in which I’m thanking a girl. 

The radios played it. Journalists gave me their views about it and I got many hits on Youtube even though the song has no video clip yet,” he reveals. Like many upcoming musicians, financial problems are a major hurdle to cope with. 

"While planning to make a video for Yebare, I said to myself; why wait when I can even make another song? 

The result was his follow-up single, Inzozi (dreams). 

"Inzozi is the story of my friend and it’s also a love story. It’s a story about a girl who this friend used to be in love with,” he explains, adding that the song got a warmer reception that the first. 

While Yebare is done in Afro beat style, Inzozi is smooth RnB with some Rumba influences, giving it that lazy and balmy Zouk-ish feel. 

Currently he is pre-occupied with looking for money to shoot video clips for the two singles, as well as out more audio tracks that are currently in studio. 

Rukotana’s poetic side:

Rukotana’s other artistic calling is poetry, although he is quick to admit that music comes first. It’s actually at poetry slam events that I first met him, the latest being the Transpoesis poetry event at the Impact Hub in Kigali at the beginning of last month. 

"Poetry helps me to think twice about my music because when you’re writing a song you sometimes have to come out of your own clothes and wear those of another person like I did in the song Inzozi. It’s like I’m the one who is dreaming and thinking about that girl … then I composed a good song. That’s where the poetry aspect comes in.”

He first discovered this poetic side while still with Mashirika Performing Arts and Media Company where he was an actor. His exploits at Mashirika actually earned him acting roles in two Hillywood short films; Beautiful Exchange, and Running.

Still, he finds poems harder to write than music.

"Poetry needs some strategic effort and wisdom to compose. I want to do music professionally and poetry I will only do it when someone contacts me to make them a poem.” 

Rukotana believes that he is at the toughest stage of his musical journey;

"It’s hard to start music, to convince people. When people see you written about in the newspapers or being played on the radio they start to think that you have already made it, but that’s not the case. I ask my fans to support me because I know what I want and I know where I’m going. So support me in whatever way that you can, even if it means prayers.”

editorial@newtimes.co.rw