What next for Meddy after a memorable homecoming?

After a memorable homecoming concert at the Mutzig beerfest in Nyamata last weekend, Meddy, born Médard Jobert Ngabo, did not jet back to the U.S, where he is based. Instead, the Ntawamusimbura hit maker intends to stage more concerts that will see him traverse all the far corners of the country in coming weeks. Proud to be Rwandan; Meddy clad in a Made in Rwanda t-shirt. File. After several efforts to reach him were futile as his local phone number was off, we were finally able to trace Meddy on his U.S phone number, and he suggested we meet at the Gikondo based Narrow Road Studio, owned by celebrated audio producer Pastor P. Asked what he was up to in studio he retorted; “It’s a pleasure for me to be back home and doing what I love to do. I’m going to work with different producers and artistes here so as to try and get into it again with the people here. It’s a pleasure to work with them and just raise the music industry together.” The R&B crooner is just slightly over a week in the country, having jetted in on August 26. His first and main assignment was the Mutzig Beer Fest at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Nyamata on September 2. I ask him what kept him away from home so long -seven years to be exact. “I’ve always wanted to do something big. It doesn’t take just one, two or three years to do something big. So it had to take me a little while to get ready and to put things together and to find the right people and the right connections and I think it was worth the wait.” Before his Beer Fest appearance, Meddy had the privilege of soaking in so much love from fans, friends and family alike, right from when he walked out of the arrivals lounge at the Kigali International Airport. “At some point I had a little hope that they (fans) never really forget me because I always keep up with my friends, my people and my country. I keep releasing songs that they like, so I somehow remain in their hearts and minds. But yes it was a surprise at the airport because I wasn’t expecting so many people.” At the Beer Fest, Meddy staged a memorable performance backed by a live band from the Nyundo School of Music, of which he speaks highly. It was a case of hard work paying off, as the singer reveals that he totally immersed himself in rehearsals the first week: “I was just in practice and I didn’t even see my family the whole time, I only saw them once. The second time I met them was backstage.” About the Nyundo live band that backed him he says; “Those kids are so good, I mean they’re geniuses. We only practiced for one week, and look at what they did. It was just amazing. It was so fast because they knew what they were doing and I knew what I wanted, so we connected right away and made it happen.” After the success of his first show, he is not in a rush to catch the first flight back to the US. If anything, he is very much still around: “The biggest thing was my first show. That was something I was looking forward to and trying to make it beautiful and big. Now I’m back to my normal life and so I’m going to be here for a few more weeks, but even when I eventually go back to the US, I will still return here. I plan to have a show here like every year.” The singer assures his fans of more concerts to come before he eventually returns to the US: “We are planning a tour with Airtel; I want to go to all those far corners of the country so that I see every fan out there because the Beer Fest show was really for Kigali people so I want to go out there in the countryside to make sure I satisfy everybody.” Away from the music, Meddy is using the rest of his time to reconnect with his motherland after such a long sabbatical in the US. “I’m just catching up with every change in the country; so many things have changed, people have changed, and mindsets have changed. The Rwanda I knew seven years ago is not the Rwanda of today. Everything has changed, so I’m just trying to catch up and to learn the best places to be and the people to hang out with –it’s just like everything changed and I love it. Rwanda is a moving country and it’s really moving so fast and to be honest I was so pleasantly suprised with everything.” editorial@newtimes.co.rw

Entertainment

What next for Meddy after a memorable homecoming?