I had perhaps my first live music gig in Kigali last Sunday after months of huffing and puffing and threatening to hit the stage. This relatively low-key evening unfolded at a cool Resto-Bar in Kacyiru that I won’t name because in no part of my contract with them is it explicitly stated that I should go about blowing their trumpet here free of charge. Are you for real? That is the one question I had to endure with utmost fortitude from whoever had got wind of my plan. This is mainly because in my day-to-day discourse with them and even quite often here in Loose Talk, I’ve always insisted that I’m a music pro, and therefore nobody can teach me music. In fact, in one of the instances, I specifically stated that although I’ve been in the news business for almost an eternity and although I jumped into the music fray much later, somebody would rather teach me how to write a story than how to sing or what constitutes a good song. This is usually to the disgust of whoever I would have told this, hence the reason they saw the need to attend last weekend’s gig; they wanted to pour scorn on me and ‘diss’ and discredit me and soil my name. Others wondered if there was need for any further proof that I was finally running nuts. Meanwhile, the rapper, poet and blogger Eric 1Key liked the ‘about-last-night’s gig’ picture I posted on my Facebook and did not stop at just that, wondering “so you do dancehall?” This came as a little surprise to me because I didn’t expect that from 1Key because dude likes to rant and to kick butt like his pay cheque depends on it. A fellow journo recently told me this story; that if he were left alone with his gun and a single bullet on an island with 1Key as the only other inhabitant, he would use that last bullet to put Eric 1Key out of action. This can only mean that dude is mean and annoying. So the concert went well, though without its fair share of the usual surprises. I now understand and appreciate the hustle and the bullshit that local musicians must go through to put together a decent show. Imagine you dish out a free invite to this purported friend and then without any hesitation and without any remorse whatsoever, this person goes ahead to reel off a list of perks and benefits that should accompany the invite. As in, they want the drinks and the brochette to be on me as well. As if that is not insult enough, this person further demands that you must hit the stage to perform at the exact time that is convenient for them. Others wanted me to call them a few minutes to hitting the stage so that they could not “waste their time”. In the end, people really wanted to know my motivations for this apparently strange decision and I explained calmly away. I do music because I’m chosen and many say I’m chosen.
