Renowned street artist Abdul Rwigema has painted a mural of Jay Polly, a local hip-hop legend who passed away on September 2, to keep his memory alive. Jay Polly’s mural comes to life at a time where Kigali is experiencing a boost in street art and an increase of murals in the city of Kigali. According to Rwigema, the main message of the mural is to keep his legacy through art, so that even the ones who didn’t get a chance to know him get to see visuals of one of the most iconic rappers on the hip-hop scene in Rwanda. “I want all music lovers and Rwandans to remember Jay, by not only thinking about him, but also seeing his face on a daily basis. This will help even the next generation to know more about him,” he says. According to Rwigema, the inspiration to paint a picture of Jay Polly on the street came from different tributes that poured in for the artiste, coming from fellow musicians, like the all-star song and a track that Riderman released to commemorate him. “Jay’s death was painful because I was a big fan. I then decided to honour him through painting because he was also a top player in the industry of visual arts,” says Rwigema. This is not the only mural that will be painted to remember Jay Polly, but one of many others that are going to be put in different places of the country, targeting bigger buildings, according to Rwigema. The fast-rising street artist has worked on different other murals around Kigali, and calls people to adopt this style of art, since it influences a big number of people, and is not costly. The mural, located in Kicukiro District, in a neighbourhood nicknamed ‘Mushumbamwiza’, has already won the admiration of many people in Kigali.
