Bright Itangishaka, known as ‘Karyuri’, is undeniably catching a glimpse of his promising future. Together with 11 other kids, their popularity in Rwanda, and the region, continues to rise. Under the name ‘Kanazi Talent’, their video dubbed ‘African kids dancing Afro Beat’ reached 33 million views on YouTube within 11 months. They come second to Meddy, whose song ‘Slowly’ has 55 million views so far. Kanazi’s videos caught the attention of the aforementioned artiste, real name Medard Jobert Ngabo, in 2020, when Itangishaka made a dance video to one of the singer’s songs. Meddy is said to have even sponsored him in school and facilitated a meet-up with his own producer, Lick Lick, who has been doing Itangishaka’s team’s videos since. Safi Munanira, the group’s manager, with Kanazi Talent crew. “He didn’t only support us financially, he also keeps providing guidance and advice as someone who has been in the industry for a long time now,” says Safi Munanira, Itangishaka’s coach and manager. Munanira is a university student and former neighbour of Itangishaka in Kanazi-Bugesera where the latter still lives. He says he was the first to recognise Itangishaka’s talent, and decided to teach him some moves, which they later started to film and upload. Nine-year-old Bright Itangishaka, a pioneer of the group “We used to dance together when we first started, but our difference in height is so significant, which was not helping in the video’s aesthetics, so I let him dance alone. In addition, he was gaining more visibility, so I decided to keep helping him (as a manager) as I had initially planned to do,” shares Munanira. “The money we make from YouTube has allowed me to pay not only Itangishaka’s school fees, but also the other kids who are part of the team. Most of them live with their parents, but they are from poor backgrounds, so being able to cater for school and their basic needs is a really good development for them and their families,” he adds. Itangishaka is now nine years old in Primary 2 and lives with his grandmother. The rest of the team are between the ages of 8 to 15. Munanira is, with the consent of the kids’ parents, their spokesperson, because given how young they are, they are protected from bad publicity. “I don’t have any other dream except to become the best dancer in the world. I love dancing and I’m happy to hear that many people know me. I’m grateful to all the people who help and support me,” Itangishaka says. His counterpart, 10-year-old Esther Isezerano in Primary 4, says, “I discovered my talent in 2020, after which I joined Kanazi. I love what I do because I made friends out of it. I want us to become very rich.” Members of Kanazi Talent. Annet Uwambajimana is one of the older kids in the group, currently in S4 doing Math, Chemistry and Biology. She says she never imagined she could make a living from dancing. “I used to receive compliments about the way I dance but it all fell into place after joining the group. I hope, and cannot wait, to collaborate with some of the greatest dancers in the world,” she says. Challenges Munanira shares that the biggest challenge that his team of young dancers faces is a lack of support from their community back home. “It might sadly be out of jealousy because not all the community is happy about our success. Some even refuse to give us space to practice or shoot from, or even complain that we are making noise or bothering them, when it’s obviously not the case” he says. Way forward “We produce a new video twice a month and we will keep giving it our best. We are looking forward to learning and collaborating with international dancers. It will probably be Ghana, which is where the best dancers in Africa are from, for starters. I believe this will allow us to grow and become even better at what we do,” Munanira says. “I’m planning on recruiting an even bigger number of talented but less privileged kids in my surroundings. We want to create a platform which can facilitate that dream and for that, we welcome any form of support,” he adds. “The only thing we request Rwandans that is very dear to our hearts is to keep being our prime support system. Keep watching our videos, liking and sharing. Keep recognising and giving space to new talents,” he says. Asked if they are able to maintain balance between studies and dancing, Itangishaka says, “Dancing does not distract me from studying, or the others. I also do well in school and I don’t intend to quit any of the two.”
