I’m here to change the game, says Mako Nikoshwa

I want to change the concept of album launches in Rwanda. Launching albums after every month is not a sign of strength. It’s a sign that what you are producing is rubbish, so you have to keep coming up with something new.”Mako Nikoshwa was born and raised in Uganda. He has lived in Uganda most of his adult life, and is fluent in both English and Luganda, the most widely used languages there. He has got songs in the two languages to attest to this fact. After his career took off and blossomed in Uganda, Nikoshwa made a decision that deeply saddened and disappointed many of his Ugandan fans and well-wishers. That decision was deciding to sing in his native tongue, Kinyarwanda. His fans argued that his new songs would not generate as much interest as those in English. Mako was soon in a dilemma; between a rock and a hard place, like they say. He had to choose between pleasing his Ugandan fans, and following his heart and intuition to sing in his mother tongue. He chose to follow his heart, and explains why: “Music is culture, and the backbone of any culture is its language.” He pauses thoughtfully, then adds, “There is nothing in this life sweeter than doing music that is your soul.”The first thing you will notice about Mako on meeting him is his deep, booming voice. Then you will also notice that such a mega voice comes from the lungs of a pencil-thin man. Citing the example of singer Jose Chameleone of Uganda, who is his good friend, he jokes that a deep and gruff voice like his can only come out of the body of a tiny man. He describes himself and Chameleone as ‘stick people.’ Blessed with a voiceHearing this man sing or even speak, you will think he has a turbo-powered sound-box in his throat! God was really generous with Nikoshwa when he gave him a voice. And the singer has not sat back to lay his God-given gift to waste. Of all compliments he receives from fans, his ‘million-dollar voice’ takes the biggest percentage. And it is not just fans that recognize his monster voice. While recording a song at No End studios in Kampala in 2007, a female artiste, Halima Namakula, walked in and instantly fell for Mako’s voice. That was the year of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kampala, and Namakula had a deal to perform for the delegates. She immediately asked Mako to record a CHOGM song with her. “We did a song titled Kuliya na Kushoto. We were saying, Mama Africa, let’s move forward, left and right,” he says.“We did two shows for the delegates and they were impressed. All in all, it was a very special day for me because it was a very big event,” he adds. His voice did not stop at that in doing wonders for Mako. Shortly after, Kayibanda, a popular Ugandan comedian approached him with a request for a collabo. The result was the hit song, Maria Rosa, which was a hit both in Kigali and Kampala. Then the owner of the studio, on hearing Mako’s vocal prowess, asked the star to record a six-track album at the studio, for which he earned a cool UGshs3.6m. In just ten days, Mako was done voicing all the six songs!His take on musicHe describes music as “just organised noise”, and explains that “it’s the way you organise that noise that makes it music.”He wants to be remembered for his music, which he says is mostly about fairness and truth. “To me, fairness is better than truth,” he concludes. Here to change the gameMako is convinced that the time is now for Rwandan artistes to change people’s perceptions about their own musicians. “In Rwanda, people used to take young local artistes as wannabes out to dilute the country’s rich culture with concepts adopted from foreign artistes. Local artistes were the people who performed for booze and food, so they were despised,” he laments. “I’ve come up with a middle position which embraces both culture and modernity in my sound. Maybe I’ve not been working very well with the local radios, so I may also have to look into that. I want to change the concept of album launches in Rwanda. Launching albums after every month is not a sign of strength. It’s a sign that what you are producing is rubbish, so you have to keep coming up with something new.”He has his eyes set on at least four mega concerts every year. “It is time to show my countrymen that in Rwanda, there are some artistes who are doing music professionally, as opposed to wannabes, who are the majority. My fans have been wondering if I’m planning to leave music. I’m not leaving music. I want to change Rwandan music by changing the game. What I’m trying to do is bigger than what fans expect out of me, so I have to plan.”

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I’m here to change the game, says Mako Nikoshwa