Mighty Popo to head new music school

Award-winning Rwandan artiste Jacques Murigande, aka Mighty Popo will be the first head of a new Music department at SAM, (School of Art and Music) in Rubavu district. The new department is set to open in January next year. The school, formerly known as Nyundo School of Arts was established before the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. “We want to professionalise the music industry in Rwanda and the idea of starting a music school is one whose time has come. We have talented kids who can go along way with music if they receive proper mentoring while they are still young,” Murigande revealed.The school will be Rwanda’s grooming ground for music stars. Upcoming Musicians will also benefit from the facility. “We want to professionalise the music industry in Rwanda and the idea of starting a music school is one whose time has come. We have talented kids who can go along way with music if they receive proper mentoring while they are still young,” Murigande revealed.He says the music school will provide music skills, including singing, playing instruments and writing songs. Murigande noted adding that the government through the ministry of education has invested a lot of money to ensure that the music school becomes a reality. The Workforce Development Authority (WDA) sponsored school will recruit talented young musicians from 9 years of age. .“There’s already a fully-fledged arts and music school in Nyundo, Rubavu District where we are going to establish a music department. This new development is under the auspices of TVET and is one of the initiatives geared towards achieving Vision 2020.”Mighty Popo, who recently came back to Rwanda after spending more than two decades in Canada, says that in a number of Western countries, they develop young talents in different fields so that a kid grows up knowing what he or she wants to achieve in life, and that’s a model the music school wants to also achieve in Rwanda.The youths and children have welcomed the establishment of SAM, saying that the government is moving in the right direction to tap and nurture their talents.

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Mighty Popo to head new music school