Mesach Semakula’s musical trip

What you need to know:

At the time, Umaru Katumba was a big music star and Semakula was his fan. One day, an advert went out calling for talented youngsters to join Katumba’s band. The auditions were at Pride Theatre, Kampala. Semakula went in as one of the contestants

In 1993, Mesach Semakula was in Senior Two (S.2) at Kampala Secondary School. He had a dream of playing football up to the professional levels but he was no good player. Music was his other love and he had not given it enough time and consideration.

At the time, Umaru Katumba was a big music star and Semakula was his fan. One day, an advert went out calling for talented youngsters to join Katumba’s band. The auditions were at Pride Theatre, Kampala. Semakula went in as one of the contestants.

“I had always wanted to sing. I felt I had the talent but I was neither in the school nor church choir. I was active as a footballer but not good at it. I tried boxing but I was beaten and gave up that dream too,” Semakula explains about his childhood passions.

In S.4, his school was high in spirit preparing for the inter-secondary school music dance and drama competitions.

First attempt
It so happened that one student who was performing an item that involved singing and playing the drums simultaneously, got sick. The school fell in a panic.

During the rehearsals, Semakula asked the music tutor to allow him try at performing the said item.
“He dismissed me because I was a stubborn fellow. He even wanted to slap me but I kept asking him to give me a chance. He feared I would shame the school. When I sat down to start singing and drumming. My peers went wild in frenzy. They were surprised and excited,” an elated Semakula recounts. They went on and won the competitions.

So when the date for auditions came for youngsters to show face at Pride Theatre, Semakula showed up among the 460 hopefuls, anticipating joining Umaru Katumba’s band.

“Only 120 of us were screened to the next level. Of these included Grace Ssekamatte, Geoffrey Lutaaya, William Mitanda, among others,” he recollects, naming some of his contemporaries.
Soon there was another screen and he was dropped. Katumba only wanted 25 people.

After a while, Lutaaya was also dropped from the band. Katumba wanted more dramatists than vocalists.

“I met Lutaaya and he told me he had been dropped. We started Gibroes Band. Umaru Katumba died and the group began splitting. We were joined by James Ssemwanga, an actor with the Ebonies, Henry Mpiiga, who was our producer, Solomon Simbwa and Grace Ssekamatte,” he recalls. However the band couldn’t meet all their needs, the youngsters relied on Bakayimbira’s Kibuuka and Mukiibi.

Even then he made sure he stayed in school. At this point his father had got mad at him joining music and had sent him away from home. He had to fend for himself. Like luck would have it, Sarah Nkonge, a director at Kampala Secondary School, offered him a scholarship up to Senior Five (S.5).

Going professional
“Then I met Tim Kizito at Ebony Village. I was a fan of The Ebonies. He asked me to sing to test my vocals. He gave me a chance. I then met Fred Kunya. They taught me how to write songs and sharpened my skills in singing.

They trusted me. I learnt a lot of things on the job,” Semakula recounts how he curved out as a musician.
Soon, Kizito started Ivory Band, which had singers like Semakula, Fred Kunya, Sylvia Namagga, Frederick Seruga, among others.

Around the same time, Mariam Ndagire and Kato Lubwama would go to Kizito’s studio to record songs to be used in their plays at Afri-diamond and Kizito recommended Semakula to sing such songs.

“One day, Kizito left for the USA. They took the machines and I had no job. I was not sure of my next step. Kato Ssekandi bought the studio equipment and renamed it Kassey Music Recorders. Soon, he started a musician’s group called Bazira Guitar Singers”, Semakula says.
Semakula was recruited in the band. Others members in the band were Gerald Kiweewa, Kasozi Njalayagwa, Gerald Mulindwa, Vicent Mulindwa, Catherine Namatovu, Harriet Nabitaka, among others.

Semakula was later to lose his job in the band after a briefcase of money went missing and he was accused of stealing it. Ssekandi fired him but Semakula knew it was band members that had connived to steal the money.

First recorded song
“I went back to singing with Kato Lubwama. I recorded my first song, Ntomede in 1997, which was about the HIV/Aids scourge. John Segawa gave me money and I recorded my first album. I was paid Shs700,000 for the album by Hassan Kasule commonly known as HK,” the artiste recounts.
“My first big concert was at CBS Fm’s annual Ekitobeero concert and I was booed off stage. I went backstage and cried,” Semakula recounts.
He did more music and music dealers bought his music at more money. His second album titled Sembela fetched him a handsome Shs2.5m. This won him more confidence.

He brokered a deal with a music promoter and he (Semakula) promised he would get the promoter female artistes to do an album. That was how Irene Namatovu and Betty Mpologoma came on board.

The union
Soon Semakula, Lutaaya, Seruga, Grace Ssekamatte, Ronald Mayinja who had been wih Univox all came together, first as friends and later band mates. Together, they joined Kato and formed Diamond’s Productions.
“We got administrative issues with our leader and formed Eagles Production in 1999. We released an album titled Nsasila. I had a song on it titled Ritah, which was my first good song. I later released Benitah as a single, which was well received by music lovers.” From then on, his star has never stopped shinning.

Semakula’s albums
From 1997 to date. Ntomede, Sembela, Wampangula, Tukwegomba Bangi, Abakazi Abaguma, Kulika Baby, First Aid, Kabilinage, Mummy, Taliyo, Njagala Nyimbile Omutanda and Kyalimpa.