The making of Mowzey Radio

To love a person is a hard thing. To love an artiste is even harder. For to love an artiste, is to love their art, their message, the medium and the messenger.
The thin line between the art and the artiste is too faint, that one would dare not put in a needle’s eye.
Moses Nakintije Ssekibogo aka Mowzey Radio was the artiste, his music was the art.

There were those who loved the art, yet did have reservations on the artiste. Yet, it would be a foolhardy venture to imagine that the art could have been without the artiste, their flaws and controversies.
For an artiste’s own life, soon becomes art in itself. And that was Mowzey Radio. It was no surprise that the events that led to his death were to start off with a fight.

On Monday January 22, the country woke up with a not so ‘romantic call’ of Mowzey Radio’s hospitalisation.
He had been admitted to Case Hospital following a late night fight at De Bar, a hangout in Entebbe.
Ten days later, the country were to be gripped by shock, at the announcement of his death.
In the lyrics of Band Perry, “It was a sharp knife of a short life”. The music legend had rested, a little too early, a little too fast.

But who was Mowzey Radio?
Radio was born on January 25, 1983. He went to Kibuye Primary School, Lake View Wanyange and Kiira College Butiki before joining Makerere University to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Community Psychology.
He graduated in 2008, the year of the Goodlyfe.

The country would come to know him as the talented boy of Leone Island who had released the lyrically and vocally flawless Jennifer song in 2005, a year after joining the group.
It had an oldies feel to it that did exorcise the spirits of nostalgia in many.
At the time, he released another song, Sweet Lady, that received fair airplay yet he still did keep up as a backing vocalist in Jose Chameleone’s crew.

While Chameleone was away on a trip, Mowzey Radio and Weasel took a bold fly into the unknown and released their RnB single Nakudata in 2008 with the help of Omulangira Ssuna. It was the first mainstream experimentation with auto tune, the country was hooked on.
At the 2008 Pearl of Africa Music Awards, there was no question, the boys were here to stay. And to prove that, they announced their exit from Leone Island to the Goodlyfe world.
Their hit Zuena had scooped the Best Afro Beat Single, Goodlyfe were voted best new artistes while Nakudata was crowned song of the year. It was a triple win.

But the Goodlyfe needed a Goliath to take on, and what better way than to also release Zuena, a song that poked hard into the bubble that is Bebe Cool’s ego. The battle lines were drawn.
It was at a time when beef still built the names, and the rumours of an earlier fling of Mowzey Radio and Zuena did fan the fires.
Even in Nakutamani, there was this feeling that Mowzey Radio was more than just a musician, he was the music, and was extremely embedded in the song.

The joke was, if one was on a chase of a loved one and was lost for words, the only way out was to listen to a Radio song.
In 2009, Nyambura was the sweeping song. It was hit after hit, the industry would soon lose count.
Everything that the Mowzey touched, turned to gold. When he touched Lillian Mbabazi figuratively and literally, her heart melted and the result was the Where You Are collaboration and two beautiful children that will now live without a father.

He had shown his Potential, the world had testified to the Ability and all that was left was for the haters to Talk and Talk.
In the later years, Radio would come to be defined by an even calmer touch, he was getting a little more prayerful, more inspirational.
He would go on to release songs such as Mukama, where he returned to God and asked for his care and forgiveness. He went ahead to warn against the tides of times with Obudde. Perhaps, he was certain time would never be at his side.

In less than a decade, he had managed to break into the ranks of the big three; Bebe Cool, Bobi Wine and Chameleone, turning it into the Big four, with Goodlyfe holding stakes.
In 2013 they showcased to Africa, performing at a Big Brother 8 first eviction party.
In May, BET nominated them in the Best International Artiste (Africa) category. They collaborated with Amani to give East Africa a Kiboko Changu hit that got a nod in the MAMAs.

Collabos
At the time of his death, Radio had collaborated with South Africa’s P J Powers on Home to Africa and had given Ugandans songs such as Gutamiiza, a collaboration with B2C, Leesu and Ntwalako Out.
But if there was anything that defined Mowzey Radio’s life, it was controversy after controversy.
He was either in a fight, beaten, beating or leading a vocal assault where necessary. But he was never a man of constant grudging. He would fight, only to make up.

Although they had beefed Bebe Cool for years, faced off in a music Battle of Champions, the two sides would go on to publicly end their differences. The story was more or less similar with Chameleone.
It was controversy again and again, peace again and again, fall outs again and again, but without doubt great music; Neera Neera Neera [again and again and again].
To imagine 2018 without Mowzey Radio is to imagine a lifeless year.
His was a voice that serenaded, his lyrics ran deep, and he was an artiste that transcended the ordinary real of music. Times like this do try a soul, they break spirits, for some things, though true, would rather be wished to be not.