When Mowzey Radio brought his voice to the world

Feb 01, 2018

For all his flaws and controversies that trapped him, just like as any other mortal, Mowzey Radio's powerful voice was flawless.

OBITUARY

MOSES SSEKIBOGO: 1985 - 2018

The passing of musician Mowzey Radio (born Moses Ssekibogo) Thursday morning has shaken Uganda’s music industry to the core.

It was hard taking in the news that ‘The Radio’, as was fondly known by his fans, who had serenaded us with his crystal-clear tenor, had finally gone silent, 10 days after keeping the whole country hopeful he resurfaces and gives us more of that music.

Music fans have been praying for Radio from the time he sank into coma following an alleged brawl that ensued at a hangout in Entebbe last week on Monday.

Radio had one weapon he wielded to charm his fans. That voice. For all his flaws and controversies that trapped him, just like as any other mortal, his voice was flawless. He was a skinny lad, but had a giant voice. For that reason, his flaws always came to the fore, but were always quickly forgotten by his fans.

The song Nakudata, released in 2008, would have passed like any other forgettable song had Radio not injected in his voice on that chorus.

That song, featuring Radio’s longtime partner Weasel (Douglas Mayanja) and Omulangila Suuna, breathed fresh air in our contemporary music when it hit our airwaves.

It got music fans offguard and awed, and it hooked many of them onto the next 10 years of catchy and thrilling hits.

At the time of Nakudata, we were reeling from the fading dominance of the Jose Chameleone-Bebe Cool-Bobi Wine triumvirate.

What Radio and his partners did was to offer us a glass of cold water in a desert and then go ahead to feed our emaciated selves with a plethora of sweet hits. In fact, that song went ahead to win the Pearl Of Africa Awards (PAM) Song Of The Year 2008 award.

Weasel and Suuna had been in the game before Radio. Or rather put, they had been recognised before Radio, for they had done a few songs that got them attention.

Before Nakudata, Radio had been under the aegis of Chameleone’s Leone Island since 2004, perfecting his craft, as a backup vocalist. He did record a few songs while with Leone Island, but they never really blew the local music industry’s roof.

Then they fell out with Chameleone and decided to pursue their own careers, forming one of this country’s greatest ever singing boy-groups: GoodLyfe Crew. The two reminded us of the ‘90s Jamaican reggae duo Chaka Demus and Pliers. Radio our Pliers. Weasel our Chaka Demus.

Music boy-groups are bound to succumb to ego clashes, clashes over women, money and so forth. Seldom do they last so long.

Suuna fell victim and left the group soon after Nakudata. The group remained with only Radio and Weasel. And the two lads would embark on a journey that spanned a decade. A decade as a duo, churning out amazing song after song. Radio the crooner. Weasel the Rough Rider.

To watch them on stage, Radio never really bothered to outdo himself with well-choreographed dance strokes or so. In fact, his dance strokes were terribly poor. However, he was aware he wielded a certain weapon that everyone wanted to watch him wield. HIS VOICE.

Weasel was always the one to go gung-ho on stage and try to work up the crowd. He was the one that got the crowed out of trance after Radio’s smooth voice had melted them to stupor.

The crowd would, in unison, bellow out alongside him his chorus on Mr DJ; sing out his verse on Where You Are; call out with him on Amaaso and ask for more of him in the song Neera.

At some point in their journey, fans scratched their heads wondering if Weasel, who to be honest, contributed a lot to the hits with his raspy-voiced raps, would really succeed musically without Radio’s sweet vocals.

However, music is not straightforward. Weasel can make it alone. It might take him time to recover from Radio’s demise, but he can evolve and make it alone while still keeping Radio’s memory alive.

At 33, Radio has gone too young. But he goes a great Ugandan singer that played a great role in our music.

Top Songs that will remind us of Radio’s talent:

- Ability
- Mr. DJ
- Where You Are
- Neera
- Nakudata
- Gutamiza
- Zuena
-Talk & Talk