Maurice Kirya’s concert this year took place at the International School of Uganda auditorium in Lubowa on Friday night. Lubowa village is located in Seguku, along Entebbe Road – a perfect example of an exquisite community. Choosing the location as the venue as opposed to the central business district, Kampala, was a risky move. And Maurice knew it. “How are you doing? Welcome to the Maurice Kirya Experience,” he said when the auditorium curtains went up. “I am particularly happy for tonight’s show because everyone who is here wanted to be here,” he said, probably thinking about the distance many had covered just to see him sing. In a white waist coat and marching trousers, he took to the stage amid cheers.
Maurice Kirya during his performance. Photo/ANDREW KAGGWA
He started off his set with Ssejjiga, off his 2022 album, The Road to Kirya. Kirya is known for giving priority to his newer songs whenever he organises shows, thus it was not very surprising that he had a lot of material from that specific album and This is Happening, his upcoming album. “Today, I am going to sing some classics, some of my new stuff and some things that are yet to come,” he said, before launching into Nairobi, a song off the new album. But it is the medley of classics such as Beera Nabo, Bina Ddamu, Wooye, Blue Dress Song and Misubawa, the song and album title which most people in the audience fell in love with his music. He also performed Horses in the Sky, from his 2015 album, Mwooyo, a song he admitted he had not performed since his 2016 concert, even when people have always asked for it.
But it was the already beloved songs such as Never Been Loved, Nze Ani, Entebbe, Lindako, Yakutondera, Busabala and Bubba that kept the audience trying to sing louder than him. Maurice Kirya is not the biggest local artiste but he has had an impression on a very big number of artistes, many of whom never miss his shows. From Kenneth Mugabi, Afrie, Solome Basuta, John Jaycee to Naava Grey and Joshua Baraka, it is hard for these artistes to talk about their inspiration without his name coming up. And most of them were singing in the audience, probably not surprising that they decided to feature him on his own song, as he was about to start Mulembe Gwa Kirya.
He said the show was a chance to try out something new in a different space. It was more than the music, but him throwing himself to a minimalist set in a supportive space. He says when he had his shows at Serena Hotel early in the 2000s, many artistes thought he was mad but all these years later, most mainstream artistes are striving to give their audience at least one well-produced show at Serena Hotel. “A space like this is what we are usually faced with when we travel; someone has to do a show like this for others to follow, it is the only way the industry goes forward,” he says.
Story By Sqoop Ug
