While addressing the nation on Friday December 31,2021, the President of Uganda Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Museveni revealed that the entertainment industry, including bars and concerts will re-open effective 24th January 2022.
Judging by the fact that the music industry has been hit hard by coronavirus for over 700 days, Ugandan musicians are set to bounce back on stage as the entertainment industry will soon be fully reopened.
However, there is a debate going on, on ‘what the future of Uganda’s music industry is going to be and whether it will be business as usual for the music industry when it ‘re-opens’.
While speaking in a local television interview on Friday morning, a number of seasoned game players came out and shared their opinions on the matter of what the way forward is for the musicians when the industry re-opens.
Among these seasoned game players is veteran Ugandan gospel artiste and music expert, Isaac Rucci who says: “COVID-19 disrupted the music industry. New innovations came up to aid the industry and some people did not take them seriously. If we do not embrace things like e-concerts, we will be left behind,” he notes.
He added that through the training they have been getting from the experts in the music game, working with a record label is very important
“Working with a record label has its advantages. It gives you time to be creative. You get time to create more while the label deals with the other aspects of your career,” Rucci added.
Rucci further advised musicians to exploit their brand saying that their popularity can help them get into other professions like MCing and with such opportunities, they can increase their finances.
Daily Monitor’s Andrew Kaggwa Mayiga, an arts journalist, said that some musicians have to work hard to make fans remember them because they were forgotten.
“Some musicians have been waiting for the economy to open to release their new music. They were waiting for a favorable time. The problem is that they gave people a chance to forget them,” Kaggwa said.
The sector is now in very high spirits as game players anticipate the forthcoming opening of the sector as they look forward to experiencing events, getting on stage, making some revenue, among a plethora of other things.