Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Kigozi George Wiliam, popularly known as Geosteady, was one of the headline acts at the just-concluded Roast and Rhyme Afro-Halloween edition held at Jahazi Pier Munyonyo, and set the pace for what would be an exciting live musical affair for the rest of the evening.
The singer – who came dressed as a cowboy for Halloween – took to the stage at about 6 pm with the support of a live band and performed covers of Kassav’s Oule, Afrigo Band’s Sikulimba, Oliver Mtukudzi’s Todii, Elly Wamala’s Violet and others to get the audience in the mood.
The songwriter and producer then went into melodic performances of his hits like Wakyuka, Byooli Byendi, Owooma and a beautiful mash-up of Same Way and Sauti Sol’s Suzanna –all of which had the audience passionately singing along and vibing to.
The event organisers – Swangz Avenue and Bell Lager (a product of Uganda Breweries Limited) – ensured the entire live music experience was one for the books – starting with changing the location of the stage to right beside the lake, which gave attendees a more wholesome bird’s eye view of the performances against the backdrop of Lake Victoria.
Following Geosteady’s set, Janzi Band delivered covers of Bob Marley and the Wailers’ Three Little Birds and Buffalo Soldier, before getting into the more upbeat Dutty Love by Sean Kingston, Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk, Swedish House Mafia’s Don’t You Worry Child, Chris Brown’s Yeah 3x, Psy’s Gangnam Style and more in an unconventional pop music set that kept the crowd thoroughly engrossed in the music.
Azawi – who was announced as the headline act just a few days before the event – came dressed in traditional Scottish dress for Halloween and lived up to expectations with crowd favourites like Ache For You, Craving You Heavy, My Year, Tubatiisa, Crazy Lover, Fwa Fwa Fwa and Bamututte before closing her set with the iconic Majje.
The event was held under Bell Lager’s Mpola Enjoyments theme and featured more performances from Double Black Band and Fem DJ – with the latter being the final act that kept people dancing till later in the night.