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Sqoop – Get Uganda entertainment news, celebrity gossip, videos and photosSqoop – Get Uganda entertainment news, celebrity gossip, videos and photos

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‘Music is about breaking barriers’

Like many artists, Apollo BW picked an interest in music at a tender age but could not follow that dream because at the time, music was considered immoral in society and having a strict mother meant he had to stick to books to have peace at home. After completing his secondary education, he pursued that musical dream but not directly. He first teamed up with his friends and opened up a music studio to help artistes achieve their dreams.

“After a lot of outcry from musicians that their music was not played by Deejays and deejays saying the music was of no quality, we started a music studio to bring quality to the industry, help struggling artistes get where to record from and reconcile artistes and deejays because of the beef that had brewed between the two,” he said. This studio played its role but the artistes did not. He said after some years, he was forced to start singing because artistes did not do what was required of them. Directing them on what to do seemed farfetched as they failed to adjust. “This pissed me off and I decided to go to the booth and sing it myself,” he said, adding that his passion for music also contributed to him pushing the act.

Today, Apollo BW describes himself as a musician, singer, songwriter, entrepreneur and a philanthropist born in Uganda and based in the US, whose multicultural roots and diverse influences shape his distinctive musical style, characterised by danceable rhythms and melodies. For a while, his music dream was cut short as he had to go abroad to further his studies. He left Uganda in 2009 but that year has stuck in his mind because it was around that time that Michael Jackson passed on.

After completing his studies in Computer Science and working for a few years, he believed he had enough capital to resume his music career with one thing on mind – to push Ugandan music on a global scale. Despite Uganda having artistes such as Eddy Kenzo, Azawi and Joshua Baraka as some of the ambassadors on that front, Apollo feels their predecessors should have done more. “I was disappointed as a music consumer. I wish artistes such as Bebe Cool, Jose Chameleone, Bobi Wine, Kenzo, and Maurice Kirya among others were adventurous to tap into a global audience. Many had the potential to push the industry but recoiled to their comfort zones. Ugandans were on the same level as Nigeria, but they pushed boundaries and did not rest until they got what they wanted while we lagged behind,” Apollo says.

Asked how he hopes to avoid the mistakes of his predecessors, Apollo said he has a strategy. “I have a team in Europe, in the US and Uganda who believe in my dream and vision. This means that my music reaches everywhere I want. It is mainly because of this that it has to work. Whatever music I make, will go to pushing for that international audience.” He adds that his approach to music is about breaking barriers; knowing the music landscape, having the right connections, the necessary drive, having good music, having strategic marketing by the right team.

Music niche

Unlike other artistes who stick to one genre of music, Apollo’s primary focus is in exploring all possible ways that allow him fuse an African and Ugandan vibe into the music that he is making. “It is not one genre. The songs I have created so far have different elements. There is an element of our own kidandali in it, and there is an element of Afro-pop, Afro-dancehall and RnB as well. My goal is to make something that is familiar to everyone,” he adds.

Being based in the US, he believes will also make people with different cultures embrace Ugandan art leading to other artistes being sought out in the process. So far, Apollo BW has songs such as Ganana (Love Each Other), You’re Saving Now, Oshanana and On The Low, with others in the pipeline.

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