INANGA MUSIC PIONEER Deo Munyakazi is in his final stages preparing for a comeback to the stage and reuniting with his audience in a concert slated for Thursday, July 21, at L’Espace in Kacyiru.
The singer has been absent from stage during the past two years but describes the forthcoming concert as a big occasion for a remarkable comeback to the music scene after a series of hurdles that were motivated by the covid-19 pandemic.
The concert, dubbed ‘Inkuru y’Inanga’, will bring together only Inanga musicians as part of Munyakazi’s renewed quest to revive and promote the Inanga music genre among Rwandans through various concerts.
On the concert lineup are Munyakazi as main headliner, Jean Marie Vianney Mushabizi, who taught him the instrument, female Inanga musician Sophie Nzayisenga, and Esther Niyifasha, one of Munyakazi’s Inanga students.
Munyakazi told The New Times that he always wanted to organise his own concert to entertain ‘Inanga’ music enthusiasts as opposed to previous concerts where he would perform as an invited artiste.
"Concerts that bring together only ‘Inanga’ musicians are rare in Rwanda. And that is why I came up with an initiative to bring together my fellow Inanga artists from different generations, male and female, to celebrate this genre and bring it back on the music map because it is obviously at risk of fading away if we don’t do anything,” he told The New Times in a telephone interview.
"It will be an occasion to set a reminder that safeguarding our culture should not be a responsibility for some but everyone,” he added.
Munyakazi promised that he and his fellow Inanga performers on the lineup have a big package for their audience and are ready to make the best of their musical instrument to deliver good music.
"We have a lot in store to share with our audience. We have lots of stories to share with them because Inanga is a tool that tells stories,” he said.
Bringing the album on stage
In June 2020, Munyakazi released his debut album ‘Isoko Dusangiye’ but he could only share it with his audience on different online platforms after efforts to organise a concert for the album launch were halted due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Munyakazi said he is looking forward to performing some of the songs that comprise the album live before his audience for them to have an experience of what the songs are like when performed live on stage.
"Due to covid-19, I couldn’t do the concert to launch my album but I promised my people that I would bring the album to stage once the pandemic relaxes. I hope this is going to be the right time to present my album to them,” he said.
Doors will be open at 6pm and entrance for the concert is Rwf15, 000.
Munyakazi started his music journey in 2016. Using the ‘Inanga,’ a traditional music instrument, the artiste showed class and commitment in producing music that preserves Rwandan culture.
His talent earned him opportunities to perform at a number of renowned local, regional and international festivals including I Am Kigali Festival, Ubumuntu Arts Festival in Rwanda, Ongea Festival in Nairobi, Kenya and Pop-Kultur Festival in Berlin, Germany, to name a few.