'Ikiganiro' is a new rap song about the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi intended to raise awareness on the atrocities that happened 30 years ago, which left many Rwandans orphans and aggrieved, so that they never happen again. Composed and sang by gospel rapper Gentil Rukundo, commonly known by his stage name Gentil Rkd, the track is about forgiveness and reconciliation between genocide survivors and perpetrators and finding hope and healing in God. ALSO READ: Minister urges youth to foster unity, love The song is created in a conversational format which entails three people having a conversation – a parent who survived the genocide, a young man who lost both his parents in the genocide, and a youth who was born after the genocide. “The idea of the song is to encourage people, especially genocide survivors to hold conversations with those close to them about the genocide in detail to sensitize young people about our history,” the rapper said. The song was recorded and released after it took him two days to complete jotting down the lyrics. “I urge people to listen to the song on YouTube and attentively comprehend its message,” he said. In 2023, Rukundo released ‘Nyerekana’ a hip hop cultural and lyrical tune that calls out people in African countries to appreciate and showcase their beauty and cultures, urging mostly Rwanda and Burundi to focus on their values and dignities, with their rich beliefs as they define them. Rukundo is part of a musical group, One Voice Rwanda which has released songs like 'Wowe', 'Umurage', and others. ALSO READ: Local rapper urges Africans to showcase their beauty, cultures in new song The 28-year-old songster is among the many self-taught artistes in Rwanda, and the only singer in his family. He picked interest in singing by writing some lines, which turned into lyrics, adding the beat and rhythm, with continuous practice.
