YOU MAY know him as a video director but Boy Chopper’s musical talent is undeniable, especially if you’ve listened to his song dubbed ‘24/7’ that was released November 26 this year. Real name Moise Mbarushimana, Boy Chopper is a Rwandan singer, director and colourist who specialises in afro-pop, afro-fusion, trap-soul, and dancehall. Born in 1998 in Rusizi District and the second of four children, Boy Chopper grew up with strong music goals from a young age, with a passion to perform on the world’s biggest stages. In an interview with The New Times, Boy Chopper says that singing was his childhood dream even though it wasn’t easy in the beginning due to lack of financial support. “My childhood dream was always to become a musician, and my mom was very supportive with her limited resources. At an early age I was singing in the choir and playing drums for the church, as I kept growing, that dream never stopped but I was not ready to do it fulltime, till this year,” Chopper says. Boy Chopper attended nursery school and primary at Kamembe in Rusizi. In high school, he studied at Agahozo Shalom Village in Rwamagana, Eastern Province. He started playing drums in the choir at the age of nine. The artiste says that he is working hard to take his music to the next level, with the goal of becoming one of the country’s and continent’s top artistes in a matter of years, and he feels he has what it takes to fulfil his goals. He says, “I have a very high target, mainly I want to put my country in the spotlight worldwide and I want to collaborate with international artistes and producers across the globe, like Nigerians, Kenyans, South Africans and artistes from other countries,” adding that he wants to use his music as a tool for a positive change in the community. “I had an amazing session because I usually don’t write before the studio, but this one was different, because Santana and I made the beat and recorded the whole song in no more than four hours,” Chopper says about his debut single. “24/7 is basically a song about my girl, I was trying to convince her not to go home because I wanted her by my side.” Boy Chopper says he has full confidence in his talent and the support he gets from his family and the team around him. “The fact that people admire my talent gives me hope and confidence to do better and I’ve got support from the team around me. I am hopeful that the future is bright,” he says. Boy Chopper, known for controversial outfits and hairstyles, has worked on different big music projects as both a video director and colourist. Some of them are; ‘Please Me’, ‘Urankunda’, ‘Birenze’ by Juno Kizigenza, and ‘10 Days’ by Ariel Wayz.
