Fik Fameica, BLU 3 crown Ekyooto Ha Mpango festival

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After a week of cultural activities in Toro Kingdom, the Ekyooto Ha Mpango festival came to a close on Saturday night. The climax of the weekend started with a golf challenge at Kalya golf course on Friday.

Later that afternoon, Kingo Oyo attended an intense basketball game, at Boma grounds, between Fort Portal Club and team Wazee, the former winning with a two-point gap. 

Friday's activities ended with a fashion show at the Toro Kingdom palace in Fort Portal city, attended by dignitaries from the royal family, among whom was Queen Mother Best Kemigisa. From cultural outfits that speak a lot about the Toro heritage and folk songs to the young and hip lifestyle of the models, the stage was lit.

The climax of the BLU 3 performance was quite interesting, especially when they moved closer to King Oyo, getting him out of his royal seat to groove a little with them. (Courtesy photo)

The climax of what proved to be an eventful coronation week was on Saturday at Buhinga stadium, where hundreds of people gathered for a music concert. The concert kicked off at 8:00 pm, with a significantly small number of revellers, something that would worry everyone, especially the organisers. However, the numbers would swell beyond control, later in the night. 

Performances started off with a plethora of local artistes. Some of these included Atwooki Richie, Muzanil Ayesiga, Tai-Tan, Irene Henda, Raya Rosette, Draei Bitsc, Hly Tremmie, and Sagio Mhza.

Notable among the local acts was Holy Keane Amooti. He was followed by a few other local musicians and dancers before Kampala-based world musician Brian Aliddeki hit the stage. Performing "Ewaffe", "Mujje Tulambule", "Njagala Nkwagale", among other songs, Aliddeki thrilled the crowd with his unique mastery of traditional music instruments.

Cindy Sanyu, Lillian Mbabazi and Jackie Chandiru took to stage at 2:10 am, clad in all-white outfits, with a touch of gold. Amidst deafening applause from the audience. (Courtesy photo)

By 11:00 pm, the dome was almost full to its capacity. Shortly towards midnight, MC Casmir took to stage with DJ Mark for another set of mixes, getting the crowd ready for the key artistes of the night.

Crescent Baguma, alias Beenie Gunter, stepped on stage as late at 1:00 am, but the crowd remained patient, including Princess Elizabeth Bagaya, Queen Mother Best Kemigisa and the King Oyo. Gunter, also a born of Tooro, started by greeting his fans and the king in his local dialect, sending the audience in loud screams. 

Gunter performed most of his songs such as "Sekkle Down", "No Letting Go", "Watto", and "Tubayo" among others. He left the stage shortly before 2:00 am, with the crowd still yearning for more of him.

Cindy Sanyu, Lillian Mbabazi and Jackie Chandiru took to stage at 2:10 am, clad in all-white outfits, with a touch of gold. Amidst deafening applause from the audience, the trio started off with "Hitaji", "Frisky", "Mutima Gwange", before taking a break to engage and say hello to their fans.

They would later continue with "Kankyakyankye", "Where You Are", "Nzijukira", and later closing with arguably their most popular song, "Nsanyuka Nawe". The climax of their performance was quite interesting, especially when they moved closer to King Oyo, getting him out of his royal seat to groove a little with them. 

The crowd could not stop shouting, “Cindy, we wanna party”, but it was time for her, Mbabazi and Chandiru to give way for Fik Fameica. At 2:40 am, the latter stepped on stage, also donning an all-white outfit. 

For the young and hip, Fameica was clearly the crowd’s favourite for the night, as they sang along to each of his songs. From "Omu Bwati", "Property”, “Buligita", "Ntala Afiya", to "Majje" and "Bwepaba", the crowd had the very best of Fameica. 

By 3:30 am, when the show ended, almost everyone had gotten their ticket's worth, and it was safe to say, the Ekyooto Ha Mpango festival ended in befitting style.