October 5th, 2020, a music video titled “Bad” and produced by Yung Jey Basalesale was released for all of Uganda to see. The music video featured six respected female artists; Afekuru, Tushi Polo, Kvan, Lady Slyke, Ella Tyga & Vkaycee. Within this music video, these women displayed their talents one by one creating a union of distinct voices on a very catchy track.
The song itself is all about women empowerment. The very first thing that Vkaycee (the opening artist) says is, “Who run the world? Girls” as an ode to Beyonce’s 2012 hit. The incorporation of these lyrics makes the premise of the song very clear. It’s supposed to be a woman’s anthem and referencing another song that had the same intent, and was executed flawlessly, is a great way to hype the audience up for what they are about to hear and see.
The video has accumulated thousands of views and for good reason. I would relate the video to the formatting of a cypher due to the order in which the artists said their bars. The music video is good as well, the scenery holds your attention and the variety of artists is refreshing. It doesn’t feel like you’re watching one four minute long video, but rather 5 smaller ones.
More importantly, it’s imperative to address the role that songs like these take in Ugandan society, but really society as a whole. It’s not stressed enough how hard it is for these mass (particularly female) musical collaborations to happen. Often, women in the same positions are pinned against each other and narratives are built around them. Many female MC’s fall victim to this tactic and end up missing great opportunities to create good music with their fellow female MC’s. With this in mind, this song, as well as the music video, was a big step for female rap in Uganda. Take a moment to watch the music video, how often do you see women celebrate each other like this?
