R Kelly charms Kampala

The shooting of singer Bebe Cool soon after the concert may have dampened the mood but fans will still remember the great show for years, writes Stevens Muendo

By the time the mammoth crowd realised the show was over, Robert Sylvester Kelly aka R Kelly was back to his hotel suite in Serena Hotel in Kampala— preparing to leave for another concert in Ghana.

The fans waited in anticipation, convinced the American star had gone backstage to freshen up before one last song after performing for over an hour.

The singer and his back-up vocalists prolonged (singing) the Happy People hit, which was R Kelly’s final act.

And at the gates, long queues still stretched with more fans surging into the venue. Tickets ready in hand their hope remained alive. Catching a glimpse of the pied piper of R&B whose singing career spans over 20 years was not to be taken lightly.

R Kelly fans at the Kampala concert

"We were working on short notice. The equipment was supposed to be in Kampala a week before the show. But there were delays and R Kelly’s technician who had been in the country since Monday was not taking anyone’s word for it. At one point he called (R) Kelly and told him that he was giving us 12 hours to get things in order or he cancels the show," said a guy who identified himself as Solomon, of Gigs factory.

After the equipment landed at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Thursday, Gigs Factory was forced to charter a private plane to Kampala so as to save the show.

Tickets were going for between Sh3,000 to Sh8, 000 making it one of the most costly concerts witnessed in the region in the recent past.

But the exorbitant rates did not deter the fans who made financial sacrifices and purchased tickets in numbers that overwhelmed the organisers.

On the material day as the gates to the concert opened at 4pm, the queues were long and unmanageable. Whoever arrived after 8pm never made it in before 11.40pm when the curtains came down.

At 8.30pm, local rapper GNL opened the stage hyping the crowd with his Kiknkane hit and was followed by the King of Dancehall Peter Miles who rocked the crowd with an energetic performance. The Goodlyfe duo of Mowzey and Weasel were next, paving way to Bebe Cool and Jose Chameleone who in a rare union shared the stage singing Bebe Cool’s Bogolako remix.

The sound and stage lighting was amazing and the crowd liked every moment of the build-up show singing in chorus to every song their homeboys performed. Dr Mitch, the MC of the night had the crowd in stitches with his humorous acts.

But the day belonged to R Kelly who set the stadium on fire the moment he stepped on stage.

Amidst the frenzied cheers, R Kelly hit the ground with a jig, and for five minutes engaged the overjoyed fans in short remixes of his popular hits. Most of the remixed pieces were remixed tracks taken of his old albums 12 Play, R. Kelly, TP-2.com, Chocolate Factory and Happy People/U Saved Me.

He also did an introduction of some of his latest songs off his latest album Untitled which features Keri Hilson, Tyrese, Robin Thicke and The-Dream.

And soon, it all slowed down to his hits such as I Wish, Wind for Me, Trapped in the Closet, Step in the name of Love, Gigolo, You Remind Me of Something, I Can’t Sleep (Baby If I) Down Low, and Bump N’ Grind.

"I am doing this for every one who has ever had a dream. Just to let you know that you can make it…" R Kelly said and went mute for seconds before blowing the crowd away with a sensational performance of his I Believe I can Fly hit single.

And little did the crowd know that the show was coming to an end.

As the band begun strumming to the popular Happy People single, R Kelly made a smooth exit from the venue leaving a dancing crowd asking for more.

But a wind of shock and uncertainty engulfed Kampala later that night as news broke out that Bebe Cool had been shot hours after performing at R Kelly’s concert.