Introducing Niwe Akeine
A singer, songwriter and producer, Niwe Akeine is an artist’s artist. She is entranced with the very idea of art, in awe of other creators, and giddy with optimism for what is to come for the Ugandan music scene. Her music reveals layers of different interests and influences, from traditional african percussion to reggae and jazz. At the core is her timeless voice and writing which are both testament to the fact that she has been honing her skill since childhood.
As part of the Bantu Vibes collection that is quickly transforming the Ugandan music scene, Niwe has created a niche for herself to contribute to this mission while still admirably collaborating with others. Her self-titled EP in collaboration with producer Axon does credit to that dedication. Though the EP is her debut effort, it boasts an excellence and maturity that has catapulted Niwe to the high ranks of the afrofusion scene in Uganda. Niwe graciously took some time to give us insight into her inspiration, music, and her hopes for the Ugandan music sector.
Who is Niwe Akeine?
Niwe Akeine is a mouthpiece, a voice, a translator. She translates sounds and emotions, puts them into words, into music, into art. She is creative. She is basically an artist at heart. I would say she is sound and colour reincarnated into a person, basically art. Which brings me back to her being a mouthpiece. I believe that when you are given such talents you are given an extra voice and language. This is why I believe she is simply the mouthpiece to what the collective mind is going through, feels and what’s happening today. I am a reflector, a mirror and a feeler.
When and how did you get into making music?
I discovered I wanted to do music for life when I was 10. I was in a car coming home from school, there was a song by Aziz Azion playing. Before the song even began I remember noticing the guitar melody. It felt like there was something speaking my language and translating how I felt in that moment and I wondered ‘what is this magic?’. I remember freestyling to it, filling in my own words and it came so easily to me. And I never stopped writing from then.
What is your creative process?
My creative process happens quickly. It depends on whether I'm being featured or writing on my own (from scratch with no beat). If a producer or collaborator sends me a beat I will listen to it, try to internalise it and it could happen then and there if that’s what the vibe is. It could also take days. I try to approach these things holistically. You know how movies have soundtracks? That’s basically how it comes to me; whatever I’m feeling comes with its own soundtrack. So in a way I feel like I’m stealing from the ether or the mystical space between.
Who or what inspires your work?
Honestly, anyone can inspire me. Being an artist you are inspired by everything, your personal situations, working with your emotions and being able to tap into them and feel them on a melodic level. That is why I say music is a language on its own. Some people can write what they feel, draw them, and as musicians we can sing about them.
I am inspired by so much- the happy moments, love, sad moments, insecurities. Basically the human experience.
You draw from various sonic influences in your music. How would you describe your sound?
I would say my sound is a fusion of so much. Growing up, even before the age of 10 when I started writing, I loved music and so did my parents. My dad was in love with the cultural south african sound particularly the drums. My mum was more into the western side. I also loved old school jazz. My sound is a mixture of all that. There is a bit of afro, a bit of jazz which is so expressive, intimate, real, and passionate. I also love reggae. I take inspiration from bits of the world and merge it with our sound here in Africa and create beautiful babies.
What do you think of the current state of Uganda’s music scene?
I think that it is at a very interesting point in its evolution and growth. We are at a point where you can almost hear or feel the cracks that are going to make us bigger than we have ever been before. We have had a few representatives here and there in the past but there is about to be a whole wave, not just one or two people. The music scene is pulsating and waiting to burst open and take over. Our legends are still doing their thing and so are the new artists. What I love about the new artists is how we are embracing our culture and taking it up with us. I think that makes all the difference and it is so beautiful. We have had a few artists who try to do urban and mixing the African aspect was tricky but that is no longer a problem. People are learning how to combine their cultural sound with the urban. The Ugandan music scene now is very promising. It’s just waiting to explode and you can hear the timer ready to tick off any moment now- we are going to take over.
What inspired your self-titled EP, “Niwe Akeine” and what headspace were you in at the time of its creation?
I cannot go on without crediting Axon, the producer I worked with on this EP. He is the one who initiated everything. We started working closely in 2020 and recorded a few times. I was still nervous and new to the scene and I was not singing for people like that. Even in that state he told me we have to work on an EP together because he saw something in me that we needed to put out there. After that I started working towards that direction. There were a few songs I had already written before, like ‘Correct’ in 2018. For some songs, I would draw from the energy at the studio. Some other songs were inspired by a few of the things I have gone through in the past. Like in ‘Carry On’ with Joshua Baraka. Things get to you when you are trying to do big things in a country that has small minded people. Sometimes the energy is just not there. When I wrote ‘Uninspired’ and ‘Carry on’ I felt like I had a weight on my shoulders, I was tired and feeling really low. The same thing that has helped me carry on throughout my life even when I was in school was always there. even when it got small, it would feel high pitched. It kept me going, saying that I can’t give up just because things are not going according to plan. Situations like that made me put those emotions in song.
What have you been listening to lately?
I’m going to be honest, I don’t really listen to music like that, like how people get on their phones, put on headphones and have playlists and whatnot. First of all, I have this special power where I can’t hold on to a phone for long-I am very much online and offline. There are few times especially in the morning or late at night when I listen to music.
But when I do listen to music, usually I’ll listen to things from the past like Timbaland, Coldplay and the Clovers. From today I’ll listen to Doja Cat, Adelle, anything that’s good. Recently I’ve found myself surfing the waves of Mariam Makeba, old South African dance songs, and Madonna. I have found myself in that past era. I guess there’s something I was trying to learn from them subconsciously. I listen to anything and everything, there is no one genre I can say that I listen to more.
If you could put a music supergroup together, who would you choose?
That’s hard. I’d have every artist affiliated with Bantu Vibes first and foremost. This group would end up being like the Avengers times 20. Denesi, CXNRVD, Lagum the Rapper, Lamu, Azawi, Jamal, Mwame, Tande, Prince, That Malcolm Guy, Shidzo, Mutono… basically my list is endless. I wouldn’t have a super group, it would be a superclan because the talent is just in abundance.
Who are some Ugandan artists that we should know about?
It’s the people that would be in my superclan including Bangi, CXNRVD, Omwami, Big Ben, Dario, Prince, Kavali, Lagun, Dario, Chxf Barry, Kohen Jaycee, Axon, and many others.
Start with the first five and go down that rabbit hole. You will find the gold.
Keep up with Niwe Akeine here.
