By Ahmad Muto
Master Parrot, a former Firebase and Leone Island singer who is currently on a retreat in Entebbe where regional leaders of the Uganda Musicians Association (UMA) are being trained, has both pinned and vindicated singer Jose Chameleone. According to him, the Badilisha singer has been on earth for slightly over 40 years and it makes him way too young to be responsible for all the problems affecting the music industry.
“Chameleone was born over 40 years ago and these things of music were new. And the people who were here before us never taught anybody how to make the best out of it, by professionalising the industry. Chameleone was young so you cannot blame him for all that has happened to the industry, including us joining and exiting Leone Island. But the National Cultural Forum (NCF) and the Uganda National Cultural Centre (UNCC) were here and did nothing,” explained Master Parrot.
However, he blamed Chameleone for whatever issues he is having today, especially financially, stating that he had some of the best talents in Leone Island, but failed to create structures within to sign them up formally. Master Parrot says only then would he have benefited and by now he would not have even touched his own money yet.
Music is no longer like it was from 1998 to 2009. Music was bought and sold because there were stores, but now they get it for free. Chameleone was not professional. He would have signed us – me, Radio and Weasel, AK 47. He would now be eating from our effort and not even touching his own money. He let us enter and exit, he lost, we lost,” he added.
