By Dennis Asiimwe
It was easy to understand why Stay woke folks up. The song channeled that whole Cranberries feeling in a manner that was almost uncanny.
It was amusing because Amaru, when I brought this up with her, had never heard of the Cranberries. The fact that it’s a ballad, a gorgeously written one, was also something of an attention grabber.
Alongside this, the song was released with a beautiful video, which certainly helped – she was a film student in New York, so she might have had something of an advantage there.
The Club Music Awards paid attention and she was nominated for this, and Dance My Pain Away.
The song’s production style was also unusual: acoustic guitar, cello… the mind instinctively leans towards something that is unusual.
The harmonies were nostalgic, and hauntingly beautiful. But mostly, it was the organic feel of the song that left its mark on you.
There shouldn’t have been any surprises there – Amaru is the daughter of music professor and keyboardist, Steven Kasamba, a member of the timeless AYF Band.
The combination of poignant song writing and that earthy, haunting voice that Amaru has, the one that nails surprising highs and feels so homely, makes this song work. As a love song, it also had one of the easiest sing along choruses you will come across in a while.
It just made you want to stay. Still a wonderful bit of music after all these years.
