Eddy Kenzo is a renowned musician from Uganda who has worked his way up to becoming a prominent figure in the music realm. Among his many notable achievements is that he became the first person to ever win a BET Award in East Africa only to donate the Award to the Uganda Museum in Kampala.
As a prominent musician in Uganda, he is known for supporting upcoming artists and always motivating the youth through his lifestyle and his music. Eddy Kenzo is a philanthropist, a successful businessman and has an avid passion for football. Let’s take a look at his biography for this and much more.
Edrisah Kenzo Musuuza, professionally known as Eddy Kenzo was born on the 25th of December in 1989 and is currently 31 years old. Born and raised in Masaka, Eddy Kenzo was raised by his mother who sadly passed away when he was only 4 years old.
After his mother died, he spent the following 13 years living on the streets of Masaka and Kampala as an orphan, as he had no knowledge of who his father was. Kenzo, who grew up with hopes of becoming a professional footballer, joined the Masaka Local Council FC's camp at age 9. His time at the camp earned him a bursary to attend Lubiri Secondary School in Masaka, but he didn’t complete his studies.
Eddy Kenzo’s music career began in 2008 when he released his hit single, Yanimba, while working with musical artist, Mikie Wine. His next single, Stamina, was released in 2010 and was the genesis to fame after the song was used as a theme song by many politicians during the 2011 Ugandan general election.
Growing in the game, Eddy Kenzo, later on, established his record label, Big Talents Entertainment. 2014 saw Kenzo release yet another hit single, Kamunguluze after which he held his very first concert at the Kyadondo Rugby Club, as a solo artist
It was during this same year, 2014 that Eddy Kenzo had his first major international breakthrough when he released Sitya Loss. More to that, Eddy Kenzo released a song, "Mbilo Mbilo", featuring Nigerian singer, Niniola. His song became a soundtrack of the Ugandan movie, Queen of Katwe.
In January 2015, Eddy Kenzo went on a tour in the United States with dancehall musician, DeMarc, and it was during this tour that he grew his brand internationally. During the same year, he performed at the Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea alongside acclaimed artist, Akon.
He released yet another hit song Jambole featuring Kcee, and in turn, got honoured with the BET Award for "Viewer's Choice Best New International Artist" making him the very first East African artist to win a BET Award.
In July 2015, he performed at the Kigali Up Music Festival in Rwanda's capital.
July 2017 saw Kenzo travel to Europe on a tour as a build-up of his third studio album, Biology. He featured artists such as Mani Martin, Werrason, and Mi Casa, among others.
It is also notable to mention that, Eddy Kenzo performed at the One Africa Music Festival in Dubai. In 2018, he released his fourth studio album, Roots. The album was accompanied by the hit song, Body Language.
Kenzo hosted a 10th-anniversary concert celebrating his years in the music industry. The concert happened on the 4th of January 2019 in the Victoria ballroom of the Serena Hotel in Kampala. It was in this same year that he released two singles, Signal, and Inabana which was in collaboration with the famous Harmonize.
That’s not all, in 2020, Kenzo did not disappoint his fans either. He released other hitmakers such as Semyekozo, Tweyagale, Sonko and Yogera bulungi.
Kenzo has in 2021 released his most recent album, Made In Africa which has a tracklist of up to 21 songs with favourites like Songa and Weekend.
Eddy Kenzo Awards
Eddy Kenzo is an award-winning musician who is celebrated in Uganda for his music and has won many accolades for the same. His music is recognized not only in Uganda but also in the region and the world at large.
Here are the awards that he collected since his activity in music.
2'011 - Pearl of Africa Music Awards for Best New Artist
2014 - Africa Muzik Magazine Awards for Best Newcomer
2014 - Channel O Music Video Awards for Most Gifted (East Africa)
2015 - Black Canadian Awards for Best International Act, Africa Music Awards, Best Revelation Award
2015 - BET Awards for Viewer's Choice Best New International Artist
2015 - HiPipo Music Awards for Best Use of Social Media
2016 - MTV Africa Music Awards for Best Live Act
2016 - All Africa Music Awards for Best African Collaboration
2017 - Zanzibar International Film Festival for Best East African Music Video Award, the Music video for "Jubilation"
2017 - TUMA Music Awards for Artist of the Year, Best Male Artist
2017 - All Africa Music Awards for Best East African Male Artist, Song of the Year "Shauri Yako"
2018 - Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards for Favorite African Star
2018 - International Reggae and World Music Awards for Best African Entertainer
2018 - Africa Muzik Magazine Awards for East African Artist of the Year
2020 - Golden Play button YouTube Award.
2020- 2020 AFRIMA Awards- Best Male Artist and Best Album (Biology)
2020- Africa Entertainment Awards USA 2020- Entertainer of The Year
2020- Hollywood African Prestigious Award (HAPA) Awards 2020- Best Male International Act (Africa)
2021- 2021 Global Music Awards Africa- Global Male Act of The Year
2021- Hollywood African Prestigious Award (HAPA) Awards 2021- Best International Male Artist of Africa
Eddy Kenzo was named the ambassador of the Kenyan Tourism Board and was appointed to occupy the same role in Uganda. In 2015, it was confirmed through Seguku that singer Eddy Kenzo sealed an endorsement with Airtel Uganda. The deal was for Airtel’s campaign “I had a dream” and they found Eddy Kenzo as a perfect fit for their brand.
According to reports, Eddy Kenzo didn’t talk about the figures of the deal but it was reported that he was paid an amount of 200 Million Shillings to put pen to paper for the endorsement. Eddy Kenzo joined the likes of the African football giant, Yaya Toure who is the campaign’s ambassador for Africa.
Just last year, Kenzo was assigned an ambassadorial role at KCCA FC which echoed his love and passion for the sport. Kenzo has also on several occasions demonstrated his patriotism for his country not just through his ambassadorial roles but also through his music. Keep shining Kenzo
Eddy Kenzo Philantrophy
Eddy Kenzo is an all-time favourite not just for his music but also for his philanthropic nature as well. So far, Eddy Kenzo has launched a nonprofit organization called Eddy Kenzo Foundation, which is aimed at uplifting the lives of underprivileged children in Uganda.
Not only that, in January 2016, he worked with the Ugandan footballers, Tony Mawejje and Vincent Kayizzi, to help provide food parcels to the nursing mothers and staff members at the local Masaka hospital. He also hosts annual charity football matches in Masaka and Kampala that featured Victor Wanyama. The event is aimed at raising funds for children in Uganda living with HIV.
Because of his known passion for football, in 2019 he started an academy, Big Talent Soccer Academy in Kampala. The Academy identifies local youth talent and provides education and focus on educating children about the game and securing their future with a solid educational background.
Eddy Kenzo VS Bobi Wine
Owing to their previous history it seems that Eddy Kenzo and Bobi Wine have never seen eye to eye. That, however, is soon becoming a thing of the past.
Eddy Kenzo came out to reveal that Bobi Wine was ignoring his phone calls and texts just because he felt like he is too prominent to talk to him. However, Eddy Kenzo might have had a change of heart and seems to want to patch things up with his former friend, Bobi Wine.
It should be remembered that those allegations made by Kenzo on an audiotape that was circulated all over the internet, put a dent in their relationship making it almost non-existent. And though they might be foes when it comes to their divergent political ideologies, Eddy Kenzo is ready and willing to sit down with him for a chat to solve their issues.
Eddy Kenzo Love Life
Is Eddy Kenzo dating anyone? Well as of July 2021, Kenzo has been linked to Bella Myra Bakhresa who is said to be the daughter of Tanzanian tycoon, Said Salim Bakhresa.
Previously, Kenzo has dated musician Rema Namakula with whom he has one daughter, Amaal Musuuza. Not only that, but Kenzo also has another daughter, Maya Musuuza, whom he bore with his previous girlfriend, Tracy Nabatanzi.
Eddy Kenzo owns a mansion in Seguku, Kampala and owns different kinds of luxurious cars. In his car collection, he owns a Range Rover Sport, Jeppe Wrangler, A Mercedes Benz sprinter, BMW X5, and a Bentley.
As a businessman, he owns a farm that is based in Masaka.
As of 2021, Eddy Kenzo has an estimated net worth of $1 million. This has been accrued as a result of his successful music career and all endorsement deals and ambassadorial roles in the country.
