Madoxx Ssemanda Sematimba

Madoxx Ssemanda Sematimba is the stage name for the Ugandan roots reggae musician David Amon Ssemanda Ssematimba.^[1] He is popular in Uganda for his reggae ballads in Luganda, lives in Göteborg, Sweden.^[2]

Early life

Ssematimba was born in Kampala in 1971. He attended Makonzi Boarding Primary School and Busoga College Mwiri. Before choosing a path in music, Ssematimba worked as a primary school teacher. He relocated to Stockholm, Sweden in 1991, when he was 21 years old. While performing in night-clubs to pay for his computer studies, he met Kenneth "Mafo" Ssejjemba Magoye, a fellow musician, who introduced him to Aggrey Ssembatya, the proprietor of Small Axe Productions. He moved to Göteborg where he eventually began work on his albums at Small Axe Studios. He wrote, composed, arranged, programmed, performed, co-mixed and produced all the songs on the albums while Aggrey engineered and co-mixed the albums.

Music

Maddox is a raggea musician who sings in Luganda. Released in 2000, Madoxx's first album named Tukolagane became a major hit in Uganda with hit singles like "Namagembe" (about a girl he secretly loved while still at school), "Tukolagane" (meaning roughly "let’s join hands and work together" in Luganda language), "Omukwano Gwafe" (our love and friendship will never tire), "Eddembe" (let peace prevail in Uganda), and many more hits from this album. He followed up in 2006 with the album Abato (the youth), with hit singles like "Nakatudde" (a love song), "Leka Nkulage" (let me show you, that my love for you, is still very strong after all these years), "Easy", "Wansonyi" (my girlfriend is very shy, but i love her anyway), and more.^[3] Influenced by Gregory Isaacs and Israel Vibration to name but a few.^[4]

Discography

• Tukolagane, 2001
• Abato, 2006

References

External links

• "Maddox Sematimba Arrested"
• "Bayimba festival ready for second round"
• "Star Trail: Maddox now chapatti seller"
• "Uganda’s Maddox Ssematimba Makes Come Back from Long Music Sabbatical"