Jose Chameleone
Born Joseph Mayanja, Chameleone is known for his stimulating live performances, and is revered as one of East Africa’s most versatile, creative and crowd-pleasing artists. He is frequently in demand regionally and internationally. Chameleone has been nominated for Kora Awards, Golden Awards, MOBO Awards and has won two PAM (Pearl of Africa) Awards for Best Afro Beat Artist and Best Afro Beat Single for Kipepeo as well as winning Best Video, Uganda and Best Song, for Mama Rhoda, at the Kisima Music Awards in Kenya.
Chameleone’s musical style is a combination of Ugandan folk music, central African rumba, zouk and ragga. His first album was released in Kenya in 1999. He has since released several albums including “Bageya” in 2000, “Mama Mia” in 2001, “Njo Karibu” in 2002, “The Golden Voice” in 2003, “Mambo Bado”, in 2004 and “Kipepo” in 2005.
He is known as Uganda’s Michael Jackson. He sings in Luganda, Kiswahili, Rwandese, English, etc.
He grew up in a family of musicians; two of his uncles were good musicians, his dad played in a brass band and his grandfather played guitar at home. He is called Chameleon(e) because as a boy, his mother had told him to adapt to various environments so as to control the influence of music in his world.
He won an open competition to write his school’s national anthem which was such a hit with his school that he got a scholarship to study for free. He then started singing in clubs like Club Ecstasy where he honed a career as an MC, one which took him to Kenya (Ogopa DJ’s), Burundi and Rwanda. Even though he is an Ugandan musician, a lot of his songs have been in Swahili. This is because he believes he got his start in the music business from Kenya and through the support of Kenyans. As a young man, he sang with Redsan (Kenya) and Bebe Cool (Uganda), and had hit songs like Mikono juu and Bageya. His track Mama Mia, produced by Kenya’s Ogopa Deejays, was his first major hit as an solo artiste.
His stardom is so unprecedented that he was once voted the third most popular person in Uganda after President Yoweri Museveni and Buganda King, Kabaka Ronald Mutebi. He has been featuring on many songs that have gained major airplay in East African markets as well featuring big name artistes. His style of music borrows from other African genres like chimurenga, soukous and zouk.
He also has marketing deals with MTN. He has his recording label called Leone Island Entertainment of which Chagga and his brother Weasel are on.
Some of his popular songs are Mama mia, Bageya, Dorotia, Simimwe gwe, Tobesiga, Mawoko na Mawoko, Mama wange, Nakolela Mali, Atasiga Nsigo, Yooja, Nyanja, Suzaana, Gwe Wange, Kabwa nango, Befuula, Atufako, Ndio Wewe, Mambo Bado, Jamila, Gwenafuna, Nkusaba, Tompitangako, Saama, Cyane (Rwandese), Nkusaba, Nawu mia, Kuma Obwesiga, etc
