SOUNDS FOR THE UGANDAN MILLENNIAL

Like the troubled middle child, we millenials hang precariously between the generation of our parents that cannot stand us and that of our siblings that does not want us. We feel neither heard nor properly understood.

We are the generation who have seen better days and who now, in the most critical stage of our adulthood, are witnessing things fall apart right before our very eyes. We are starting to live the nightmare that were only distant memories from our parents’ pasts.

Amidst this existential crisis, there is need for the young Ugandan millennial to see the alternate world that exists beyond what is on display in mainstream media. The need is dire and yet the options are hardly forthcoming.

Across newspapers, television and radio, the quality of most content is uninspiring at best and complete gutter press at worst. There is a limited supply of locally curated content against which the Ugandan young adult can lean their hope. There used to be a time when buying a newspaper and reading it was a thing of the intellectual elite; a time when newspapers and radio contained the kind of information that was educative, thought-provoking, entertaining and relevant. That time is no more.

Nowadays, it is incensing to read, hear or watch the news. It is frustrating to dedicate ones ear-time and attention only to be fed such junk as pseudo-political analytics, insipid and shallow discussions that center around recycled, irrelevant, inapplicable and cliché arguments about relationships and sex.

For all the things that our country needs, for all the issues that need to be addressed, for all the crises that our country is in right now, it is unbelievable that our media can only find relevance in politics, sex and relationships.

Our national population, entrepreneurship and economic statistics are in our face to contend with. The youngest country in the world, the most entrepreneurial country in the world and the third poorest country in the world needs a lot more information than pseudo-political talk, sex and relationships. Amongst many other things, we need to see and hear the relevance of books, faith (or the lack of it), personal growth and the mastery of personal finance become normal aspects of the wider conversation in the millennial public space.

Our national paper alone is preoccupied with channeling propaganda and only wakes up to excitedly meet innovators who have caused a buzz only to disappear as quickly as they came when the excitement of it all has waned. Journalists are too lazy to research feature subjects, choosing instead to interview them and instead of writing a feature story, transcribe the interview verbatim offering no insights whatsoever. It was only a matter of time before blogs and podcasts would become alternative information sources.

Hash Time with Nabuguzi Kiwanuka is a podcast owned, created and produced by the person of the same name. It is a suitable alternative to the joke that radio is increasingly becoming. In here is a fairly accurate, and healthy representation of the Ugandan millennial world. In this world, young people are creating relevant digital content for our age group and time, they are building businesses, producing music and art, leading movements and pioneering technological, medical and agricultural innovations; they are causing major disruptions in the fields of entertainment, health, entrepreneurship and education.

Nabuguzi Kiwanuka’s podcast aptly captures the essence of this world. Discussed over one-on-one conversations, the nuances of life of the millennial as he navigates the world are dissected and given audience in a world that is often too noisy and drowns out the things that need to be both said and heard but hardly ever are: mental health, identity, personal growth, trauma and healing.

Nabuguzi Kiwanuka is a Lawyer, Entrepreneur, and Team leader at Equate Foundation, a non-profit that uses education and sustainable livelihood skills for social and economic empowerment of communities.

Take a listen, to the podcast Hash Time with Nabuguzi Kiwanuka here

Kind regards,

Anna Grace.