African stars, President Weah using music to fight coronavirus

Bobi Wine, a Ugandan musician turned politician, has joined the likes of DRC’s Fally Ipupa and Senegal’s Y’en a Marre in resorting to song to help stem the spread of coronavirus in Africa.

He released a song on Wednesday to help efforts to raise awareness in the east African nation.

In this struggle against the Coronavirus, we must deploy all our mighty weapons. Music has always been our most potent weapon so it must be unleashed without wait. let's use all the tools at our disposal to sensitize the masses against this global pandemic. pic.twitter.com/bjBGY1Tb6C— BOBI WINE (@HEBobiwine) March 24, 2020

Dubbed the “Ghetto President”, the artist whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, teamed up with fellow artist Nubian Li, to produce an Afrobeat meets reggae inspired rhythm with a message on the importance of personal hygiene.

They also exhort people to keep a distance and look out for symptoms like fever and cough.

Uganda on Wednesday confirmed five more cases of Covid-19, bringing its tally to 14, four days after it recorded its first patient.

President Yoweri Museveni’s government has already taken raft measures including sealing off borders and banning all public transport to contain the outbreak.

Music has previously been instrumental in tackling other outbreaks in Uganda.

Songs about HIV/AIDS by another Ugandan crooner Philly Bongoley Lutaaya, who would later die of the disease, helped spread awareness in the 1980s and 90s and bring down sky-high infection rates.

Fally Ipupa croons isolation blues

DRC music star Fally Ipupa posted a video filmed on his phone of him singing a song in which he urges the public not to exchange greetings by way of kisses on the cheeks.

“Fally in isolation. Stop kisses. Stop braces. Wash your hands with soap, very important,” he sings on guitar after canceling a concert scheduled in Kinshasa due to of Covid-19.

In a slightly hoarse voice, he encouraged people to stay home and follow the recommendations from the World Health Organisation in a one-minute video with over 32,000 views on Twitter.

His Congolese counterpart and musical icon Koffi Olomide also shared a message of awareness through a video shared on social media.

🔴 KoffiOlomide_MM salue les mesures prises par le Chef de l'État et CONSCIENTISE contre le #KULUNA_VIRUS, surnom qu'il donne au #CORONAVIRUS.Presidence_RDC fatshi13 mwema_y pic.twitter.com/s16t715rI6— Hristo de Jésus (@Hristo79) March 20, 2020

The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo closed the country’s borders and imposed a state of emergency on Tuesday to contain the coronavirus outbreak, following other African nations that have imposed strict measures in recent days.

Liberian President George Weah leads the fight against Covid-19 through song

President George Weah has just released a Covid-19 awareness song in hopes that it will resonate with Liberians, who will then take the necessary precaution to stay safe.

Weah hopes to appeal to music lovers across the nation of some 4.5 million people to ensure Covid-19 does not spread further than the three cases already confirmed in the capital Monrovia.

It is not the first time Weah has used his singing skills to help his country. During the 2014 Ebola crisis, as a senator he used his voice to sing an awareness song against Ebola

The president partnered with both gospel musicians and local secular singers to produce the anti-coronavirus song.

In the song, “Let Us Stand Together and Fight Coronavirus”, the president explains how the virus is transmitted and calls on Liberians to take the necessary preventive measures announced by health officials and experts to defeat the disease.

Weah is believed to be the first head of state to produce a song to educate people about the danger and preventive measures of Covid-19.

Liberia has declared a state of public health emergency following the confirmation of a third case of the coronavirus.