Abayudaya: Meet the first Ugandan music outfit to be nominated for Grammys

Most fans and well-wishers are hailing the artiste for achieving this feat, with many under the assumption that he would be the first Ugandan to get nominated for the prestigious award.

However, Eddy Kenzo is not the first Ugandan to achieve this feat as there have been a few others to do it, even if forgotten.

In 2005, a group of Ugandans professionally known as Abayudaya made history as the first Ugandan music outfit to be nominated for the Grammys.

According to a profile done by the New Vision on the group, they are Ugandan Jews who hail from Mbale district, Namanyonyi sub-county, in a synagogue that doubles as a Hebrew teaching high-school.

In 2005, the group was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Traditional World Music Album (Vocal or instrumental) category for their album, Abayudaya (music from the Jewish people of Uganda).

In the year they were nominated, the Awards were held in Los Angeles at the Staples Centre.

According to sources, the group did not sing professionally as they simply loved to sing in Hebrew and other local languages.

The New Vision further adds that the music for which the group was nominated cannot be traced anywhere in Uganda.

However, the music is on sale although it appears no one knows where exactly it is sold.

The album for which they were nominated (Abayudaya) is a collection of religious songs and traditional folk music.

The field recording which was done in their synagogue makes it sound like village choir. The music is reported to be raw and lacks the usual finesse associated with modern productions.