Suzan Kerunen
Singer songwriter, Researcher, Cultural conservationist, Arts entrepreneur
Hailed as the “Alur queen” , Ugandan singer Suzan Kerunen has been enchanting audiences with her music done in her local Ugandan languages of Alur-Jonam, Kiswahili, English or even French and Arabic. Kerunen’s music offers a bold cultural statement through which all of her ancestral influences from Nebbi-Junam and Zombo palwo come to life. You will also hear a blend of East African and West African ambience, through teasers of zouk, Congolese and afro-soul grooves emerging as a soulful expression of color and beauty of Ugandan rhythms which will surely over power your mind. Her music clearly spells the desire to break all cultural boundaries used to keep people divided. Suzan Kerunen’s music is a universal message of peace, love, unity and culture.
A Ugandan singer, who writes and performs African Contemporary music in local, Ugandan languages of Alur-Jonam (her Luo mother tongue), Kiswahili, English and other world languages. Suzan Kerunen started her career as a young girl with her two sisters in an all-girl group Soul of Africa. She later went on to launch her solo career with her debut Album NIMEFIKA a Kiswahili term meaning “I have arrived” As described in the press “Suzan Kerunen is a musically great and arguably one of the most respected world music artists in Uganda” the Daily Monitor Newspaper.
Nimefika her maiden album is made up of rich African sounds fused together to come up with what the artist describes as African Soul, though largely qualifying it as African contemporary music under the World music genre. With a mix of Njige, Agwara andNdaradrums from her Alur-Jonam(Central Luo) people of Nebbi District in the West Nile sub-region of Northern Uganda, located on the north-western shores of Lake Albert, western banks of the River Nile, and bordering north-eastern DRC.
Kerunen Premier album Nimefikahas earned her a double nomination with thekora all African music awards www.koraawards.org in the Best East African and African Artist 2008/09 Ngomthe nominated song is one of her Afro pop single which talks about judgment and stigmatization in African societies. Suzan’s music and performances have earned her great reputation in Uganda and better still in the Diaspora with her recent KORA AWARD nod.
