Growing up in poor homes deep in rural areas, where eating beef or any other animal product was a rarity reserved for burials or village ceremonies, our only hope was Christmas. Our parents spent the rest of the year planning for this special occasion; on a daily basis, we survived on cassava with no sauce. However, we had hope that Christmas would bring meat, new clothes, and trips to the nearest trading centers to watch cultural dancers and popular village drummers perform in tents locally called “ebikaali.”

We didn’t even know the exact month when Christmas arrived; all we knew was that it came at the end of the year. The only indicator of the date was the unmistakable sound of Philly Bongole Lutaaya’s songs, which started airing on media outlets in early December every year.

Truly, musicians hardly die; Philly Bongole Lutaaya is a living legend who resurrects every year during the Christmas season. His 1986 Christmas album remains the most popular to date, with songs like “Zuukuka,” “Merry Christmas,” “Tumusinze, ” “Ssekukkulu,” and “Katujaguze” becoming ringtones, morning, afternoon, and evening songs throughout the Christmas festival. Many Ugandan musicians, such as Chameleon with his song “Ssekukkulu,” Bobi Wine with “Christmas Y’omwaka Gunno” featuring Paddyman, and Bebe Cool with “Merry Christmas,” have tried to replicate his success, but they merely escort Philly’s Christmas anthems in the hearts of many Ugandans.

But who was Philly Bongole Lutaaya?

Born on October 19, 1951, in Gomba, Uganda, Lutaaya passed away on December 15, 1989, succumbing to HIV/AIDS and he became a national hero for being the first Ugandan to publicly declare his HIV-positive status in 1988, a time when HIV carried immense stigma.
Before losing his battle to HIV, Lutaaya spent his remaining days writing songs for his last album, “Alone and Frightened,” which became a leading voice for HIV/AIDS awareness, spreading messages of prevention and hope.
Lutaaya rose to fame in Uganda in the 1960s and toured the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, and Japan in the 1970s. In the mid-1980s, he settled in Stockholm, Sweden, where he recorded his hit album “Born in Africa,” still widely popular in Uganda today. Philly was a talented musician who played the guitar, piano (keyboards), and drums. His music continues to live on to this day.