For the first time in history, a song produced, composed, and sung by a Rwandan artist has made it to the Billboard charts, thanks to Bruce Melodie and his remix of ‘When She’s Around (Funga Macho)’, which features Jamaican reggae icon Shaggy.
The song, produced by Prince Kiiiz, debuted at number 8 on the Billboard World Digital Song Sales chart, making it the second Afrobeats song on the chart after Tyla’s ‘Water’.
The World Digital Song Sales chart is a weekly record chart that ranks how songs were sold on different digital music-selling platforms. It was compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by Billboard magazine.
When She’s Around (Funga Macho) premiered on 27 October 2023 under S-Curve Records and is the only Rwandan song ever to appear on Billboard.
This, according to various music lovers and industry captains, is a triumph not only for Bruce Melodie but for the entire Rwandan pop culture and local music industry.
Speaking to Sens Mag, Prince Kiiiz, the producer behind When She is Around, said that Rwandan music’s debut on Billboard proves that it has evolved over the years and has become a big export to the rest of the world.
The young producer, who is signed to Country Records, believes that if more home-produced songs appear in the renowned music ranking magazine, the world will easily be introduced to rich talents produced in Rwanda and push them to sell in big markets, something that has been missing in the industry for many years.
“On a global level, it’s a good development because it shows that our music is now being respected in its own right, just like Afrobeats, Amapiano, and other African genres,” the producer tells Sens, adding, “It means that we are competing on global markets and this will benefit musicians financially more than any other method”.
For Bruce Melodie, collaborating with Shaggy was a dream come true and an incredible opportunity to perform on the world’s biggest stages but appearing on Billboard is beyond music.
“I’m overwhelmed by this development because it will benefit Rwandan music greatly in terms of streams and sales. Funga Macho is currently one of the top-selling songs in the US and these are people from a different culture and language. It shows how our music can open more closed doors that we never thought we could get close to. It’s massive!” Bruce Melody said.
He added that this should be a wake-up call to more creatives in the industry to keep creating and producing music, as it is now more visible that Rwandan music is in demand on the global market.
“Online streaming is the future of the music industry and we should all prioritise growing our fan base internationally. It’s the only way we can achieve what our brothers and sisters from West Africa and South Africa have achieved. We can even go beyond that,” says Melodie.
According to Rahma Gasaro, a big supporter and fan of Rwandan music since the Tuff Gang era, Rwandan music making it to the Billboard charts is the biggest achievement she has witnessed since she was introduced to music produced in Rwanda 10 years ago.
“We never thought that our musicians could reach the stage of being recognized by the world and appearing on big platforms like Billboard. It’s clear that Rwandan music is making the world listen and we like it,” Gasaro tells Sens Mag.
She emphasized that Shaggy contributed a lot to the song’s success, saying that more local musicians should find ways to collaborate with big names to showcase their art on big stages.
