By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Lifestyle UgandaLifestyle UgandaLifestyle Uganda
  • Home
  • News
    • International News & Politics
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Money & Finance
    • Mobile and Telecommunication
    News
    Get breaking news, music updates, and celebrity stories from Uganda and East Africa. Stay informed with Lifestyle Uganda—your insider source for real-time industry updates.
    Show More
    Top News
    Lycamobile Uganda data bundles and voice (1)
    Lycamobile Uganda: 4 Most Frequently Asked Questions & Answers
    4th April 2025
    Who is John Blaq: Biography, Profile and Life Story of Kashada John
    Who is John Blaq: Biography, Profile and Life Story of Kashada John
    5th October 2023
    Bobi Wine and Barbie Share First Joint Magazine Cover
    Bobi Wine and Barbie Share First Joint Cover on Parents Magazine in Kenya
    3rd November 2018
    Latest News
    Sheilah Gashumba defends lifestyle after backlash over BBC Dubai trafficking exposé
    19th September 2025
    UAE halts visas for Ugandans starting in 2026, raising concerns over migrant workers
    19th September 2025
    Uganda Airlines Signs Interline Deal With Air India, Expanding Access Across Africa and Asia
    18th September 2025
    Uganda turns to Turkish firm MS Summa for Mandela Stadium upgrade ahead of AFCON 2027
    14th September 2025
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    • Music
    • Celebrity
    • Biography
    • Lifestyle
      • Fitness
      • Pop Culture
      • Travel/Culture
    Entertainment
    Stay up-to-date with Lifestyle Uganda Entertainment—the latest news, celebrity gossip, films, and TV shows from Uganda, Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa.
    Show More
    Top News
    Lycamobile Uganda data bundles and voice (1)
    Lycamobile Uganda: 4 Most Frequently Asked Questions & Answers
    4th April 2025
    Who is John Blaq: Biography, Profile and Life Story of Kashada John
    Who is John Blaq: Biography, Profile and Life Story of Kashada John
    5th October 2023
    The Short-Story of How Pia Pounds Got Famous Will Make You Love Her Even More
    14th April 2025
    Latest News
    Sheilah Gashumba defends lifestyle after backlash over BBC Dubai trafficking exposé
    19th September 2025
    Dokta Brain exits Zhafar as Ugandan music labels face big challenges
    18th September 2025
    Shaka iLembe to end with season three, telling the final chapter of Zulu king’s reign
    5th September 2025
    Giorgio Armani, designer behind a $10bn empire, dies aged 91
    5th September 2025
  • Fashion
    • Beauty Trends
    • Accessories
    • Hair
    • Lipstick
    • Makeup
    • Skincare
    FashionShow More
    Hollywood favourite Giorgio Armani dies at 91.
    Giorgio Armani, designer behind a $10bn empire, dies aged 91
    5th September 2025
    Santa Anzo and Inspire Africa at UNAA 2025.
    Inspire Africa joins Santa Anzo in coffee-meets-fashion showcase at the UNAA Convention in New Orleans
    30th August 2025
    MultiChoice backs beauty training to boost local storytelling.
    MultiChoice Uganda backs makeup masterclass to boost local talent, strengthen film industry
    31st July 2025
    Miss Uganda 2025 launch highlights shift in strategy.
    Search for Miss Uganda 2025/2026 Begins with Centralised Format
    13th June 2025
    Mental health advocate Hasset Dereje shines at Miss World, secures Africa title.
    Ethiopia’s Hasset Dereje Named Miss World Africa and First Runner-Up at 72nd Miss World Pageant
    2nd June 2025
  • Health & Living
  • Tips & Advice
Search
© 2023 Lifestyle Uganda. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Who is Azawi? The Ugandan singer turning personal hustle into pop success
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Lifestyle UgandaLifestyle Uganda
Font ResizerAa
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Health & Living
Search
  • Home
  • News
    • International News & Politics
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Money & Finance
    • Mobile and Telecommunication
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    • Music
    • Celebrity
    • Biography
    • Lifestyle
  • Fashion
    • Beauty Trends
    • Accessories
    • Hair
    • Lipstick
    • Makeup
    • Skincare
  • Health & Living
  • Tips & Advice
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
© 2023 Lifestyle Uganda. A Now & Entertainment Media Company. All Rights Reserved.
Lifestyle Uganda > Blog > Biography > Who is Azawi? The Ugandan singer turning personal hustle into pop success
BiographyCelebrity

Who is Azawi? The Ugandan singer turning personal hustle into pop success

She started out writing songs for others while waiting tables. Now Azawi is one of Uganda’s breakout music exports, and the first female artist from the country to appear on a Times Square billboard.

Last updated: 7th May 2025 12:16 pm
By
Jacob Mugwana
ByJacob Mugwana
Online Editor
An aspiring international media journalist with experience at Lifestyle Uganda, I bring a passion for storytelling and a keen eye for trends in digital media and...
Follow:
- Online Editor
Share
6 Min Read
Azawi’s journey: Music, education, and a billboard moment in New York.
From dancing in school troupes to writing chart-ready hits, Azawi’s rise offers a modern portrait of ambition, creativity—and perseverance. Photo/Courtesy
SHARE

By the time Ugandan singer-songwriter Priscilla Zawedde—better known as Azawi—appeared on the iconic Times Square billboard in New York City, she had already travelled a long, winding road from the school halls and dance troupes of Kampala to the global Afrobeats stage.

Born on 2 February 1996 to Walusimbi Samuel and Nakamatte Mary, Azawi grew up in the Ugandan capital, moving between schools in search of stability and opportunity. Her early education took her from Buganda Road Primary to Mother Kevin Primary in Mukono District, and later through a string of secondary schools before earning a Bachelor of Commerce from Makerere University. But even as she pursued her studies, her heart belonged elsewhere.

“I started out dancing,” she recalled in a recent interview, referencing her early years with the Kika Dance Troupe and later, Crane Performers. It was a childhood shaped by performance, discipline, and long nights on stage—even touring China twice before she turned 18. But when her academic performance began to slip, she made a difficult choice. “I had to stop dancing and focus,” she said.

The voice behind Quinamino and a new era in Ugandan pop.

By 2011, Azawi had turned her creative energy to songwriting. What began as a casual hobby quickly became a source of income, particularly after the death of her father in 2012. The loss pushed her into a new role at home, helping her mother support her younger siblings. Songwriting, she realised, could be more than just a passion—it could be a profession.

Her talent did not go unnoticed. A meeting with celebrated singer Eddy Kenzo opened the door to collaborations with some of Uganda’s biggest female stars, including Vinka, Lydia Jazmine, Pia Pounds, Nina Roz and Carol Nantongo. Yet Azawi was still working as a waitress at a restaurant her mother had opened when, in 2019, she wrote a song titled Quinamino. Initially meant for another artist, the track would become her breakthrough.

- Advertisement -
lifestyle uganda adwords

When she walked into the Swangz Avenue offices in August of that year, her plan was to sell the song. Instead, the label offered her a contract.

“She had a voice, but more than that, she had a story,” a representative from Swangz Avenue said at the time. In January 2020, Quinamino was released as her debut single. The response was immediate. Azawi had arrived.

Since then, she’s gone on to release more than 20 songs and perform at major venues, including a sold-out maiden concert at Lugogo in 2022. Her music, often a blend of Luganda and English, sits comfortably within the Afrobeats genre, but carries the signature of a songwriter who knows how to connect with emotion and energy alike.

In 2021, she became the first Ugandan woman—and only the third Ugandan overall, after Eddy Kenzo and Bobi Wine—to appear on the Times Square and Los Angeles billboards. It was a landmark moment, and for many, a symbol of how far Ugandan music had come.

Ugandan star Azawi on fame, family and breaking barriers.

Now a Guinness brand ambassador—alongside Nigerian Afropop star Fireboy DML—Azawi continues to balance her rise to stardom with candid reflections on life beyond the spotlight.

- Advertisement -

“I actually want to give birth to at least four kids,” she said with a laugh during a recent interview. “I’m not yet ready to give birth but I’ll give it time. For now, I’m focused on looking for money.”

When asked about her love life, she was just as open. “Right now, I’m not seeing anyone. I’m just having a good time with myself, doing music.” Then, a pause. “Okay, I won’t say I’m not entirely seeing someone… but it’s not like it’s serious.”

- Advertisement -

There’s a frankness to Azawi—equal parts ambition, vulnerability, and self-awareness—that makes her hard to ignore. In a regional music scene often dominated by men, she’s carved out space not just as a performer, but as a writer, a business-minded artist, and a cultural voice in her own right.

For many Ugandans, her story resonates not just because of her success, but because of its relatability. She’s danced, she’s served tables, she’s written songs for others—only to find her own name in lights, half a world away.

And yet, for all the billboards and brand deals, she remains rooted in the same thing that started it all: the work.

Quinamino
Repeat It

Music Album

  • LoFit (2020)
  • African Music (2021)
  • SANKOFA (2023)

‘African Music’ by Azawi is made up of 16 tracks. These include; 

  1. Gimme
  2. Craving you heavy
  3. Bamututte
  4. Thankful ft Benon
  5. Majje ft Fik Fameica, 
  6. Slow dancing
  7. Face Me ft A Pass
  8. Fwa Fwa Fwa
  9. Ku Kido, 
  10. My Year
  11. Tubatiisa
  12. Party Mood
  13. Nkuchekele ft Eddy Kenzo, 
  14. Love you is easy, 
  15. African Music
  16. Ache for you.

The 16-track project— is the follow-up to the 2020 EP ‘LoFit’. Listen to the African Music album here.

Bettinah Tianah: Building Your Brand using Social Media (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter)
Anita Fabiola: Things you probably Didn’t Know about Her, number 4 will shock you
Prophet, Businessman, Enigma: The rise and controversy of Uganda’s Samuel Kakande
Who Is Doreen Kabareebe? 11 Facts About Her, Age & Biography
Who Is Brian Ssenyondo? The Young Coach Leading Uganda to the FIFA U17 World Cup
TAGGED:how old is azawisongs written by azawiwhich tribe is azawiWho is Azawi

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
I have read and agree to the terms & conditions
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
Share This Article
Facebook Whatsapp Whatsapp Reddit Email Copy Link
Share
ByJacob Mugwana
Online Editor
Follow:
An aspiring international media journalist with experience at Lifestyle Uganda, I bring a passion for storytelling and a keen eye for trends in digital media and fashion. As a two-time nominee for the Abryanz Style and Fashion Awards in 2014 and 2015, I’m committed to blending creativity with journalistic rigor. Alongside my journalism work, I support businesses by offering web design and development services, along with strategic advice to enhance their social media presence and engagement. WhatsApp me on +256781873083.
Previous Article prime video introduces multi-profile model Amazon Prime Video Introduces a Multi-Profile Model Similar to Netflix
Next Article Amazon Prime competitor Walmart (1) Walmart Is Set to Launch a Competitor to Amazon Prime in July

Stay Connected

45.2kFollowersLike
5.1kFollowersFollow
213FollowersPin
35.6kFollowersFollow
11kSubscribersSubscribe
400FollowersFollow
- Advertisement -

Latest News

BBC Death in Dubai sparks online storm in Uganda as Sheilah Gashumba comes under fire.
Sheilah Gashumba defends lifestyle after backlash over BBC Dubai trafficking exposé
Entertainment News
19th September 2025
UAE imposes new visa ban on Ugandans after years of shifting rules.
UAE halts visas for Ugandans starting in 2026, raising concerns over migrant workers
International News & Politics Travel/Culture
19th September 2025
The agreement allows single-ticket travel linking Entebbe with more than 25 Indian cities and key international hubs.
Uganda Airlines Signs Interline Deal With Air India, Expanding Access Across Africa and Asia
News Travel/Culture
18th September 2025
Ugandan star Dokta Brain parts ways with Zhafar Music Agency.
Dokta Brain exits Zhafar as Ugandan music labels face big challenges
Entertainment Music
18th September 2025
//

At Lifestyle Uganda, we inform, entertain, and inspire action through the content we create — empowering you to live a celebrity life.

Quick Link

  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Health & Living

Top Categories

  • About Us
  • Send a Tip
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

I have read and agree to the terms & conditions
Lifestyle UgandaLifestyle Uganda
Follow US
© 2025 Lifestyle Uganda. A Now & Entertainment Media Company. All Rights Reserved.
Join Us!
Subscribe to our newsletter and never miss our latest news, podcasts etc..
I have read and agree to the terms & conditions
Zero spam, Unsubscribe at any time.
adbanner
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?

Not a member? Sign Up