Moses Matovu, the veteran Ugandan musician, saxophonist and longtime leader of Afrigo Band, died on September 24, 2026, aged 77, bringing to an end a musical career that stretched for nearly six decades.
Matovu was more than the face of Afrigo Band. He was one of the musicians who helped build Uganda’s modern live-band tradition, surviving political upheaval, changing musical tastes and generations of performers while keeping the group on stage for more than five decades.
His death followed an attack at Kibuli Market Zone B in Kampala. Police said he was attacked by unknown assailants and later died at Kibuli Hospital. Investigations into the circumstances of his death were ongoing.
Moses Matovu’s age and date of birth
Moses Matovu was born on June 19, 1949, in Kawempe, Kampala, to Abdallah Bukenya and Solome Nakitto.
He spent much of his childhood with his mother after his parents separated.
Matovu developed an interest in music at an unusually young age. He began singing in the Namirembe Cathedral Choir when he was about four years old, an experience that laid the foundation for a career that would eventually make him one of Uganda’s best-known band musicians.
He attended Namirembe and Kibuli primary schools, Kibuli Junior Secondary School and Pillai’s Secondary School.
His formal education was interrupted in 1966 when traditional institutions were abolished. Matovu had been studying on a Buganda Kingdom scholarship, but the political changes affected his education. He subsequently turned increasingly towards football and music.
Moses Matovu’s football career
Before becoming fully committed to music, Matovu was also a footballer.
He played for several Ugandan clubs, including Lint FC, Nakivubo Boys, which was associated with SC Villa, Fiat FC, Express FC and Police FC.
By 1972, however, he had decided to leave football and concentrate on music.
His professional music journey had already begun several years earlier.
How Moses Matovu started his music career
Matovu entered professional music in 1967 as a vocalist with the Thunderbirds Band.
He later joined the Police Band in 1968 before moving to the Cranes Band in 1969. His time with the Cranes Band proved particularly important because it brought him together with musicians with whom he would later establish Afrigo Band.
One of his early compositions was “Jimmy Sasira”, which was recorded in 1970 while he was still associated with the Cranes Band.
When the Cranes Band eventually broke up, Matovu and fellow musicians decided to form their own group.
Moses Matovu and the birth of Afrigo Band
Afrigo Band was formed in 1975, with Matovu among its founding members.
The name Afrigo has commonly been explained as meaning “Africa Go Forward”.
The beginning was far from easy. The young musicians rehearsed in Najjanankumbi and initially struggled to acquire equipment and establish themselves.
Their first performances gradually attracted attention, and the band went on to perform at several prominent venues in Kampala.
Afrigo later became a resident band at Cape Town Villas in Munyonyo and performed for high-profile patrons, including then-President Idi Amin.
The band survived the political turmoil of the late 1970s, including the 1979 war that brought down Amin’s government. Its musicians lost equipment during the upheaval and were forced to rebuild.
Afrigo eventually returned to regular performances and became one of Uganda’s longest-running musical groups.
The man who kept Afrigo alive
Matovu became the enduring face of Afrigo as many of the band’s original members died or moved on.
He was a vocalist, saxophonist, flutist, songwriter and bandleader, but he repeatedly played down his individual contribution, insisting that Afrigo’s success was a collective effort.
Over the years, the band performed at major Kampala venues including Bat Valley, Little Flowers, Sheraton Hotel, Fairway Hotel and Club Obligato.
Afrigo also became a training ground for generations of Ugandan musicians. Artists such as Joanita Kawalya and Rachael Magoola passed through the band, while other musicians developed their careers within its ranks.
Matovu remained active well into his seventies.
In 2025, aged 76, he was still performing as Afrigo marked its 50th anniversary.
Moses Matovu’s songs
Matovu was associated with numerous Afrigo songs and compositions during his long career.
Among the songs associated with his musical journey are “Jimmy Sasira”, “Katonda Yakola Omukwano”, “Sipiidi Kendeeza”, “Sirina Anantwala”, “Wapi Sofia” and “Emiziro”.
Afrigo’s catalogue expanded over several decades, with the band producing numerous albums and songs covering subjects ranging from relationships and marriage to social and political issues.
The band’s 1989 album Afrigo Batuuse II was among the releases associated with its commercial growth, while Teri Mubi, released in 2019, included new material alongside reworked compositions from the band’s earlier years.
Moses Matovu’s family
Matovu was a widower.
He had 11 children.
He generally kept much of his private family life away from the public spotlight, while dedicating most of his public career to music and Afrigo Band.
Moses Matovu’s awards and recognition
Matovu’s contribution to Ugandan music earned him several lifetime achievement honours.
He was recognised through awards associated with the Club Music Video Awards, Janzi Awards and HiPipo Music Awards.
His importance to Uganda’s music industry was also reflected in the longevity of Afrigo itself. Few Ugandan musicians remained active for as long as Matovu did while continuing to perform with the same musical institution.
Moses Matovu’s net worth
How much money was Moses Matovu worth?
There is no reliably documented public figure for Moses Matovu’s net worth.
But Matovu owned wealth in cash, property, investments, music royalties or other assets at the time of his death.
Matovu spent almost six decades in professional music. He earned income through live performances, songwriting, recordings and his work with Afrigo Band.
In a 2015 interview, Matovu declined to disclose how much Afrigo was earning at one point in the band’s history, saying that “Money is not everything sometimes.”
That makes any precise online claim about his personal net worth difficult to substantiate.
How Moses Matovu made his money
Matovu’s principal career was music. His professional income over the decades came from live music performances, Afrigo Band shows, music recordings and albums, songwriting and composition, music-related engagements and his long-term leadership and performances with Afrigo Band.
His music career also provided for his family. Matovu once said that music had paid school fees for his children and taken him to different places.
Moses Matovu’s legacy
Matovu’s significance to Ugandan music lies partly in his extraordinary longevity.
He entered professional music in the 1960s, helped establish Afrigo in the 1970s and remained at the centre of the band for roughly five decades.
He lived through the Amin era, the wars and political upheavals of the 1970s, the rebuilding of Uganda’s entertainment industry and the transition from traditional live bands to the modern digital music business.
Yet Afrigo survived.
Matovu once expressed pride in the fact that young Ugandans continued dancing to music produced by the band decades earlier.
His death therefore closes one of the longest chapters in Uganda’s live-band history.
At 77, Moses Matovu left behind not only recordings and performances, but also musicians he mentored and an institution that became synonymous with Uganda’s live music tradition.
For a musician whose career began when Uganda’s music industry looked dramatically different from what it is today, the most measurable part of Matovu’s legacy may not be the size of his estate but the five decades he spent keeping Afrigo on stage.
Meanwhile, there is a shocking twist to the murder of musician Moses Matovu involving a fight over a woman, as reported Here.
