Omaha Lay and Tem’s came to Uganda in 2021 for a performance. Uganda was on lockdown, but authorities had given a green light to parties with up to 200 people.
When Omah Lay posted a picture of himself on his socials with a crowd of Ugandan fans, both Ugandan artists and their fanbase became furious. This happened when local entertainers had been barred from performing for over a year. Local artists took to social media and called out the government, police, and any other authorities they felt should be concerned. Then news broke that Tems and Omah Lay had been arrested.
After the two were released, Temilade Openiyi alias Tems took to X (formerly Twitter) and posted alleging that singer Bebe Cool was behind her and Omah Lay’s arrest. Given that Bebe Cool is a controversial figure, even some Ugandans blindly joined the Nigerians on social media, blaming the Ugandan superstar as one of the key people behind the move.
However, while appearing on the Afrobeats Podcast, hosted by Adesope Olajide, the singer took time to offer a clear explanation about how events unfolded.
In a revealing submission, Bebe Cool went ahead to narrate how he actually fought to get the Nigerian stars released. At the time the drama occurred, Ugandan artists were on lockdown, and Bebe Cool was one of many who criticized the organizers for putting up the concert while local artists were not allowed to perform.
“I didn’t get Tems and Omah Lay arrested in Uganda. It’s very difficult when the internet picks up a story and takes it in a different direction,” he said. “I was sleeping around 3 a.m. when a friend called to inform me that the Nigerian artists had been arrested. I got the details from him and then I started making calls. By 6 a.m., I went to the police station and spoke to the DPC, the head of the police station, and he confirmed that Tems and Omah Lay had been arrested. I told him, ‘Why did you arrest the artists? The artists are not in charge of the show. The president has given an allowance of 200 people, but the artists don’t control the number of attendees. So why arrest them?’”
Bebe Cool added that because he had tweeted about this concert before, when he reached the police station, one of the organizers opportunistically used him as a scapegoat.
“Once the event started being advertised as a brunch, artists were furious. We started tweeting, asking the government that if you let Omah Lay perform, you should let us perform as well. The DPC told me that I should go and speak with his superior. But as I was speaking to the DPC, the show promoter saw me and started saying, ‘That’s the guy. That guy is the reason you are in prison.’”
Bebe Cool says that as he was still negotiating the artists’ release in another office in Naguru (the headquarters of the Uganda Police), he saw online that the artists had been taken to court.
“I made a call to the DPC and said, ‘I just left, I’m waiting for the big man to come so that we can discuss this. Why go behind me and take the artists to court?’ He explained to me that when I left, the lady promoter made a mess and was bragging about how her mother has connections to the president.”
He says, however, that he later managed to get the artists released without any intervention from Nigerian diplomacy. He went on to reveal that he managed to explain everything to Omah Lay when he had just been released, but did not get a chance to talk to Tems.
“When I saw Omah Lay’s demeanor, I knew he understood. Of course, Tems tweeted because that’s what she was told, and of course, the trauma.”
Bebe Cool has had a busy 2025, releasing the Bebe Cool List and later the video for his Circumference single. Currently fresh from London, he re-emphasized that he is deliberate about his ambition to move Ugandan music in a new direction.
“This is a new journey, and I encourage more East African artists to join me on the new dawn. That’s the motivation behind my new album Break the Chains,” he said.
It’s been a challenge to reimagine East Africa’s music scene, but change is inevitable. That’s the motivation behind the new sound with #BreakTheChainsAlbum.
I pledge a fresh approach to the music business, setting an example for the next generation.
Click this link to enjoy… pic.twitter.com/zYsJ1ZlqW9
— Bebe Cool (@BebeCoolUG) February 12, 2025
