"Agasi" by JACKIE CHANDIRU (Lyrics)

[INSTRUMENTAL:]

[CHANDIRU WHISPERS:]
Agasi, aga'bo, agasi!
Agasi, aga'bo!

[VERSE ONE:]
Ini ce ra, ale mi ra! Ico aco ku, aha!
Mi imu mavu, ife me i’da mini onyi, kiri kiri!
Ale eri saru, eri fe ma asi ni su, ‘ba ‘di, maye ‘do
Ale eri saru, eri fe ma asi ni su, ‘ba ‘di, maye ‘do
Ma ‘ye ngoni ya?

[CHORUS:]
Like a dream in my sleep, and
I know that you wanna be free
Mi imu mavu!
All I know in my heart is,
I just won’t say “Goodbye!”
Agasi. Aga'bo!
Oh oh, wowo! X3 Oh! (Aga'bo!) X2

[VERSE TWO:]
I’bi ma dri! Ma mi agi,
Itu ongo ma’be (ma’be)!
A’dule ife me i’da mini ayiko idri ni, baby!
A(du)sikunisi, ale mi-i saru!
Mi fe ma asi ni su, ‘ba ‘di, ma’ye ‘do!
Ale mi-i saru, mi fe ma dri ni ga, ‘ba ‘di, ma’ye ‘do!
Ma asi ni su.

[CHORUS:]

[HOOK:]
Mi mani, mani a’dule. Inini ku, baby!
‘Ba ngoki ongo leta dri-i, mi imu mapye, baby!
A(du)sikunisi, ale mi-i saru!
Mi fe ma asi ni su, ‘ba ‘di, maye ‘do!
Ale mi-i saru! Mi fe ma asi ni su, ‘ba ‘di, maye ‘do!
Maye, yeee, eh hey!
[CHORUS:]

[SPEAKING:]
Mi imu mavu!
All I know is, I just won’t say goodbye, Yeh, agasi. Oh, oh, oh!
No goodbye, eh!
No goodbye! (Agasi) No goodbye!
No goodbye! (Aga'bo) No goodbye!
I won't say 'Goodbye!' (Agasi) Oh oh!
Agasi, aga'bo! Oh, aha!
Huh X7
No goodbye!
[END]

When Jackie decided to do a song in Lugbara, a producer warned her that her idea was career suicide. However, today this song is so thrilling that people who don’t even understand her language sing along because of the catchy lyrics. Others gyrate to the melodic tunes. It plays on the world-class MTV Base plus regional EATV, Channel O en other broadcast stations. The video is shot in a predominantly black and brown colour mix and features JC plus two men dancing in a forest at night.
The song is basically about a girl's confessions to her lover who wants to quit their relationship. "Agasi" translated from Lugbara means "I have refused" (to say 'Goodbye!' to this relationship).
The first verse says: "You know I love you, don't fight! Come to me, let me show you good! I love him so much, he makes my heart pain. What will I do?"
The second verse says: "Hold my hand! I'm your friend. Dance with me! Alone, let me show you the joy of life! Because, I love you so much! You make my heart pain."
The hook says: "You are mine, mine alone. You don't know, baby. People have sung love songs. Come with me, baby! Because I love you so much! You make my heart pain."
Wow, now that's romantic! This song deserves an award!

Other Jackie songs with Lugbara lines include "Iringwa?" (Where is he?) about searching for your soulmate; "Were Were" (Kidogo Kidogo/ Small Small) ft. DYAN; "(Another Hannz Production) More Fire" ft. VARIOUS ARTISTS; "For All Time" ft. SAMMY (from Eritrea); "Gold Digger"; "Shamim"; "Don't Break My Heart (Remix)" ft. COCO FINGER; "Champion" en so forth...

Lugbara Alphabet and Vocabulary

Everybody knows that the English Alphabet has 26 letters. However, not many know that the Lugbara Alphabet has 28 letters (like Arabic) but minus Q and X. That’s quite interesting because it means that there are 24 letters exactly like those in English plus four more authentic letters (each with an apostrophe before it) namely: ‘B [like in Odu‘bua], ‘D [like in awa’difo], ‘W, and ‘Y [like in e’yo]. Nevertheless, some people ignore the apostrophe. Sometimes Z is pronounced as J for example in the name "Inzikuru"

What I find complex but very amazing about the Lugbara Vocabulary is that it has few words some of which mean different things depending on the pronunciation tones during speech. One word spelt the same can be used in three or more very different contexts, for instance the word Ezo for Warthog (Wild Pig) also means Girlfriend or fiancee. The word Ti means Cow but can also mean more than seven other things including Mouth, Language, Month, plus verbs like Harvest, Strangle, Sign, Produce (Give Birth), Drop (Ointment) or Sound dropping liquid, Thatch (a hut), etc or an adjective like "in vain". While reading silently as a beginner, you might find problems understanding a word in context but when spoken out in the right tone by someone, the word meaning is expressed. It’s always good to grasp the Vocabulary.

Lugbara Artefacts (Courtesy of Uganda Museum)

While rumours circulated in 2010-2011 that the Uganda Museum was going to be demolished, I was amazed by why the facts had been distorted. The Trade and Tourism Minister (before he became Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs), Major General Kahinda Otafiire, actually revealed, “No one, not even me, has said the building is going to be demolished. Instead of demolishing it, it will be preserved but within the new structure.” Having the tallest building in Africa would be amazing indeed, besides Uganda also has the Biggest Baha’i Temple in the whole of the Black Continent.

As a Museum goer myself, I believe the Heritage preserved here is interesting and very valuable for all Ugandans plus foreign tourists. Demolishing this effigy of Ugandan Architecture would be a Tragedy. I spent A Day at the Museum in 2009 to fish out the Best I could about my Culture and here is what I found. Luckily, the scary exhibits like the Leopard and Prophetess Nakayima didn't come to life.



The Lugbara End Blow Trumpet called LURU is made from a bottle shaped gourd.

The Side-Blown Trumpet MARE is made from a gourd and a wooden tube. It is blown through the hole in the gourd with the wooden tube pointing downward or under the left arm. Bee Wax is smeared inside the gourd which is wetted before it’s played only at death dances in union with the drum called NAITO.



The GUKE Trumpet is used by men and boys in most of their dance.



Both men and women smoked Water Pipes. Tobacco was ground to make Snuff. Special pipes were used for Hemp consisting of a bowl below a tray of hot embers. The smoke was drawn through a water filled container.

JUSTICE: Discovery of Crime
Misfortunes could arise from offending ancestor spirits. Both Lugbara and Madi used divining pots to assess the guilt of the accused. The small Lugbara pots represent possible suspects. They were heated and filled with medicated water. If the water boiled over, the suspect’s innocence was established. An accused was required to pass a similar test by the Madi. A pot was set on the ground and water poured in. If it did not flow out of the hole in the bottom, the accused was considered guilty.



The Lugbara Sun-Cover extends over the whole of the child’s body.