Some come from goat herding families. Others from urban slums.
For these Ugandan children, singing is the ticket to a better life.
You can hear their moving songs and move along with them on Oct. 5, when the African Children’s Choir performs at First Baptist Church in Everett.
The show includes dances, drumming, gospel, African songs and pop tunes.
“I feel famous when the lights are out and people are cheering,” said choir member Joshua Kiiza, 11. “It is good to perform.”
During the yearlong west coast tour, Joshua’s group, known as Choir 41, will perform 250 times, mainly in churches and schools. The choir started in January in San Francisco and was in Alaska before heading to Washington this week, with a performance Sunday at Northwest Community Church in Bothell.
“Everything is very, very exciting to them,” said tour leader Nate Longstaff.
But even rising stars still have to do their homework.
“They go to school while on the road,” Longstaff said. “They’re incredibly resilient.”
Before touring, the children had five months of training and a crash course in English.
It takes a special kid to meet the challenges of being far from home and having to constantly impress crowds of strangers.
“They are scouted by the organization for their need and potential for being a future leader,” Longstaff said, “with an exception for those with exceptional charm and intelligence.”
About 40 children were selected for the two current North American tours, with 20 in each group. The boys and girls travel by bus and stay with host families. “On occasion we stay at a church, sleeping in the hall,” Longstaff said.
Though the kids aren’t with their parents, they are surrounded by family.
“In Uganda, anyone older is considered aunties and uncles. We as the chaperones are considered aunties and uncles,” said Longstaff, 22, of England.
He and the other eight chaperones are all volunteers. One “uncle” is a former choir member who also gives a testimony at the performances.
The children don’t email and Skype with their relatives back home. “They write letters frequently. That is a cultural thing to do,” Longstaff said. “They go back with full sponsorship and will be given an education.”
On the road they take in the sights. Highlights so far include bears, glaciers, Santa, the Grand Canyon and McDonald’s.
“In California, we went to the beach and swam in the ocean,” said Merabu Owembabzi, 10, who has developed a fondness for pizza. Longstaff said sightseeing depends on schoolwork and shows.
“They keep a busy schedule singing and dancing,” he said. “They do get tired but they get plenty of rest.”
The Choir was founded in 1984 by Ray Barnett, who now lives in White Rock, B.C. Barnett was in war-torn Uganda on a humanitarian trip when he gave a young boy a ride from the child’s destroyed home to a safer village. The boy sang during the ride, and his beautiful voice was Barnett’s inspiration to found the African Children’s Choir.
Choirs tour in the United Kingdom and North America. They have performed for presidents, heads of state and the Queen of England.
Sometimes they share the spotlight with other stars, such as Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Keith Urban and Mariah Carey.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
If you go
African Children’s Choir will perform at 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 5, First Baptist Church, 1616 Pacific Ave., Everett. Concerts are free. Donations support education, care and relief and development programs. More 7,000 children in several African nations are currently being supported through the program’s parent group, Music for Life.
For more: www.africanchildrenschoir.com.
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