Paying for music is a very telling index of luxury . For the wananchi , music is as free as oxygen , blasted liberally on the airwaves and in local bars . The middle class , on the other hand , will pay for CDs , i-Tunes and ( most importantly ) to be seen at live gigs .
Ugandans here prove the exception . While they have always prided themselves on their pop music , for which they are the envy of the region , Ugandans have a weird intolerance to actually paying for music . Music is , after all , just a pleasant backdrop to their beer-drinking , which is the only reason to leave the house or office .
This is largely true for Tanzanians also . They are already well-fed on a homegrown diet of Bongo Flava and Diamond – why should they pay for any foreign rubbish ?
Kenyans , being richer and more vulnerable to fleeting mzungu fashions , will always shell out top dollar to see the latest craze – MC Whoever from the US or DJ Whats-his-name from Germany . Knowing who ’ s who in the international R & B charts can be a matter of life and death at a Kenyan private school .
The Rwandans – serious , money-wise , and possessing a rich musical tradition of their own – are cautious spenders on music entertainments . And , more than Tanzanians , they are very suspicious of foreign products in music – you never know what the abazungu are trying to sell under the guise of melody !
However , when it comes to big names , hidden francs can suddenly be found under the mattress . Ugandan singer Jose Chameleone is worshipped as a saint in Rwanda and the Stromae gig was lesser only to the Second Coming .
PROPERTY
The Holy Grail of the new rich , everywhere , is the acquisition of property . Students of European history tell us that this was indeed the way that the modern bourgeoisie took over from the aristocrats ( besides chopping off their heads , which was an afterthought ).
Tanzanians have an interesting legacy of Soviet-era state-sponsored public housing , whose brutal blocks sit oddly alongside the ornate Arab and Indian mansions .
The Tanzanian middle class is now making up for lost time – buying and building like crazy . Modern , glass-paneled , well-ventilated architecture rules .
Fashionable districts like Mikocheni boast a new Chinese-built palace on every corner and most are now the property of the indigenous bourgeoisie .
For Kenyans , big is beautiful and security is paramount because the richer you are , the more the thieves target you . So for all their wealth , Kenyans ’ gains in property are ultimately depressing : who wants to live in a golden cage surrounded by Rottweilers ? With such trends , the Nairobi middle class are fast becoming the new Johannesburgers – super rich , shamelessly unequal , paralysed by crime .
Ugandans , with their fluctuating wealth , have a great line in construction but not completing . In this way , they inadvertently do more about the housing problem than City Council , as the endless rows of partially completed houses provide luxury digs for Kampala ’ s booming population of squatters .
Again , in Rwanda ’ s case , caution and care dominate consumer choice . With more modest incomes , but a stable , state-supported economy , property investors are conservative , building modestly and within urban planning regulations .
BRING IT ALL TOGETHER
The form and tastes of the middle class in East Africa are a reflection of its history , economics and dreams . The Kenyan rich , with a legacy of colonialism and capital , are the biggest spenders , but also the most culturally-compromised ; their lack of homegrown culture is the price they pay for lucrative internationalism .
Tanzanians , latecomers to consumer capitalism , are now making up for it in style , with Oriental influences sometimes pushing them beyond African tastes .
The Ugandan middle class , with their loose and spontaneous lifestyle , are a product of a battered but proud society that lived through twenty years of dictatorships and civil wars ; they spend fast and carelessly , but are loyal to their national culture .
The Rwandans , a landlocked , patient people , who have borne the most fearful ravages with a philosophical shrug , have a more modest middle class , but one that is quietly wise , knowing its moment of ascendancy is soon to come .
OCTOBER 2016 EDITION - 19