Born in 1965 in the village of Lwanika in Uganda, Haruna Walusimbi grew up surrounded by rural traditional music performed at funerals, marriage ceremonies, and other social gatherings. Haruna excelled in the many diverse music traditions that thrived in his Busoga village and as result was selected as the Global Youth Earth Day Ambassador for Africa, later winning the Global Youth Earth Day Ambassadors Competition in the Philippines. After completing university, Haruna founded Nile Beat Artists, widely considered to be one of Uganda’s foremost performing arts troupes. He also created the Senator National Cultural Festival, which has grown to become the largest annual cultural event in Uganda.
In addition to his many accomplishments in Uganda, Haruna Walusimbi has achieved international renown as an educator, musician, and actor. He performed a leading role in the film Throw Down Your Heart, produced by American banjo legend Bela Fleck. Haruna subsequently worked with Mr. Fleck on the audio recording Throw Down Your Heart: Tales from the Acoustic Planet Vol. 3: Africa Sessions, which won a Grammy Award in 2010 for Best Contemporary World Music Album and Best Pop Instrumental Performance. He also acted in the Academy Award Winning film The Last King of Scotland, starring Forest Whitaker. Haruna Walusimbi has extensive experience in Uganda’s music, dance, and theatrical traditions and stands out as one of his country’s greatest living cultural treasures.
