Esther and Ezekiel Muteesasira
OriginKampala, Uganda
Genres
  • pop music
  • R&B
  • gospel music
Years active2019–present
Members
  • Esther Muteesasira
  • Ezekiel Muteesasira

Esther and Ezekiel Muteesasira are a Ugandan sibling singing duo who won the first season of East Africa's Got Talent in October 2019, at the ages of 14 (Esther) and 11 (Ezekiel).

They are the daughter and son of Ugandan gospel singer Julie Muteesasira and Pastor Steven Mutesasira.[1][2]

Life and career

Esther and Ezekiel come from a musical family. Their mother, Julie Muteesasira, is a Ugandan gospel singer who has had a number of hits, like "Ekikunyumira," "Lwana Nabo," and "Nterekera" in Uganda. During an interview on Kenya's Citizen TV, Ezekiel revealed how he got into music by watching his mother and trying to do everything she did. Esther revealed how her aunt discovered her singing capabilities and secretly recorded her singing around their home.[3][4][5] The duo, together with their parents, are involved in charity work and during an interview with New Vision after their win, they revealed that they would build an orphanage for homeless children.[6] Their mother later got divorced and came out as a gay woman, and the two children moved to Canada to live with their mother after being separated for 5 years.[7]

East Africa's Got Talent

Esther and Ezekiel's audition tape was submitted by their aunt, who had discovered them in 2017 as singers. They sang Alexandra Burke's version of "Hallelujah" at the theater auditions, receiving yeses from all four judges and making it to the live shows.[8][9][10][11] They sang Andra Day's 2015 song "Rise Up" at the live shows. They did not get the public vote to continue to the finals, as the public votes were given to Rwanda's Intayoberana. However, they were selected by three judges, Gaetano Kagwa, Makeda, and Jeff Koinange, to continue to the finals.[12][13][14][15][16] For their finals performance, the duo sang Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey's 1998 single "When You Believe." They received the most votes at the finals, winning the competition and taking home the US$50,000 (Ugs184 million) cash prize[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24] and a congratulatory message from President Yoweri Museveni, who called them his grandchildren (bazukulu).[25][26]

Canada's Got Talent

After relocating to Canada to live with their now single mother, Esther and Ezekiel took part in Canada's Got Talent season 2 and got a standing ovation by the audience and judges and advanced to the second round.[27]

References

  1. ↑ "Ugandans win East Africa's Got Talent". BBC World Service Africa. BBC News. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  2. ↑ "Julie Mutesasira's son hopes to win East Africa Got Talent". Sqoop: It's Deep. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  3. ↑ Musyoka, Michael. "Esther and Ezekiel Hilariously Recall Moment They Won EAGT". Kenyans. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  4. ↑ "Esther and Ezekiel Mutesasira win the East Africa's Got Talent competitions". Youtube. Kenya Citizen TV. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  5. ↑ Omondi, Ian. "'How we won East Africa's Got Talent,' Esther and Ezekiel Mutesasira reveal". Citizen TV, Kenya. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  6. ↑ Ssempijja, Reagan. "EAGT winners Esther and Ezekiel to build orphanage". New Vision. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  7. ↑ "I was a gay woman married to a pastor - Mother of 3 on why she left Uganda for Canada". 20 April 2022.
  8. ↑ Pamba, Detricia. "Young talent blossoms at the East Africa Got Talent". The Citizen, Tanzania. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  9. ↑ Muriisa, Habre. "Singer Julie Mutesasira's Children Impress At East Africa's Got with mature showcase". Chano8. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  10. ↑ "Julie Mutesasira's children blow judges away on East Africa's Got Talent Mind blowing vocals: Ezekiel and Esther Mutesasira left the EAGT Judges in shock!". Ug Christian News. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  11. ↑ Kulanyiq, Rachael. "VIDEO: Gospel artiste Julie Mutesasira's Children charm the East Africa's Got Talent judges with incredible vocals". Matooke Republic. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  12. ↑ Mwanza, Eddy. "Electrifying Performances That Wowed Judge Gaetano on Citizen TV". Kenyans. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  13. ↑ Kisakye, Allen. "Uganda secures three slots in East Africa Got Talent finale". WatchDog News. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  14. ↑ "EAGT: Ezekiel and Esther Mutesasira are through to the finals They are close to the EAGT crown!". Ug Christian News. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  15. ↑ Musyoka, Michael. "Child Acts Conquer in EAGT's Second Live Semi-Finals on Citizen TV". Kenyans. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  16. ↑ "Esther and Ezekiel Mutesasira optimistic ahead of East Africa's Got Talent grand finale". Ug Christian News. 2019-09-21. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  17. ↑ "Uganda's Esther and Ezekiel bag Shs184 million at EAGT". Sqoop. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  18. ↑ "Ezekiel ne Esther Muteesasira bawangudde obukadde 184". Radio Simba. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  19. ↑ "Ezekiel and Esther Mutesasira win East Africa's Got Talent 2019 They received majority of the public vote Sunday night". Ug Christian News. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  20. ↑ "Mutesasira siblings win EAGT's $50,000 prize". The Observer. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  21. ↑ Kasoba, William. "The Muteesasiras Esther and Ezekiel are Ugs184m richer after winning East Africas Got Talent Cometition". Matooke Republic: Freshly Peeled Info. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  22. ↑ "Ezekiel and Esther Mutesasira make Uganda proud in the East Africa's got talent". GMP. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  23. ↑ Passy, Derrick. "Esther and Ezekiel Mutesasira are the Winners of East African Got Talent". West Nile Xposed. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  24. ↑ "Ugandans win East Africa's Got Talent". Kenya Broadcasting Coorporation (KBC). Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  25. ↑ "Museveni congratulates bazukulu Cheptegei, Esther & Ezekiel". Edge. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  26. ↑ Musungu, Nahashon. "Museveni congratulates Ugandan siblings for winning regional talent show". Nairobi News Nation. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  27. ↑ "Sibling Singers Esther & Ezekiel Blow 'Canada's Got Talent' Judges Away with Show-Stopping Performance". 20 April 2022. Archived from the original on April 20, 2022.
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