Irene Gladys Namubiru, also known as Iryn Namubiru Morel, is a Ugandan female vocalist. She is a light-lyric, alto voiced, Afro-pop, recording and performing artist.
Namubiru was born in the Central Region of Uganda. Namubiru received an education at the following institutions:
According to Namubiru, she had a passion for singing since her childhood and strove to make it a bigger part of her life. Her first attempt at success in the music industry came in 1995 when she joined singers-cum-rapper DJs Ragga Dee and Molar-Messe, as the group Da Hommies, and “Joss Jjew” Mawejje as a studio arranger/keyboardist, assisting in the release of a series of singles including “Bamusakata”, “Mukwano”, and “Mukyala tokaba” in early 1995.
Her first individual single “Learn to say good bye” also appeared on the group’s subsequent album. Soon afterwards, she had her first stage appearance in September 1995.
In 1999, she joined Kanyomozi, her former schoolmate at Namasagali College, to form the R&B all-girl group called I-Jay. In 2000, they released their first 7 track album titled “WAIT” which included songs “Wait RMX (Ft Steve Jean)”, “Not Good Enough”, “Mwana”, “Wait”, “Emirimu”, “Vivi LA Vi” and “Two To Make It True…”, which received moderate air play on radio stations in Uganda.
Soon after the release of their record, Namubiru left for France and the group disbanded. This break up led to speculation that the two separated on unfriendly terms however, they both denied such rumours. While in France, she formed the Afro-Soul group Nujeli with Julien Grout and they released ENSI LP.
In 2006, Namubiru collaborated with singer Bebe Cool in the songs “Simbalala” and “Lwaki Onzannyilako?”.
However, Namubiru did not achieve widespread success until 2006, when she released her album Nkuweeki?. Since 2006, Namubiru released the songs “Y’ono”, “Lwaki”, “Bonna Obasinga”, “Begombeko”, “Birowoozo”, for which she has received various awards in the Ugandan music industry.
In 2011, Namubiru won in four categories of the 2011 Pearl of Africa Music Awards (PAM). She won in the categories of Artist of the Year, Female Artist of the Year, Album of the Year and Best RnB Single of the Year.
Namubiru has been widely criticised by her detractors for dressing “inappropriately” in her music videos and, at times, her concerts. Her critics propose that her costumes oppose traditional Ugandan dressing customs and set a bad example for other aspiring musicians.
In 2009, her video for “Bonna Obasinga” was criticised due to a swimming costume she wore. Namubiru later shot another music video for the song to placate her critics. However, many of her fans have defended her “creative” attire and perceive the accusations to be socially regressive and resistant to new styles.
Namubiru was married to Frank Galusy Morel, a Frenchman, and together they have two sons. She is fluent in English, French, and Luganda, which is her native language. She lives with her family in France, and most of her music fans reside in Uganda.
Iryn Namubiru is the founder and chief executive officer of a Non-Government-Organisation called GATHER FOR CHILDREN based in Mityana – Central Region, she formed in 2006 to help empower and support women / care takers, young mothers and teenage mothers to care and educate their children and vulnerable children. The organisation operates on Iryn Namubirus’s seven acres of land.
On 24 November 2018 she survived an accident in Lake Victoria, where a cruise boat carrying party revellers capsized, killing 33 people.
On 3 May 2013, Namubiru was arrested in Tokyo, Japan for alleged possession of illegal drugs, where she had gone to perform at a music concert. Namubiru was arrested at Tokyo’s Narita International Airport, before performing at the concert.
One week before the arrest, Namubiru was tweeting about her excitement to be performing in Japan. The concert was to take place at the Yotsukaido Cultural Hall in Tokyo, Japan’s capital.
Namubiru was found carrying ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine), which was concealed in her luggage. She was transferred from the Tokyo airport detention facility to a police station in Central Tokyo, where she recorded a statement in connection to the illegal possession of MDMA, which is commonly known as “ecstasy”; she denied any knowledge of the drug.
On 24 May 2013, at a hearing in Japan, the court found Namubiru to be innocent. Police in Japan cleared her of the drug trafficking charges and released her.
