Kajambiya — Brief Biography

Kajambiya, real name Jovan Ssebaggala, is a Ugandan award winning gospel artist. He was born to the late Samuel Muwanguzi and Rose Lydia Muwanguzi, and attended Molly and Paul Busega Primary School for his nursery and primary education, then St. Henry's College Kitovu (SHACK) for O'Level, and Mengo Senior School for A’Level. He later pursued a Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering at Makerere University.

Stage Name & Inspiration

Kajambiya drew inspiration for his stage name from Hebrews 4:12, which describes the word of God as sharper than a two-edged sword. He translated "sword" as Kajambiya (a type of curved dagger or sword) to make it sound catchy and relatable.

Musical Journey

Kajambiya is a gospel reggae and ragga dancehall artist who entered the music industry towards the end of 2017, and has since become a household name thanks to his unique style and powerful lyrics.

His debut song, Bullet, made a remarkable impression — his best moment came when he performed it before an audience of over 5,000 people, with the crowd demanding an encore. His lyrics frequently draw directly from biblical scriptures, such as Colossians 3:3 and Psalms 139, which he uses to explore themes of pre-destined potential and spiritual resilience.

Charity

Kajambiya is deeply committed to giving back to the community through consistent and meaningful charity outreach. Over the past five years, he has visited orphanages, prisons, homes for people living with disabilities, shelters for teenage mothers, and underprivileged communities. Alongside his friends and supporters, he has extended a helping hand to these communities by providing basic necessities such as food, clothing, toiletries, and scholastic materials, among other essentials. Beyond the material support, these visits have brought hope and spiritual renewal to many, with the Gospel of Jesus Christ — and His saving and healing power — being proclaimed at every stop. As a result, hundreds of lives have been transformed, with many souls giving their lives to Christ through these encounters.

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Welcome to 12 Minute Converse with Jesus Believers.

God chose first to have a conversation with us, His creation.

Our prayer is that this listening space brings growth and transforms your life forever.

Praise God for you Jovan, what part of the world are you in today?

Amen, amen.

I'm in Africa, to be specific East Africa, and to be more specific, Uganda, which is the pearl of Africa.

Were you born in Uganda?

Yes, born and raised.

Now I had the opportunity to listen to your music.

I'm very fascinated, as I mentioned before, the fact of what I experienced by listening to your music there and then hearing your voice.

So what is the difference between the two things?

What happens there?

Actually, it's good that you're just hearing me.

But again, for people that get to meet me face to face for the first time, they get so amazed.

But even myself, sometimes I look at the man performing on stage.

And sometimes I'm like, who is that?

Because naturally, I'm a calm person, very laid back.

I never wanted camera lights action, but God was in my case.

So I always tell people, I may not have an explanation.

But I know that when I'm ministering, the Holy Spirit takes over and He always leads me in the direction that He wants me to minister.

And that's the identity He has given me.

How did you meet Jesus?

And what brought you to even being on the stage?

I met Jesus very many years ago, 2005.

I was in high school.

That's when I met Jesus.

And I walked with Jesus.

But during that time, we used to sing in high school school competitions and stuff like that.

When I joined university, and I know this happens to many people, because there's lots of freedom, peer pressure.

I think for a moment, I lost my identity.

And I was just all over the place.

But around 2013, while at university, I was hearing the call of God, strong on my life, that He wanted me to minister.

And so I remember asking myself, what can I do for God?

And I'm like, the best I can do for God is sing because I knew I had the gift, that gift I had discovered when I was 13.

So one of the things I thank God for is that I started hearing His voice early, because in that moment, He told me that I wasn't ready.

So what I did, I just started serving.

There was an opportunity to serve in a fellowship.

I finished university, I remember, in my ministry, I serve now, I started serving in the setup, the guys that set up chairs, and you know, things like that.

So I finished university, I start working.

And I knew when music was done, and I was very fine serving God where I was.

Until 2017.

And God tells me I'm ready.

And I remember in that moment, I was asking God, I thought me and music were done.

I'm very fine serving from the back, the background.

But in there, I needed to know, okay, if you really want me to do this, why did I have to wait for like, almost five years.

And then God wanted me to wait for two things.

Number one, He wanted me to be taught.

Because as a gospel minister, the gift alone is not enough.

You know, the gifts of God are without repentance.

So He can give a gift to whoever He wants.

But He needed me to be taught so that I teach from a point of present truth.

And then number two, He wanted to show me that He can supply all my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

So that when I start ministering, I don't place a demand on my ministry that I don't look at my ministry as a source of income.

And that was powerful.

So August 2013, I think it was the 25th day, that's the official day Kajambia Music launched.

And here we are.

Wow.

12 years later, almost 13.

Has it been worth it?

Yes, it has.

It has.

It has been worth it.

I've seen many lives transformed through my ministry, and I can never put a price to that.

So it has been worth it.

What does Kajambia mean?

So Kajambia, it's like a machete.

The inspiration of the name actually came from Hebrews 14, because I'm a man of the word, I love the word.

So when I was meditating, that scripture that says the word of God is quick and active and sharper than a two-edged sword, piercing, separating soul and spirit, bone and marrow.

I'm like, that right there is me.

So I'm like, how do I translate this into a name that people can easily relate with?

And lo and behold, Kajambia was birthed.

Absolutely amazing.

The reggae influence, tell me how that came into play.

Uganda up to today, actually, we don't really have identity when it comes to music.

But then when we were still younger, the most popular music here was music from Jamaica.

So I grew up listening to people like Beanie Man, Sean Paul, the list is endless, but all those Jamaican artists that hit in the 90s and early 2000s.

So I grew up listening to that.

And I think that had a lot in shaping the kind of music direction that I took.

How are you able to navigate what goes with the energy that comes from dancehall music and ensure that the word of God is coming through in a live performance?

One thing that I've come to terms with is that when God gives you a message, he, as long as you're yielded enough, he'll always give you the means.

Because I remember my first song, my first song is called Bullet.

My biggest worry was, aren't people going to be taken by the beats?

And then they miss the music.

Then I'm like, this is how God wanted me to do it.

And then I remember starting to hear people give me testimonies of, man, this is a song.

A testimony is like someone was telling me that they had a cousin they had preached to and they had refused to get born again.

Then he found them playing my music and he's like, is that gospel?

They're like, yes.

He's like, if that's gospel music, then I want to give my life to Christ.

That navigation, honestly, God just has a way of doing it.

Just like Christ speaks in the dust and gets the spiritual man, puts it on someone's eyes and then they receive sight.

So sometimes it's hard to explain.

So it's the same thing.

It's down soul, but when he wants to use it as a means, he will convey the message he wants to convey.

Five years from today, you're listening to this conversation.

What's a message you'd leave for future children?

There's a scripture I love so much, which is Psalm 27, verse 4.

And for me, it's always a reminder.

So the psalmist says, one thing have I desired of the Lord that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.

If I was to leave a message for the future juveniles that do everything because God has spoken a lot on my life.

I know there is many things that are coming, nations are calling, but one thing I always promised myself is that as long as I stay in his presence, as long as I stay beholding his beauty and inquiring in his temple, he will make Israel prosper through me.

Juveniles, it's been a great pleasure for me.

Is there anything else you'd like to share with our amazing audience?

First and foremost, Angel, thanks for having me.

I can imagine the miles across, but somehow the young man from Africa, Uganda ended up on your show.

I did not take it for granted.

Thank you for the opportunity.

And I just want to encourage everyone that is listening to this podcast that is serving God through music.

Angel Jones has put up a platform that brings different stories to people.

And I believe even you that is listening, there is something that God has given you.

Each of us has a unique gift and a unique calling, but let's use it for the glory of his name and expansion of his kingdom because every joint supplies.

Children, this has been a pleasure, a treasure.

Thank you for being on What is Inspired by 12 Minute Converse.