Cameroonian Community in US bids goodbye to musical icon

They came from all over the United States, from as far as Texas, California, and Massachusetts. Some even came from the continent: Africa, of course. All came to pay tribute to Jacob Nguni, nicknamed Microwave, veteran Cameroonian musical icon who rose to prominence as lead guitarist for Nigeria-based Prince Nico Mbarga’s ROCAFIL Jazz band of the 1970s and early 80s.

For one man who lived most of his life in the bright lights of the musical stage, Jacob Nguni could not have wished his goodbye any different: he went out with a musical bash.

On Saturday, May 30, 2015, Cameroonians in the United States and friends of Nguni came together to pay their final respects to the man dubbed the dean of Cameroonian musicians at two events: an ecumenical mass at the Resurrection Catholic Church in Burtonsville and a musical concert in Takoma Park, Maryland. Both events were packed.

Nguni’s life was not typical or dull. Here was an individual who dropped out of Sasse College, the prestigious all-boys’ secondary school based in Buea, Cameroon, two months to writing the GCE Ordinary level examination that would have earned him a spot in medical school and beyond, and sneaked off to Nigeria to pursue his passion: music.

Within a short time, he rose to become the greatest lead guitarist of Africa’s greatest band of his era which gave the African music such dancehall staples as Sweet Mother, Simplicity, and Happy Birthday to You, among scores of tunes by the band led by Nigerian-Cameroonian Nico Mbarga.

For someone of Nguni’s stature, there could be no greater home-going concert without a performance by fellow ROCAFIL Jazz band members, vocalist Louisiana Tilda and band member Tina Mayer, whose rousing medley rendition of the band’s tunes brought the house “down.”

The organization of both events was spearheaded by the Maryland-based All Cameroonian Cultural and Development Association, ACCDF, which, according to its chairlady Justine Mbianda, was a tribute to efforts Jacob Nguni put in from the association’s inception to make it succeed.

As a founding member of the ACCDF, Nguni served for years as the director of production of the annual Cameroonian Cultural Festival, pulling in fellow artists from across the U.S., Europe, and Cameroon to perform at the event.

Mbianda remembers Nguni as someone who went out of his way to serve
Cameroonians, especially musicians. She recalls in particular when Nguni approached the ACCDF last year to seek assistance for Lapiro de Mbanga, a fellow musician on exile in the U.S. who fell ill and passed away.

The ACCDF led Cameroonians to Buffalo, NY to attend Lapiro’s funeral and worked with Nguni to stage a concert in Maryland to honor this musical hero. No one knew then that Nguni himself would follow Lapiro within a year. While the community knew that Jacob Nguni was ill, Ms. Mbianda added, “[we] just did not expect him to go so soon.”

“As soon as his death was announced,” she added, “we at the ACCDF knew it was our responsibility to ensure that he had a befitting funeral. Once again, we appealed to the community for help, and, as usual, support came pouring in from all over the United States and even abroad.”

Mbianda concluded that the funeral was a collaborative effort by several groups, including the ACCDF; Sasse ex-students; Dschang elements (Nguni’s parents came from Dschang in the Western Region of Cameroon); CAMUSA (association of Cameroonian musicians in the U.S.); Famille; and Kumba elements from the city in Cameroon where Jacob Nguni was born.

This feeling was shared by Richard Mbakop, Executive Director of the ACCDF. To Mbakop, “[This commemoration of Jacob Nguni’s life] was a great and well deserved tribute to a legend. I was pleased with our Cameroonian diaspora community.”

Emmanuel “Fine Boy” Allotey, a friend of Nguni and one who helped organize this memorial, described his mentor’s wake as “an unprecedented wake service never ever before witnessed in our diaspora community history. In Washington, D.C., we Talk the Talk and Walk the Walk. The Washingtonians stepped up to the plate.”

Jacob Nguni’s family departs next week to Cameroon to hand his remains to his ancestors.