Abbas Kaijuka of Kai’s Divo Collection Talks Dressing Winnie Nwagi and The Inspiration Behind All Her ‘Fire Concert’ Outfits

If there’s anyone who has had the opportunity to have the most celebrity clients, it’s definitely Kaijuka Abbas of Kai’s Divo Collection. The stylist/ designer has everyone from Winnie Nwagi, Rema, Lydia Jazmine, Sheebah, Karole Kasita, Geosteady, and B2C to actresses Cleopatra Koheirwe, Eleanor Nabwiso, and more on his roster. However, it is his relationship with Winnie Nwagi which stands out the most. He has created most, if not all, of the singer’s controversial outfits. Now, for her maiden ‘Fire concert’, the ‘Malaika’ singer had to bring in her most trusted ‘friend and collaborator’ to handle the wardrobe, and boy did he outdo himself!

We had a chat with Abbas Kaijuka on everything; from his relationship with the singer to all the outfits he created for her concert.

 Your relationship with Winnie is quite special. Do you remember the first time you styled her?

My relationship with Winnie is quite personal, she is a good friend. Our professional relationship is no different. Styling is such a personal thing, it’s good when you work with your friend because you understand each other quite fast. The first time I dressed Winnie was for her Kano Kozze music video. However, that wasn’t the first time she and I met. We had known each other for a while before that, and this made our first project together seamless. That project still stands out as my biggest music video job ever. My brief was to dress up to 100 people that day. It was crazy!

Her ‘Fire concert’ was a huge success, how did you feel about that?

I was happy for her because she’s been wanting this to happen for a long time. With the pandemic and everything, she and her team had to postpone the concert. So, I was very excited when I learned that it was finally happening, and also super pumped to support her with the wardrobe. For it to turn out successfully, and the fact that it was her first time, I’m still so proud of her.

You have done countless outfits for her, How did you feel watching her perform in Kai’s Divo Collection during the concert?

Yes, I’ve done countless outfits for her. Her wearing Kai’s Divo Collection on that stage was a dream come true because we’d planned this concert for years. Watching her on that stage, and seeing all the crazy ideas we had, come alive after years of waiting was magical. I almost shed a tear. I was so proud of her and myself. With that said, it was all types of emotions and pressure backstage as we put all her looks together. However, we were thrilled to watch the months of planning come alive in pure perfection.

The concept of her changing costumes live on stage, what was the story behind that?

For a very long time, we had been brainstorming ideas. When the event schedule got confirmed, we learned that there would be 3 sessions. That meant she would wear just 3 outfits. “How does she wear just 3 outfits,” we wondered. This being her first concert, we preferred that her outfit choices be just as pronounced as the singing and choreography.

Winnie and I then sat down to brainstorm on how to make this happen. I came up with the idea of her changing on stage from one outfit to another, which she got sold to immediately. However, her team didn’t get it. It was simple – choose one look as the base, then build everything else on it. When we got to the production, the show director wanted her to wear the sheer red jumpsuit as she performed ‘Jangu’. “Perfect,” we sighed. We created everything else to sit on the jumpsuit.

We had other designers on board; Sham Tyra and Mavo Kampala. The latter did the look she wore during the final session of the concert. Having different creatives on board made the experience even more joyful.

What was your favorite look?

That’s the first look – the giant floor-grazing gown because being the opening act, we wanted it to have a wow factor. And, I believe it served that purpose. My other favorite was the ‘Gomesi and Kikoyi’ combo. We had so much fun creating it.

You are perhaps the only designer who has dressed almost all Ugandan celebrities. Are there other African stars you’d love to work with?

I’ve had the rare opportunity of dressing almost 99% of the artists we have in Uganda. I’ve also worked with a few other stars away from Uganda, but I think, the person I’d love to dress is Bonang Matheba. She carries herself in such a way that anything she puts on her body works. If we are talking about artistes, for the guys it’s Wizkid and maybe Patoranking. For the females, I’ve been contacted to dress Yemi Alade but something didn’t work out. I’d still love to dress her. The same happened for Tiwa Savage, I was contacted to dress her for her concert, but I wasn’t around, I was in Nigeria at the time. I’d love to dress those two and internationally it’s Beyonce, no doubt about that!

You’ve had a colorful year so far. Showcasing in Milan. Winning awards. What do you have up your sleeve for the last quarter of the year?

Several things are coming up. I cannot spill details right now; you have to wait. I’m grateful that I’ve been able to hit several milestones this year.  

Watch ‘Fire Baby’ concert below:

Photography: @drimaxphotography

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