It’s not simple being female musician in Burundi.

Apart from difficult years the country has been through, with wars and coups and attempted coups, Burundians are conservatives and tend to dis-approve of women flaunting themselves in skimpy clothes and having tattoos.

Iry Tina has encountered her fair share of judgement, and also had one of her earlier videos banned.

But now, she tells me, she has managed to gain acceptance and people in Burundi love her musics.

Quote Message: I tried my best, you know, it’s fighting to change people’s minds, show them that we are doing nothing wrong, we are making them happy, we are promoting our country, and getting close to them and telling them what we are doing and why we are doing it.
Quote Message: I think women should be allowed to do anything a man can do.”

Perhaps, Iry Tina says taking part in beauty pageants allowed her to speak up for women rights and advocate of change of attitude:

“I was the first Burundian to be in those international pageants, at first my voice wasn’t that big, so those pageants helped a lot.”

Iry Tina musical career also received a big boost from the time she spent in Uganda, mixing with Ugandan artists and benefitting from the more developed music industries in Kampala.

Iry Tina had to work hard, including learning both English and Luganda.

She has released songs in Luganda but now is trying to focus on Kirundi lyrics with a Uganda influenced vibes.

She also has a company which has a studio and arranges concerts for artists visiting Burundi and which hopes to take Burundian artists on tour very soon.

You can hear DJ Edu’s conversation with Iry Tina on This is Africa this Saturday, on Gopde Global Resources World Service radio and partner stations across Africa.