Kampala — Former Leone Island and Firebase Crew music artist David Sifaayo, popularly known as Master Parrot, has died in a road crash along the Northern Bypass in Kampala. The artist reportedly died on Monday night after being struck by a speeding vehicle while attempting to cross the road in Busega at about 8:00 p.m.
Videos circulating on social media showed boda boda riders at the scene criticizing police officers for allegedly arriving about an hour after they had been alerted about the crash. The riders later assisted police in moving the body from the middle of the road onto a patrol vehicle. A close friend of the deceased, Yusuf Nampala, said he received news of Sifaayo's death from former schoolmates before contacting the musician's phone.
"I got a call from Abu Kawenja and Solo Kayemba, both our OBs from Makerere, saying they'd heard about Sifaayo's death and asked me to confirm," Nampala said. "I immediately called his number. A police officer answered and told me the phone owner had died in an accident and that they were taking the body to City Mortuary, Mulago." Nampala said Sifaayo had been living with his family in Kiwatule and had long since left Leone Island, the music group founded by Jose Chameleone.
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"Sifaayo left Leone Island a long time ago and went solo. He had been staying with his mother and family in Kiwatule. I don't know much about the accident; we shall get details from the police report," Nampala added. After taking a lengthy break from the music industry, the dancehall artiste, who was born in the 1980s and raised in Makerere-Kivulu, became a familiar figure in the Kamwokya ghettos.
During his music career, he released several popular songs and was associated with Bobi Wine and the Firebase Crew. The Uganda Police Force is yet to comment on the crash. According to police statistics, Uganda recorded 25,107 road crashes in 2025, including 4,434 fatal crashes, averaging about 14 deaths per day. Police have consistently attributed many of the accidents to speeding, careless overtaking, poor vehicle maintenance, and substandard road conditions.
