Kemiyondo Coutinho and her rather handsome but equally humorous best friend York debuted a new podcast; ‘How Red is Red’, mid-last year. When I look it up on Spotify, the topics first throw me off as I search for which episode to start with. I finally settle for one.
Kemiyondo and York cheerily introduce it between banter and odd jokes. Somewhere in between, they soon have me grinning and two minutes later, I am already engrossed in the deep dive about their ‘red flags’ experiences.
I have known Kemiyondo to be an unconventional creative. During the pandemic, she started an Instagram show called ‘It’s a Vibe’, and it was all about flirting, – nothing else. Later, I learnt about ‘Five for 5’, a project that raised funds to bring 5 exceptional Ugandan film scripts to life. Her passion for creativity is also about inspiration, but there is something uniquely special about ‘How Red is Red’. Maybe it’s because she’s doing it with her best friend, or that she thinks the conversation is something we all shy from, but want to indulge. “I think a lot of people don’t talk about red flags because they think they’re stupid, but it happens to everyone and we should laugh about it”, she tells me over the phone in Los Angeles.
It is 7 am and she is taking her early morning walk in with Afro, her beautiful furry dog.
One thing is for sure, Kemiyondo is bent on living her life on her own terms, It even trickles down on how she starts her day -with her own self.
Being in the writers room for P-VALLEY, work starts at 8am but she is up by 6am. “This practice allows me to start my day the way I decide to start my day. Not how my co-workers or boss or whoever wants. It is important to start your day with yourself”, she says.
On inspiration, she gets it like whispers from God. “I don’t always jump on every idea so if I get an idea for the first time, I will be like “Okay God, I hear you.” If it keeps on coming to me, then I will do it, even if I don’t understand it”, she says. Sometimes people want to understand “the idea” especially when it does not sit with their brands but she thinks “You should not limit and put yourself in boxes”.
This is true even for her; while she does not sing, the ‘Aka Dope Band’ is her brainchild. This band has gone on to become one of Uganda’s most sought-after live bands.
“Even when it seems silly, feeling like I am the best person that can execute the idea always gives me an extra boost. Projects like “It’s a Vibe” or “How Red Is Red” may seem silly, but I know I am the person to do it because I know how to make shame into something funny so that people are not stuck with shame after relationships” she says. If the concept is too generic, then we will most likely let it slide since other people can also do it.
As her hair and projects know best, Kemiyondo lives life according to seasons and chapters. She is currently adorned in a blonde curly short hair-do but it will most likely be something else in the next few months. When I ask what this is about, she suggests that people should not be afraid of things that have a time limit. “I think people think that I’m dropping a project when actually I never meant for it to last that long. Like ‘It’s a Vibe’ was something to get us through the pandemic but if I were to do it again, I know how I want it to look in its next iteration. For my hair, it’s about being unafraid. I feel like people fear trying new styles because they’re afraid of ‘not liking it’ but in my case, I know the hair will grow again. It is the same thing like taking on a project. If it doesn’t work, then you move onto the next thing or it will become something else. I think that is what I’ve always felt like even with hair, if I don’t like it then I’ll go bold or I will keep cutting it until I find what I want. The same goes with projects. If it is not what you want, keep editing until it is what you want, just keep on editing.
“I believe inspiration is like whispers from God.”
When I found out that she was in Kampala last year, I asked if we could meet up but she and York had already returned to LA. “We kept it on the low and didn’t want people to know we were in Uganda” she says. But when she is in Kampala, Kemiyondo finds a great wealth of inspiration. However, she likes to execute in LA. She just can’t explain it any further, it is clear that both are needed for her work flow.
As we talk, I’m left wondering if the extreme vibrations of Kampala and Los Angeles require her to extend and adjust her persona. “I don’t think I adjust my persona,” she says, “I think different cities bring out different elements of my persona. As someone who traveled around a lot and went to school in different countries, I lived around a lot of different people. I think different cities and different people bring out different elements of me but all these things are true about me. For example; If you hang out with me in LA, then also hang out with me in Kampala, you may go like “oh I didn’t know this about you” but it’s not that I am hiding it, it is just that certain people and places will bring out certain things in me, which is why you have to be very conscious who you hang out with.”
Follow “How Red Is Red” on Instagram
Being a script writer, I’m intrigued to know if Kemiyondo is watching TV and what she’s into, and yes, she admits that watching television feels like work if you are a screenwriter, but she fills me in. “I am watching Abbot Elementary and I like how fun and silly but simultaneously big it is”, she says. “But I also watch Love is Blind, because I’ve been watching more reality TV recently.” White Lotus is the third film she mentions. “I will watch a movie more than once, if the script has a certain element I want to master” she says, adding “that is why I am re-watching White Lotus”.
The most important piece of advice she gives to someone trying to break into the industry is to not take too many people’s advice because everyone is going to tell you how they did it. “I think you should do it your way because it always looks very different for every single person”. Kemiyondo doesn’t also buy into the broke-artist vibes stating that you don’t have to quit your work in order to get into the creative world because it takes a while to be able to earn money. “Your art does better for you if you are able to support yourself so you need to be okay first, in order to be creative”, she advises.
“Do you feel accomplished?” I ask her, to which she resoundingly says “Yes!”. So I follow it up with, “What does accomplishment mean to you?” And she responds saying, “Accomplishment means doing the things I said I would do, and keeping promises I made to myself. This morning I said I would wake up and go to the gym which I did so I feel accomplished. I wanted to start a podcast and I did it, which to me is an accomplishment! I really changed the way I look at my life because that is what accomplishment and confidence is. If you keep promises to yourself, you will always succeed because it’s about the everyday not the long time.”
“The American passport opens up more possibilities in many ways. In order to travel Africa without a visa, I had to get an American citizenship, it’s very sad but true” she says.
