TAKEAWAYS

• Shakira Shakiraa reveals late King Oyo was her close friend and gym partner at Speke Hotel.
• She says the late king sometimes picked her up and dropped her home when her car had mechanical problems.
• Shakira recalls a month-long fallout between them before Oyo approached her and asked who had wronged whom.

Singer Shakira Shakiraa has revealed that the late Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV was not only her good friend but also her gym partner, describing his death as a shocking and painful loss.

Shakiraa shared that she regularly exercised with the late king at Speke Hotel and that, on some occasions, he would give her a lift home after their gym sessions, especially when her car developed mechanical problems.

She described the late Omukama as someone who took good care of himself, particularly through his healthy lifestyle, and said he carried himself in a way that made him different from what people might expect of a king.

“He took good care of himself, ate healthy and he even behaved as though he wasn’t a king,” she said, describing him as a rare kind of king.

The artist also opened up about one of her last memories with the late king, revealing that the two once fell out after she wronged him and stopped speaking to each other.

According to her, they went for about a month without talking before the late Oyo approached her and asked who between the two of them had wronged the other.

“We did it for about a month and then one day he approached me and asked between me and you who wronged the other?” she narrated.

Shakira explained that although she knew she had wronged him, she had chosen to give him some time rather than immediately apologize. The late king, however, questioned why she had not apologized.

Looking back, Shakiraa said the disagreement eventually passed, leaving her with memories of a friendship that extended beyond their public lives.

She emphasized that the late Omukama was a down-to-earth person who could interact with her as a friend and gym partner despite his royal status.

His unexpected death, she said, therefore came as a great shock, especially given the personal bond they shared.