Beauty for Ashes

It all started by accident, when a studio prematurely leaked one of Olivier's songs to a university campus. The song was a hit. Students all over campus were singing his song. And when a famous artist arrived in town looking for an opening act, the university recommended Olivier, a relative unknown at the time. With no money to hire musicians, Olivier somehow convinced an electric guitarist, a bassist and a drummer to join him at the last minute. They took the stage and the audience went wild. When they finished their performance, crowds of people followed them, declaring them a blessing to the nation. Suddenly recognising the impact their music made, they decided to form a band. Beauty For Ashes was born. Inspired by Isaiah 61:3, the band seeks to enable its audiences to exchange their ashes for beauty. Since its inception, the Beauty For Ashes band has released two albums--"Siriprize" (2011) in Kinyarwanda, "The Wonders of the Son" (2013) in English--and multiple hit singles-- including "Superstar" (2012) and "Turashima" (2013). Olivier and Beauty For Ashes have performed in Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Canada, the United States, Hong Kong and Singapore. A Rwandan gospel rock band using music to release a generation to lead full and productive lives