It started with five children dancing barefoot in a dusty street. Now Uganda’s Ghetto Kids are set to perform with Shakira at the FIFA World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on July 19.
Shakira announced last week that the group will join her for the final. The children have already appeared in the video for her song “Dai Dai”, the tournament’s official anthem.
“I’ve already invited the Ghetto Kids from Uganda,” Shakira said in a video on social media, adding that she wanted the performance to feel “unforgettable.”
The group told NBC News this week that they were thrilled by the invitation.
“We are so excited,” members of the dance group said in a video interview.
Tiyoma Keysha, 11, added: “We feel so excited, I can’t wait to show the world what we’ve got.”
Based in Kampala, the group has 60 children aged 4 to 16, all of whom grew up in poverty. Decades of armed conflict and extreme poverty have left nearly 1.7 million children orphaned in Uganda.
Long before the invitation, the Ghetto Kids were dancing to Shakira’s songs. They have previously performed to “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” the 2010 World Cup anthem.
“We have always been dancing to her songs, so seeing that news made our hearts so happy,” 15-year-old Ssegirinya Madwanah King said.
“We jumped up and down, we celebrated,” he said.
The halftime show featuring Shakira, Madonna and BTS is a new American addition to the soccer tournament, which kicks off June 11 with matches across the United States, Mexico and Canada. According to FIFA, the last World Cup final drew more than a billion viewers.
The Ghetto Kids were formed at a foundation for vulnerable children set up by their manager, Dauda Kavuma. The group first drew attention in 2014, when five children posted a dance video to Eddy Kenzo’s “Sitya Loss.” The video went viral after Kenzo shared it.
Kavuma said the group’s purpose has stayed the same as it has grown.
“We are using music, dance and drama to make lives better,” he said.
The troupe has since appeared on “America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League” and “Britain’s Got Talent,” and in a music video with rapper French Montana.
Kavuma said he did not expect an opportunity like this.
“I’ve been hoping, but I didn’t see this coming,” he said.
There is still uncertainty around the trip as Uganda responds to Ebola cases linked to neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo. Uganda has confirmed seven cases and one death, and authorities on Wednesday ordered the border with Congo to close “with immediate effect.”
People who have visited Congo, Uganda or South Sudan within the past 21 days are currently barred from entering the United States, except for American citizens.
Still, Kavuma said he remained hopeful.
“We believe all will be fine. With God’s grace, nothing is impossible,” he said.
Uganda’s national team did not qualify for the World Cup, making the Ghetto Kids the country’s only representation at the tournament. Ssegirinya said he will be supporting Portugal.
“Before joining the group, we weren’t going to school, we weren’t traveling, we weren’t getting the basic needs,” Ssegirinya said. “If I weren’t part of the group, I don’t know where I would be.”
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