We have been listening, singing along, and dancing to Jose Chameleone’s music for over 20 years now, and we consider him a living legend in Uganda’s music industry.
Besides being a prominent musician and businessman, Jose Chameleone is a husband, father, and head of a beautiful family that he has built with his wife.
Today we take a look at Jose Chameleone’s first wife, and might we add- only wife. Here is everything you didn’t know about her.
Who exactly is Jose Chameleone’s first wife?
The beautiful woman who caught the eye and stole the heart of Dr. Jose Chameleone is called Daniella Atim Mayanja.
Daniella is a beautiful light-skinned woman from the Acholi tribe, which is something that Jose Chameleone’s late father seemed to have had a problem with. According to the Tubonge hitmaker, his father wanted him to marry from his Buganda tribe.
Chameleone’s wife’s birth parents are not publicly known. However, she was adopted and raised by the Italian Catholic priest, Father John Scalabrini, with whom she had a very close relationship and considered him her real father and best friend. When Father Scalabrini passed on in 2016, Daniella inherited his vast properties, including schools, hospitals, and real estate.
What does Jose Chameone’s wife do?
Besides being a full-time mother, Jose Chameleone’s wife is also the owner of several properties that she inherited.
She also runs a charitable foundation called Friends Charity which helps needy school children through donations of items such as books, sanitary towels, and other essential toiletries.
How did Jose Chameleone and his wife meet?
The love story of one of Uganda’s power couples began on one evening in 2003 when the two were introduced to each other by a mutual friend at the Alligators bar, Garden City in Kampala.
Their romance did not bloom immediately, as Daniella Mayanja had her reservations about Jose Chameleone- the musician had dreadlocks at the time, which Daniella associated with gangsters.
She eventually warmed up to him, and aren’t we just glad that things worked out?
Daniella Atim and Jose Chameleone’s wedding
Jose Chameleone and his wife exchanged vows on 7th June 2008 in a flashy event that is often referred to as the wedding of the decade.
The glamorous event was graced by the bigshots in Uganda who arrived in Helicopters.
Chameleone and his wife celebrated their 13th wedding anniversary in 2021, with Jose sending a heartwarming message to Daniella.
Jose Chameleone and Daniella Atim’s children
In their almost 14 years of marriage, the Valu Valu hitmaker and his wife have been blessed with five children- Abba Marcus Mayanja, Alfa Joseph Mayanja, Alba Shyne Mayanja, Amma Christian Mayanja, and Xara Amani Mayanja.
Chameleone also has an older daughter called Ayla Mayanja with a Belgium ex-girlfriend named Griet Onsea, aka Dorotia.
Did Daniella divorce Chameleone?
In 2018, Chameleone’s wife filed for a divorce from him, claiming that Jose Chameleone was an abusive drunkard who assaulted both her and her children.
Their marriage which is far from over was saved when the two later opted for an out-of-court settlement and reconciled.
Daniella later relocated to the US, where she lives with her children, who attend school there. Chameleone, who is mainly based in Uganda, where most of his businesses and fans are, frequently visits his family and shares the cutest photos of his children and wife.
Chamelone’s wife’s court case
In December 2012, Daniella was arrested and charged in court for fighting in a public place with a Dembe FM Radio journalist identified as Isaac Katende.
According to an anonymous source, the fight ensued when the journalist called Daniella and informed her that he would be running a ‘dirty’ article about her.
Daniella denied the charges and was released on a Sh.2 million cash bail.
Daniella Atim social media
Unlike her husband, who is very active on social media, Daniella Atim Mayanja is almost untraceable on Facebook and Twitter. She has an Instagram account, @daniellaatim, with 24.6K followers, but the account is private.