By Fidelis Manyange
AS the curtain comes down on 2024, we look at some of the successes, failures and controversies involving Zimbabwe’s performing artistes.
To begin with, Selmor Mtukudzi and stepmother Daisy hogged the limelight for all the wrong reasons when their family tiff went public for the first time. That was after Oliver Mtukudzi’s second daughter from his first marriage was originally excluded from the line-up of performers at the inaugural Tuku International Festival scheduled for September 21 and 22 at the Pakare Paye Arts Centre, Norton. Selmor was only included at the eleventh hour after a public outcry. She, however, left the stage in a huff after playing only one song citing lack of respect from her stepmother. She went on to vent her anger by releasing a single, ‘Kugara naMainini’, which was an indirect reference to the trials and tribulations of living with a stepmother. The track is a heart-rending and powerful song that delves into the abuse stepchildren endure at the hands of ‘evil’ stepmothers.
The song received thousands of YouTube views just a few hours after its release. Elsewhere, Uzumba-born and bred musician Jah Prayzah almost became ‘Mampara of the Year’ after he ordered his team to stop the ZBC-TV camera crew from filming the Ministry of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture-organised ‘Bira Rembira’ at Gwanzura Stadium in October.
The stand-off, which came about as a result of Jah Prayzah’s newly introduced policy of charging for videography rights, caused a momentary disruption in the proceedings. However, the festival, jointly held with Chipaz Promotions, lived to its billing, attracting a capacity crowd from all walks of life and age-groups. Like their international counterparts, local artistes are not immune to engaging in verbal wars, in what is often seen as a marketing gimmick.
Rappers Kikky Badass and Holy Ten were, in September, embroiled in a bitter war of words after the video vixen claimed the wordsmith was sharing his wife with another man. The two trended daily on various media platforms, washing each other’s dirty linen, much to the amusement of their fan base. During the course of the year, ‘bornagain’ Christian Braveman Chizvino, better known as Baba Harare, officially changed his stage name to ‘King David’ as part of his transformation from jiti to gospel music.
As if to prove that his transition was from the heart, Baba Harare went on to release a gospel album and also featured in various other gospel artistes’ tracks and videos, notably ‘Ngoma’ by Ashy Anointed (Hannok). ‘The Reason Why’ hitmaker’s fans are eagerly waiting to see if the born-again gospel artiste will stay the course his newly adopted genre. Meanwhile, the popular all-female event, the ‘Doek & Slay’, has become a mega-hit since the beginning of the year, attracting a record crowd of 1 300 during its July edition.
Launched initially in Harare, it has since spread its wings to the country’s major urban centres. “The Doek & Slay event is an outing for women that offers a much needed space for self-expression, empowerment and networking among ladies,” according to one of the show organisers. However, some male chauvinists have slammed the event as an ‘unholy’ gathering. But that is a debate for another day. It was a year of mixed fortunes for Zimbabwe’s artistes some of whose releases failed to meet the grade. A case in point was Sungura King, Alick Macheso, whose album, ‘Kupa Kuturika’, released on August 2, turned out to be a damp squib. In an effort to fight piracy, the ‘Madawu’ hitmaker opted to release this sixtrack album one by one on his YouTube channel, which did not go down well with some of his diehard fans. The critics, too, had a field day, labelling him ‘a spent force’ basking in yesteryear glory. Others went on to accuse him of having lost the mojo that turned him into a superstar. Despite the backlash, Macheso remains arguably the unchallenged King of Sungura as evidenced by his electrifying stage performances and oversubscribed shows.
At the time of writing, BaShero was fully booked until New Year’s Eve. By contrast, another sungura artiste, Mark Ngwazi, had a memorable year which culminated in the release of his seventh album, ‘Huzukwende’.
The album has been endorsed as a triumph by neutrals with an ear for quality, with local radio stations giving it the thumbs- up. During the year, Admire Sanyange Sibanda, better known as Chief Hwenje, went off the radar due to ill-health. The good news is that he is now recovering from his cancer affliction and has started performing again, thanks to the timely intervention by the First Family who assisted to get specialist treatment in India. On the international stage, South African music lovers last weekend thronged the FNB Stadium to watch Chris Brown, giving a scintillating performance for two days. Brown’s drew a record crowd of 94 000, with the South African media dubbing him ‘the biggest crowd puller’.