The Sunday News
THE preliminary stages of the Chibuku Road to Fame provincial competitions are scheduled for the end of this month at a Bulawayo hotel.
The competitions will be held on 26 July at Manor Hotel and some groups have confirmed their participation. National Arts Council of Zimbabwe (NACZ) provincial arts manager Charity Nyathi said winners of the competition would progress to the national finals, which will be held on 27 September in Harare.
“Initially 10 groups were supposed to participate but only nine have registered. We encourage the groups taking part to work hard and make sure their performances are flawless because we do not want any accusations of bribery and bias,” said Nyathi.
The competitions kicked off last month in Masvingo and have so far been held in seven provinces.
The winners of the competition will pocket $1 000, while the first and second runner-ups will get $500 and $300.
Last year, the annual competition was won by Bindura-based outfit, Way Band.
Organisers of the event, Delta Beverages, in conjunction with the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe said this year’s edition will make forays into three neighbouring countries where the Chibuku brand is available.
“The Chibuku Road to Fame, established in Harare in 2001 has now been expanded into three neighbouring countries where the Chibuku brand is also available — Botswana, Malawi and Zambia are expected to launch the programme in the next 24 months,” said one of the organisers.
Chibuku Road to Fame’s provincial competitions major objectives are to promote the development of musical groups through identifying groups with potential to produce recordable material and assisting winning groups in documenting their work.
The competition also excels in providing upcoming musicians with technical expertise in music and events management.
Bulawayo dance groups participating in the competition include, One Stand Band, Basic Busy Beez, Sounds of Universe, New Star Sounds, T-Boyz, Kupenya Stars, Voice of Glory, Dakamela Supersounds, Mr Jawa and Javas Express.
