The Sunday News
Bhekumuzi Ncube, Sunday Life Reporter
IT’S quite beyond imagination that one of Zimbabwe’s treasured stars, the late Andy Brown, whose influence positively changed the face of the music industry and made yester year’s jamboree music fiestas unforgettable passed away without winning a single gong.
It sounds like a crazy joke to hear or discover that Andy, who recorded that cherished hit, Mapurisa which was an anthem across all corners of the country and continues to be requested by the late muso’s undying fans on local radio stations failed to hog limelight on national awards ceremonies in his entire career.
Justice served or partial justice, the amazing guitarist who will always be lauded for founding that breathtaking Ilanga ensemble was honoured with the Posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award in Masvingo this year at an event that was held at Austin Theatre. It is a deserving award for someone who worked with the likes of Busi Ncube, but cannot change the damning and heartbreaking fact that the music guru who passed away in 2012, did not bag awards in his astounding career.
Fast-forward six year later, his thriving daughter, Ammara who has largely proved that she is a force to be reckoned with seems to be haunted by her father’s biggest misfortune. Boasting glitzy hits like Mukoko featuring Titan, Watchu Want featuring her dreadlocked sister, Chengeto and Akiliz from her debut album, Ammara was highly anticipating to win many gongs on national level especially at this year’s National Arts Merit Awards that when she failed to win any, she took her wrath to attack the organisers of the awards on her social media accounts.
She is yet to become a familiar face of winning gongs despite the incredible thrills the Mukoko hit-maker is giving her fans across Africa. As her fans await what could be the next topping international collabo between the Afropop star and Jay Rock from Zambia, the incurable wounds of her failing to bag gongs are still a massive pain to the singer and her beloved followers, who she calls the Ammartians.
Her failure to win big on national level leaves two main questions which are; could it be the fact that Ammara is not doing enough to bag accolades that she should work harder and remain patient, or is it the fact that Ammara is having her father’s biggest misfortune of failing to win an award in his entire career?
To say Ammara has failed to win top gongs because she is not doing enough is by far not a close judgment as the singer has been incredible active in the industry.
The dancing queen whose breathtaking skills reminds us of our own sensational dancer, Sandra Ndebele during her rise to stardom, has been having an astonishing 2018 that no one can doubt that she is the beautiful daughter of the legendary Andy, whose name is imprinted in the hall of famers’ billboard.
Some of her noticeable participations this year include Zim Connect 18 that took centre stage in London and the Big 10 up Concert in Zambia which Ammara believes increased her social media followers rapidly.
“My following on social media platforms has increased commendably and with Akiliz video already on stroke a million views, I’m just so grateful for all my blessings. In Zambia, they now know there is Ammara as they showed much support to my song Akiliz by singing the chorus when I last performed there,” she said.
Ammara said she was hoping to collaborate with Zambian singer, Mampi later this year but had managed to record a song with Jay Rox.
“I first saw Mampi as a supporting act for me last year on December at the Victoria Falls Carnival. She is definitely an Ammartian and above all such a pleasure to be around. We agreed to work on something this year. However, I managed to record with Jay Rox another Zambian artiste. The song will be dropped soon,” she said.
If Ammara is doing so well and even attracting global market, this leaves the suggestion that the queen of dance is being haunted by dad’s shocking bad luck as a sole reason preventing her from scooping countless gongs!!
— @NcubeBhekumuzi
