The Sunday News
Peter Matika, Senior Life Reporter
NO publicity is bad publicity, as celebrities and stars alike will always say. But it’s a different story for award winning Zimbabwean rapper Desmond Chideme, better known as Stunner, who was recently involved in an accident in Harare.
Instead of attracting sympathy, his accident has ironically attracted more ridicule on social media. Stunner was involved in an accident on 20 June, where one person was reportedly injured.
According to reports Stunner lost control of the vehicle he was driving, a pimped up Toyota Lexus and rammed into four vehicles parked along Jason Moyo Avenue.
According to witnesses and “social media journalists”, Stunner lost control of the vehicle after overtaking a lorry and rammed into stationary cars.
“He had stopped at a traffic light controlled intersection at the corner of Jason Moyo Avenue and Fourth Street. That is when some of his fans noticed him and began cheering at him. Perhaps trying to stunt like the rapper he is, he took off at high speed but failed to control the car after overtaking another vehicle and rammed into four parked cars,” said a witness.
Since word broke out that he was involved in an accident Stunner has been ridiculed by both locally based and internationally based artistes on social media.
“Stunner Da Des accident got more hype than all Zim hip-hop releases for 2016 put together. Stolen. P.S we thank God you are alive,” read a post by popular producer-cum musician Jusa Dementor.
Others poked fun on him saying the car he was driving belonged to his friend, asking how he was going to pay for the damage when he was just a “poor” rapper.
Others comically said if he was the entrepreneurial rapper that he made people believe he was, he would take advantage of the situation and turn the publicity to his advantage.
“Alas sometimes you have to make lemonade out of lemons. No publicity is bad publicity.
“If by grace of God he is okay, he should capitalise on this free publicity that has presented itself. His manager and producer should go on overdrive.
“Imagine this, he releases a single and it happens to be heard by those who don’t follow his music may ask:
Whose song is that?
Answer: “Ndeya Stunner”
Question: Stunner who?”
Answer: “Muface we accident uyu.”
This sounds callous but hey nga shandise mukana waapiwa naSamatenga kunyangwe mukana wacho uchirwadza.”
Stunner could not be reached for comment by the time of going to print. —Twitter: @peterkmatika
