The Sunday News
Raisedon Baya
THIS article perhaps summarises the current realities in the sector, especially the disjointed nature of things. Many events and projects are happening in isolation and that kind of situation does not build an industry — many of us are always talking about the sector as an industry yet we all know the truth. And the truth is that the sector is very far from being an industry.
Anyway here are the few bits and pieces for this week.
I missed the much-hyped One Night With Hwabaratty show because a close friend had lost his mother. I was so much looking forward to the show, having thoroughly enjoyed his previous show at the same venue. Say what you may but I believe Hwabaratty is an artiste for the future.
His music acknowledges the past while speaking to the now and the future — a balance many young artiste have failed to maintain. Hwabaratty’s performances are always energetic and bordering on the theatrical — he has a theatre background and the influence shows clearly whenever he goes on stage.
Those who attended the show speak highly of it. They speak well about the setup, the energy levels and the general direction of the show. This young man must be hailed for realising so soon in his career that the future of most art forms is in collaborations. He did collaborate with more than five established artistes! Jeys Marabini, Babongile Sikhonjwa, Madlela Skhobokhobo, TKP and others. That is the surest way to the top!
Speaking about young artistes. The boy Asaph released his Mambo video immediately after scooping the BAA award for Best Hip Hop Artiste. I have seen quite a number of great comments about the video on social media. It’s a great and clean video.
Great collaboration too. Talking about Asaph I couldn’t help but notice that while he calls himself Mambo — which is Shona for King there is also Cal_Vin on the other side of the road calling himself King too. So there is a silent battle about who is the real king here.
This has also come out in their songs where apparently they “diss” each other. My simple question is does hip-hop really need ‘‘beef’’ to be heard? Do these ‘‘beefs’’ help push the music and the artistes involved? I have heard about West Coast vs East Coast Beef. Everyone in hip-hop talks about it. Notorious B.I.G Vs Tupac. Didn’t that lead to both artistes’ death? Down South, across the Limpopo, I have heard of the “beef” between Casper Nyovest and AKA. But does this ‘‘hating’’ one another really work in pushing the artiste and their work.
If the answer is no, then maybe it is better to park it and work on complementing and collaborating with each other.
So why is Sandra Ndebele not the troublesome diva everyone expects her to be? I recently worked on a film project with Sandra Ndebele for Zambezi Magic. The film just premièred on DSTV channel 160 last night. A few people that I told I was working with Sandra when we were filming were curious about her relations with other artistes. They wanted to know how she behaved on set.
I must say she is one of the easiest people to work with — very co-operative, willing to learn and share and sometimes too humble it actually breaks one’s hearts. With what she has, and what she has achieved, Sandra Ndebele should be the worst diva in town. But she is exactly the opposite. She is one of the hardest workers and most resourceful too. I had a blast working with her and would do it again and again without thinking twice.
After elections focus will be on the annual Intwasa Arts Festival. The festival recently announced its date and theme for 2018.
The festival is set for 26-29 September 2018 in Bulawayo. The 2018 edition is the 14th edition of the festival and will be held under the theme realities and experiences. The theme seeks to challenge artistes showcasing at the festival to speak out on socio-political or social economic experiences since 1980 to now.
Zimbabwean or African experiences. It challenges them to engage with the past and present and coming with some meaningful presentations for arts lovers in the city. The festival is asking artistes to send in their applications via email to [email protected].
