The Sunday News
Bruce Ndlovu, Sunday Life Reporter
TO many followers of the music from Mzansi, Sebastian “Bash Vision” Jameson was introduced as the man with the camera, capturing images of rapper Cassper Nyovest at the onset of the rapper’s whirlwind career.
While his camera snapped, Bash Vision was also absorbing tricks of the trade from Nyovest, a man whose gift for marketing and branding has seen him fill arenas and climb to the apex of South African music.
At some point however, the boy from the City of Kings had to leave the nest and he could not have hoped for a better start to life without Nyovest, snagging his ex-beau Boity as his first major client as he dived into management.
Since then, Bash has managed to transform Boity from a mere presenter and actor dabbling in music to a force in South African music, a point that was brought home when she was signed by iconic the label, Def Jam.
In an interview with Hype, Bash revealed the painstaking work that went to transforming Boity into a fully fledged rapper.
“And then obviously with Boity on her rap career and cementing it going platinum as well with Wuz Dat,” he said as he listed the highlight of his career. I wasn’t involved in the song-making of that but definitely in the touring and just making sure that, as an artiste, she is believable, working on making promoters trust her, calling in a lot of favours you know? So those are my best moments.”
Bash also highlighted his influence on Nyovest’s early career, including arranging the recording session involving the rapper and Zimbabwean producer Brian Soko, a session that gave birth to Nyovest’s monster hit, Phumakim.
“My highest moment was Cassper’s first album, Tsholofelo. I would say working on that was one of my career highlights. Just being a part of that whole process from the beginning and working on the music. At the time I was Cassper’s videographer and photographer. I used to play other small roles and it was literally falling in here and there. But being part of the studio sessions playing a small part in that, you know? I linked Cassper and Soko together for the session that Phumakim came out of,” he said.
Bash was also there for the rebirth of fellow Zimbabwean Nadia Nakai’s career, taking charge after Nyovest signed her to his Family Tree stable.
“When I was at Family Tree, Cassper was playing at the airport in Zimbabwe, when he told Nakai that she should sign to Family Tree…you know the Suge Knight speech…’Come to Death Row Records.’ I then spoke to Cassper and asked if he was serious about it and he said yeah, then I said I could make it happen because I’d managed her before… And I signed Nadia to Family Tree and that was my first as a manager – developing the sounds, image, performances, putting together all the beats and just rebranding and recreating Nadia Nakai,” he said.
