Victoria Falls — The Bible saying “a prophet is without honour except in his own town” aptly describes much-travelled Victoria Falls musician, Ryan Koriya’s blossoming career. Koriya, who describes himself as the “soul music mechanic” spent the past three years touring 12 countries, most of them in Europe.
By Nokuthaba Dlamini
He has performed in the United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway and other countries, but few people know his world-class music in Zimbabwe.
Koriya has been in the music industry for some time now, but is yet to break into the local music arena. However, he does not know why he is not well-known in Zimbabwe.
“Since 2008, I have been releasing songs. I have released four albums and above 20 songs,” he said in an interview with The Standard Style. “I am currently riding high with my album, Ghost Rider, which was released in 2014.
“I sang with some Italian musicians on a song called When’ Hope is Lost.
“It is found on Youtube, but I’ve never heard it being played in Zimbabwe though I sent it [to local radio and television stations].”
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Koriya was born in Harare and attended Prince Edward High School. While at school, he excelled in art and music, a beginning that shaped his life.
“I am a singer, song writer, producer and an actor, but I have stopped acting to focus on music,” he said.
“I was the best actor in Zimbabwe when I was 17 in different plays like Romeo and Juliet.
“I also featured in a London movie called 28 Weeks Later, which was a zombie movie and Last Chance Harvey, which was also based in London.”
Koriya says he did not have to knock at the doors of promoters and music producers for his break on the international scene.
“These people picked me from the streets because when I am in London, I perform on the streets for people,” Koriya said.
“Being an artist is a lifestyle, it’s not something that you can wake up in the morning and say I am putting a uniform to work the entire time because passion is my job. My job is music and I am the product. So when people say where the value is, I say the value is in me.”
However, this does not in any way suggest that he has had it easy in the music industry.
“It was not easy to make it at the international level, but as something that I had passion for, it was a dream worth pursuing and it is fulfilling. I am living my dream of travelling globally,” Koriya said.
“There is no real international pop singer in Zimbabwe and I actually come up with my own genre called passion pop, because it is all about the heart.
“I always show people how I feel and reveal my emotion through songs and it is the same songs that have made it possible for me to reach the international levels.”
When he talks about his music and its meaning, Koriya lights up the room and becomes animated.
“My lyrics are cynic. I use imageries such as the beautiful sun, stars like Drowning in Space was my song I wrote while in London after my experience as a foreigner there,” he said.
“When we go to such countries, we miss our culture and that is what I will be talking about in my song Drowning in Space, which will be released very soon.
“I wrote it to inspire people being disconnected from the social life as a human race and it is very scary.”
The Victoria Falls crooner said his music addresses human needs.
“My song, The City is Burning Bright But The Fire is Cold, was written for people in the Diaspora who are feeling lonely and disconnected because of hard times that they have to endure in search of greener pastures.”
