Music business is not a stroll in the park

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The showbiz industry is a battlefield where only the valiant can survive and the faint-hearted ship out to avoid ending up in the “intensive care unit” when perceived plans go the other way.

The showbiz industry is a battlefield where only the valiant can survive and the faint-hearted ship out to avoid ending up in the “intensive care unit” when perceived plans go the other way.

viewpoint By Kennedy Nyavaya

Last weekend had its own fair share of drama when local promoter Partson “Chipaz” Chimbodza brewed an unexpected shocker which may be too hard to stomach for quite a while.

Yes, indeed Chipaz’s mega birthday bash had a low turnout although everything during the buildup seemed in place to attract a full house.

I would bet my last dollar that many had not foreseen the colossal flop, including Chipaz himself, who has vast experience and always soars against all odds when it comes to organising events.

The man who is behind the rise of many artists in the country may not be baffled, however, because it was a mere birthday celebration in which he might have not invested much to really lose a single wink of sleep.

In fact, the important part perhaps for him is that all that was on the programme came to pass and all his friends and stakeholders were present for the festivities.

As we enter December, we look at a few things. It would be very important for promoters to draw quite a few lessons from the incident to make sure that they do not cook up dead ducks during this season of merriment.

First of all, it is not guaranteed that a show will record maximum capacity because it has the “who is who” of music in the country, unless of course in the case of yesteryear’s free-entry national galas.

Surely, some show organiser may be forgiven for thinking that the mixture of names like Oliver Mtukudzi, Alick Macheso, Jah Prayzah and Freeman would amount to a packed venue while in the world of the living it does not.

They might be the heavyweights, but their music genres are different, meaning they attract distinct audiences altogether; last week’s birthday bash is good example.

Needless to say, some fans are easily put off by the mere fact that their musician has been associated with another of a different sound that they do not fancy.

It is rather safe for an organiser to maintain a single flair at a concert or risk being left with egg on their face after lining up the best for a paltry crowd.

Another element that promoters should avoid is “over pricing” their shows, especially if it is local musicians because it is better to get more fans for lesser cash than having a near empty venue.

With the year approaching its conclusion, most avid fans who frequent concerts have seen local artists of their choice over and over during the course of 2016 and while the big guns locally have done justice by releasing albums, not many would be willing to pay more to watch the same set once more.

With that in mind, a $10 ticket for rest of the venue is utterly exorbitant. Leave double digit amount charges for those bringing in something exotic like foreign artists, period!

Even with affordable prices and a spanking line-up another critical aspect is the venue which actually plays a key role in attracting or reducing the potential of a show.

We are in the rainy season and unless you have huge tents, just don’t choose an outdoor venue because no matter how much people love the artist, they will not bear getting soaked in the rain unnecessarily. The organisers of the Wizkid show which never was earlier this year can attest to this.

The best way may be finding a more central yet enclosed venue and it does not necessarily need to be the biggest conference center in the land; those who hosted Toya Delazy would know better.

After all is in place, the integral part is aggressive marketing and thank God for social media as one no longer needs to bend or break city laws by pasting their posters on every street without legal clearance.

Zimbabweans are known merrymakers who spend quite imposingly but show organisers need to justify the expenditure of the hard earned cash.

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