As the inaugural Zimdancehall Summit beckons, the anticipation, anxiety and excitement rises.
By Plot Mhako
The all-stakeholder conference will bring together Zimdancehall players together to dialogue and share ideas on how to navigate the big ship into a viable industry that feeds, sustains, positively impacts the stakeholders and ultimately consumers while making global inroads.
This will be the first time that promoters, artistes, marketers, activists, radio DJs, journalists and related sectoral representatives come together to sit down and talk.
Could there have been a more appropriate moment than now when the genre has taken a steady knock from the big buzz and hype. interestingly however it is still retaining pole position as the music of choice in the country since shooting to the spotlight in 2013.
Journalist and researcher Tinashe Cleopas Dzvukamanja, an avid follower of the Zimbabwean creative industry, believes the Zimdancehall summit initiative will help spur the industry.
Now with the list of panellists out, it is yet to be seen if the speakers drawn from across the board will help drive the conversation and the movement forward. I will go through some of the panellists and explore what they will possibly bring to the dialogue.
Sniper Storm comes through as a veteran in the industry who has literally not left the stage ever since the heydays of the urban grooves. The militant, but witty chanter who boasts of many hits is one of the few artistes who have survived the tide and crossed over from the former to Zimdancehall. He was one of the founding fathers of the genre as way before it had a name he was doing it. Such experience will be vital in tracing the roots and projecting the future.
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The most topical debate will be on why artistes and not necessarily Zimdancehall have struggled to break into the foreign market and have professional management.
SoulJah Love’s former manager and serial events and arts strategist Benjamin Nyandoro will bring in a lot of value on this subject.
This will be further cemented by Marcus Gora, the artiste manager for the ever-globe-trotting internationally-acclaimed Mokoomba.
We hope to hear the secret behind their international penetration. Is it the sound, the management, marketing or network?
Some will argue that it’s to do with originality. Does Zimdancehall not sound unique? Veteran musician, instrumentalist, producer and author Clive “Mono” Mukundu will add his crucial contribution. His wealth of knowledge and experience from working with possibly the biggest number of successful bands is on record, from Oliver Mtukudzi, Ngosimbi Crew to Gospel Train and many others.
A music genre that took off from backroom makeshift studios and self-trained producers whose hunger to create and entertain the masses, earning a living could not be deterred by lack of skill, systems or support. How long can it remain homogeneous and relevant? will it require professional training to attain better quality in sound, visuals and compositions? A word from Chillspot’s Dj Fantan will give a rare insight into the processes involved in the recording, what is lacking and the desires of the youthful yet musically compelling culture.
I recall talking to Killer T in 2013 after a visit to one of the studios in Mbare and he said to me, “Aah, Jah Man handisikumboziva kuti music yedu inosvika sei kuradio [I don’t know how our music reaches radio stations]. We just hear it on air. We never take it there.”
Such was the power of Zimdancehall that it hit the streets too loud that radio stations could not ignore it. DJs went hunting for the latest riddims, music and artistes. Stars were born overnight. Well, before we knew it, dreams were on wheels. The boys and girls from the dusty streets were not only behind the wheel, but literally driving the music scene.
PowerFM’s DJ Smiley was one of the first to recognise the movement and give it space on his then Reggae show before passing on the mic to Oscar Pambuka, who now doubles as an artiste and the proprietor behind the Zimdancehall Awards.
Pambuka will be one of the panellists and this will be one of the exciting moments as both radio airplay and awards have been a hot issue in the movement.
Still on radio, the voice of the voiceless can never be ignored: One key player whose history spans from the roots of dancehall in the country to today’s narrative.
Etherton B, originally a member of the reverred Stereo 1 International, who later became part of Judgement Yard and also ZiFM Stereo. The dancehall elder-man has kept the sound system culture that helped birth, shape, grow and keep dancehall in the country alive when most crews have disappeared.
How are they doing it? How do they manage to make up the star list on every major concert and tour around the world?
Are promoters biased? 2 Kings Entertainment’s Dee Nosh will be able to speak on this and many other issues relating to promotion in the country.
We have seen local artistes travelling and performing in the diaspora and most of the time before homesick foreign-based nationals and some have argued that this has been the reason why Zimdancehall will remain only relevant to locals and has possibly not made any meaningful international impact. Could it be the case?
UK promoter and former Tocky Vibes manager Charles Guvamatanga of Torro Entertainment will jet in to speak on diaspora promotion and digital marketing opportunities.
Over the past two years we have seen great disruption and eruption of new vibrant artistes such as Blot, Boom Beto, Jah Signal, Dobba Don and DaRuler, but most of them have quickly disappeared from the big stage. Is it sabotage, as the ghetto youths would quickly suggest?
What are the dynamics and who controls who is on rotation and who is not? Is good music your only ticket to stardom or there are more forces at play?
Well, Nutty O, who is touted as Zimdancehall’s biggest international export potential and now part of Jah Prayzah’s star-studded Military Touch Movement, will give an insight into the struggles, triumphs and hopes of the new breed of artistes.
One of the biggest topical issues around Zimdancehall has been lyrical content. The no-holds-barred genre has dared culture and societal norms to talk openly about sex, drugs, politics and at some point assumed the role of the street newspaper informing and oftentimes accused of misinforming the youth. Chitungwiza-based female chanter Lady Bee is one artiste whose lyrics and videos have caused so much backlash from society.
Her presence together with other female players at the summit will help enlighten on the social impact and significance of the genre, content and gender stereotyping. In a fiercely male-dominated and very competitive sector, it is likely that the issue of gender participation will draw much attention.
Some pundits have often argued that the media is guilty of painting the genre black by focusing more on the negative misdemeanours of the artistes and less on the positives.
Others even believe journalists are responsible for killing some careers with Tocky Vibes allegedly believed to be one of the key victims.
Seasoned journalist and reggae specialist Nigel Pfunde will be instrumental in responding to questions relating to media operations and the relationship with artistes.
It will be interesting to see the government represented too.
Piracy has been rampant and unabated with key enforcing agents standing akimbo with others arguing that piracy is helping spread the music and artistes can cash in on live shows. Is this a viable model?
Well, piracy and copyright issues have been a bone of contention with pirates of the internet also getting themselves caught up in the silent but oftentimes nasty fights pitting online music distributors, artistes and management.
There are several unreported cases where artistes approached bloggers who run YouTube and streaming accounts with a big following to promote their music. As unknowns, their music and videos get promoted and once they blow up they turn back and report copyright infringement, at times threatening closure of some accounts.
The artistes claim the bloggers are cashing in on their music and the later argue that they helped push the career but never got paid.
The convention will have participation from bloggers Tawanda Kampira, based in the UK, Eve Kawadza, based in the United States, and Madd Minnox in Canada, who are some of the key online players pushing Zimdancehall.
With many more other notable and strategic speakers set for the summit, it’s a week to go. Will the summit be of any real impact? Well, the taste of the pudding is in the eating. On Thursday the Zimbabwe College of Music will reverberate to the voice of Zimdancehall.
