By SINDISO DUBE
After producing two tracks that have taken the continent by storm, top-ranked South Africa-based Zimbabwean musician and producer Tatenda Kamera — popularly known as Mr Kamera — says he is in good space of his career and is making the best music of his life.
Mr Kamera is behind the production of Zambian Cleo Ice Queen and Jah Prayzah’s Forever and Nigerians Patoranking and Davido’s Confirm.
Both songs are doing well on famed regional television channels and also on online-video sharing site YouTube, where the songs have amassed over a million views in just two weeks.
“I am in great space of my career at the moment as compared to my previous work,” Mr Kamera said.
“I think at the moment I’m making the best music I have ever made. I am good and enjoying myself while I try to improve my sound with every release.
“I continue to learn with each and every engagement and release, with music you never stop learning. Music is the everyday life, it keeps on evolving every day as society does.”
Mr Kamera said the track Confirm was not the only song he had done with Patoranking as they would have more tracks on the Nigerian’s upcoming album.
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“Patoranking got hold of my number and sent me a WhatsApp message asking for us to work together. I sent him some beats and that’s how we started working,” he said.
“We did the track, Confirm then Patoranking and Davido finished it off in Nigeria. What I liked was Patoranking gave me room to be creative and allowed me to be myself in the process.
“The fun thing is I actually made the Confirm beat in 2016 and it was never used only for me to sample it to Patoranking, who immediately liked it. This is not the only project we have done. I have done a few more songs on Patoranking’s album which is coming out soon.”
On Cleo Ice Queen and Jah Prayzah, Mr Kamera said it was not that difficult working with them as he had prior knowledge of their respective beats.
“I started working with Cleo many years ago, so we understand each other musically. I have also done studio work with Jah Prayzah before and we jelled, that is why the collaboration blended well,” he said.
The last time Mr Kamera was in Zimbabwe he launched a competition where he gave away free beats to local artistes to record a song and submit back to him.
“I found a winner that I will announce soon,” he said.
“The winner will get into the studio with me to create a song that I will take to top radio stations locally and regionally.”
Mr Kamera has worked with big African names, including Ice Prince, Victoria Kimani, Burna Boy, Cassper Nyovest, AKA and Yemi Alade, among many others.
He is currently working with Wizkid’s wheelspinner-DJ Tunez, Nigerian Yemi Alade, Sauti Sol, Lamont Chitepo, Garry Mapanzure and many more.
He is popularly known for the song Pamusika, which features Bryan K. The remix features additional verses from Ice Prince and Gemini Major. Mr Kamera rose to prominence in South Africa in 2013 after producing the song Fresh ‘n’ Clean for L-tido and Ice Prince.
Mr Kamera and Grammy award-winning Brian Soko founded Anashe Media Group, which is a management firm that has worked with a number of artistes from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and the United States.
