Will King 98 rise to the occasion?

Standard Style
People on the streets are calling it the Nasty C concert, but in reality it is the launch of upcoming hip-hop singer King 98’s debut album titled Francesca on Wednesday afternoon.

In the groove with Fred Zindi

People on the streets are calling it the Nasty C concert, but in reality it is the launch of upcoming hip-hop singer King 98’s debut album titled Francesca on Wednesday afternoon.

Barely a year after his last performance in Zimbabwe, South African hip-hop star Nasty C (real name Nsikayesizwe David Junior Ngcobo) will be coming back for the second time to grace King 98’s album launch at Wingate Golf Club.

The concert was initially scheduled for April 27, but with the Patoranking concert at the Harare International Conference Centre a night before, scheduling two concerts one after another on two consecutive days would have been disastrous given our current economy.

Besides that, promoters behind the King 98 album launch — local car rental giant Impala Car Rental — were busy during the past Easter holiday as they were involved in the UK’s Sama Festival held together with Y2K Entertainment Promotions, which featured artistes who included Jah Prayzah, Baba Harare, Winky D, Tocky Vibes and others.

Last year in August, Thompson Dondo of Impala Car Rental organised Nasty C’s maiden show in the country. He is behind the concert again this week.

Other supporting acts are Nigerian sensation Davido, South African hip-hop queen Nadia Nakai, locals ExQ, Tammy Moyo, Shashl, Union 5 and DJ Silence Dosh.

But who is King 98 and why is this concert being dubbed The King 98 Album Launch? I am reliably informed that King 98 (real name Ngonidzashe Dondo) is the son of Thompson Dondo.

Although he is still a novice in the music business, King 98 wants — with the support of his father — to start from the top. This is why he has involved known superstars such as Davido and Nasty C as his support acts. But will it work?

In the past, Dondo tried to prop up the work of another musician in his camp, Sam Dondo, but despite making the likes of Oliver Mtukudzi, Alick Macheso, Winky D and Sulumani Chimbetu his supporting acts and launching his second album at the prestigious Meikles Hotel, Sam did not shake the Zimbabwean market.

It stands to reason that it does not matter how much money you have to back you, it is the talent that counts. In addition, one has to pay his dues.

However, the Dondo family believes that theirs will be Zimbabwe’s music powerhouse in the next five years.

We will wait and see.

So will King 98 nail the market after his show this week? Will the fans go to Wingate Golf Club in their thousands on Wednesday?

Music promoters in Zimbabwe such as 2Kings Entertainment, Josh Hozheri, Chippaz, Events Evolution, Base Entertainment, Ghetto Fabulous, Cossy Rules, Mama Red Rose, Divine Entertainment, Hifa, Miombo, Jive Zimbabwe, Unplugged Zim and lately Impala Car Rentals usually often target this period, March to May, for music concerts.

The reasons given are that the rains have stopped which is a good thing for outdoor shows such as Wingate Golf Club or Harare Showgrounds, it is not too cold, and school kids are on holiday and will pressurise their parents to fork out money for them to go to these shows. But will the parents who are struggling to put together school fees fork out more money after the Patoranking concert?

There are only a handful of professional promoters of music in Zimbabwe.

The majority of the so-called promoters are fly-by-night briefcase promoters who are after a quick buck. That quick buck is not easy to come by given our present economic situation.

However, there are promoters who bring in international acts into the country. These promoters try hard to be careful, proficient and efficient because of the big financial risks involved.

The amount of groundwork required before a show is put on is quite phenomenal and often requires a considerable amount of financial backing and proper planning. Unfortunately, there are no schools in place for music promoters.

One has to learn through experience and advice from others who have been through it.

The business begins with choosing popular acts who the promoter feels will draw large crowds of people. This could be the reason why a little-known artiste such as King 98 has roped in bigger artistes such as Davido and Nasty C.

After contracts have been signed, there is a lot of bureaucracy that has to be attended to, such as raising airfares to fly in the artistes, registering and approval by the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe, temporary import licences for unavailable equipment if needed, Zimbabwe Revenue Authority tax clearance certificates, hiring of venues, security, immigration, work permits and publicity of the event through television, radio and the print media.

Music promotion in Zimbabwe is not a new thing. Since independence, Zimbabwe saw over 200 international artistes who came to perform in the country. To mention only a few, the artistes who graced this country in the 1980s and 1990s included Bob Marley, Steve Kekana, Misty In Roots, UB40, Lucky Dube, Jimmy Cliff, Don Carlos, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Brenda Fassie, Hugh Masekela, Miriam Makeba, Osibisa, Gregory Isaacs, Gnags, Paul Simon, Ray Phiri, Maxi Priest, Aswad, Eric Clapton, Mango Groove, Randy Crawford, King Sounds, Manu Dibango, Sonny Okusons, Anna Mwale, Pepe Kale, Sam Mangwana, Kanda Bongo Man, Mbilia Bel, Kass Kass, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Tracy Chapman, Third World, Dennis Brown, Peter Gabriel, Youssour N’dour, Eric Donaldson, Ijahman and Culture.

After the year 2000, artistes who performed in the country included Buju Banton, Sizzla, Red Rat, Mr. Vegas, Sean Paul, Akon, Capleton, Mafikizolo, Zahara, Cocoa Tea, Freddie McGregor, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Morgan Heritage, Elephant Man, Salif Keita, Jah Cure, Busy Signal, Tarrus Riley, Rebecca Malope Luciano, Christopher Martin, Judy Mowatt, Marcia Griffiths, Nasty C, Davido and Patoranking. People attended these concerts in their thousands. That is when the country’s economy was reasonably good.

The economy in this country is now on its knees. The prices of basic food items such as mealie meal, bread and margarine have shot through the roof.

Will those music revellers who attended the Patoranking show on Friday part with their hard-earned US dollars which range from $10 to US $50 and $100 for the King 98 album launch? Will they be going to watch King 98 or Nasty C and Davido both of whom have already been to Zimbabwe barely a year ago?

Patoranking’s show followed his failure to perform at socialite Genius “Ginimbi” Kadungure’s Club Sankayi in August last year, due to reasons both the promoter and musician did not disclose. So fans in Zimbabwe had waited and anticipated this show to happen for a long time.

I am not a prophet. I do not want to predict what will happen at the King 98 album launch, but by Thursday, we would have known if the young rapper rose to the occasion.

Feedback: [email protected]