Chronicle Editor
Melissa Mpofu, Showbiz Editor
THE Old Mutual Amazing Voices singing competition that seeks to unearth unidentified talent from Africa is nearing its finale with the two groups representing Zimbabwe skating on really thin ice.
Their performances, well, especially the ones last Sunday, left a lot to be desired as they were below the mark for both groups – The Unveiled from Harare and Effect from Bulawayo.
US$100 000 is up for grabs here so surely, the show’s judges would want to see a consistent and well-deserving group winning that money.
Due to these high stakes, one would also expect groups to deliver their very best each week, but unfortunately, the country’s groups have not been consistent.
Six groups – Nigeria’s gospel groups, Eva Chorale and 121 Selah; South Africa’s pop group Southern Six and gospel group – Hush SA as well as the two from Zimbabwe are left in the running. The other two participating countries, Kenya and Ghana have already been eliminated showing how fierce the competition is.
At this point, votes have not yet been opened to the public meaning the voting power lies in the judges’ hands. So for now, it is essential for participating groups to take note of all of the notes and feedback they are getting from the judges after their performances. Sadly, most of the groups this year, are not implementing what judges would have recommended leading to some poor performances. This has left judges with no option, but to score down and eliminate such groups who would not have impressed.
“Last season, we had people that listened to everything that was said (by judges) and applied their own considerations as well and that was evidenced by two groups, the winners – Wanavokali and Simply Six. Here, we’re getting a scenario where some people are not listening and we’re seeing this through the results,” said the show’s overall judge, Zwai Bala.
Sadly, one of the Zimbabwean groups, Effect which has a bias towards RnB music may soon play less popular among the judges as they are visibly among the groups seemingly not taking their advice. For the past two weeks, the group has been among those with the lowest votes, a worrying trend as it makes it easier for judges to make a decision to vote them out.
Turning to this past Sunday’s performances, Effect which had been advised to work on its song selections and lead vocals found itself wanting after judges, once again, raised the red flag on their song choice. The group had performed Major’s This is why I love you.
Commenting on their performance, Ghanaian Trigmatic, one of the judges who rarely has negative comments simply said: “Guys, it didn’t work for me I must say. You had many low points than high points.”
Another judge, Nigerian Evelle said: “For the first time, I feel like you guys should be worried tonight. The u’s and a’s were just throwing me here and there. It wasn’t blending in properly. I was trying to get into the performance, but it was like I was getting pushed out every time.”
Commenting on their performance after the show, one of the group members said their performance was likely compromised as they were nervous as they took to the stage.
“The judges weren’t convinced by our performance. We were nervous before we went on stage and we gained a little bit of confidence along the way. We tried to sing what we had practised, but nerves were kicking in. However, we tried our best.”
Sadly, this is a competition and there is no space for nerves or excuses. While Effect’s nerves got the best of them on Sunday, groups like Soweto’s all-boy band, Hush SA, put up an energetic performance of Abathandwa’s Ehe Moya Wami. It was clear that the boys who had all the judges in smiles throughout their performance, were more than comfortable on stage as they performed like superstars.
Due to this impressive performance that received entirely positive feedback from the judges, Kenyan judge, Filah, who is never shy to speak his mind actually declared Hush SA the winners of the competition with Ammara describing their act as a perfect performance. Evelle said the group makes her so proud to be African describing their performances as graceful. Generally, Filah was impressed by the group simply because they listened to his advice and are improving with each installment of the show.
But, how is this group that has been mostly performing South African songs managing to win the judges’ hearts? Could it be because they are performing songs they are more familiar with as they are in their language, one may ask. If so, why aren’t the local groups also selecting songs in their home languages as it will likely be easier for them to express themselves that way, just the way Effect did when they performed Amanda Black’s Amazulu.
Commenting on the song selection, the Effect boys said viewers should trust their song choices as they are trying their best to impress them and the judges.
“It’s just that those at home don’t really know the circumstances on the ground. We’re given a list of songs to choose from and people should trust our musicality that whatever they hear us sing on stage, will be the best option available.
“We’re not allowed to select anything which is not in our RnB selection so it becomes tricky,” said one of the members.
Somehow justifying why they are opting for well-known international hits, the group said: “It’s a competition after all, we shall always be tested by songs that are a bit out of our comfort zones. At the end of the day, we’ll need votes at the finale so we need to give Africa what they know and understand.”
The Unveiled, the second group from Zimbabwe which has a bias towards gospel music, sang Oceans by Hillsong United and also performed badly this past Sunday, leaving judges disheartened. At the beginning of the performance, everything seemed to be going on well till things took a wrong turn when the group started experimenting with their vocalists.
Judge Fila Tuju said: “The performance was really, really bad. Song choice – the moment I heard that you guys had selected this song, I just knew that you were going to have the worst performance ever and indeed it was the worst.”
Said Evelle: “You were really holding back today and I could feel it. That was what killed the wow factor of the music for me.”
However, Ammara Brown felt The Unveiled’s performance was good enough to secure a slot for them at the finale.
“I wanted to go to church and listen to this. I think we’ll see you guys in the final as you’re fantastic. But, work on your diaphragm technique,” suggested Ammara.
Speaking after the performance, the group said they were grateful to have been given another chance to redeem themselves.
“We agree with the judges on us holding back a bit and the need for us to push some more. We’re grateful they gave us another chance to redeem ourselves and hope they like our next performance,” they said.
Either way, Zimbabwean groups are skating on really thin ice because they are facing very stiff competition from the Nigerian and South African groups who have been mostly getting positive feedback and clinching the Golden Voice title. If The Unveiled and Effect are to make it through to the next stage tomorrow, they must seriously up their game and select songs which will bring the best out of them.
They should also consistently remember that US$100 000 is up for grabs here so there is no room for nerves, average or sub-standard performances. Perfect, wow performances is all that is expected of them, no explanations or negotiations.
So it is all eyes on the local groups tomorrow when the show airs on DStv channels, Mzansi Magic and Zambezi Magic at 5PM. It is unclear how many groups will be eliminated with the hope that tomorrow’s episode will not be an elimination round as Zimbabwean groups could certainly do with more time to fine-tune their acts.
Online Reporter