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Raisedon Baya
SOMETIME in 2011, I was asked to make a short presentation to a group of young people during a workshop. My presentation had been cleverly titled Ambition, Fame and Money in the Arts Industry. To be honest it sounded more like a topic for motivational speakers and I was and still I am not that.
My first reaction after getting the topic was to try and take out the word money from the whole phrase. This was obviously premised on the shallow and myopic thought that there is no money in the arts. At least not the kind of money that would make any of the young people I was to address sit up and want to have it all.
It was only later that I realised I was behaving like everyone else who had a low opinion of the arts, particularly those who believe the arts are for people with nothing else to do in life. But the arts are an industry. The creative industry.
All over the world the creative industry is being touted as the fastest growing industry in the world. There are billions of dollars circulating in this industry worldwide. And so I went about preparing my presentation.
On ambition:
Ambition is the spur that kicks us in the back and makes us run towards our goals. Definitely one needs ambition to survive in the arts. However, having ambition does not necessarily mean one will make it to the top although having it is good as it might be the only motivation that will keep one going and focused for a long time.
Ambition can be as simple as wanting to get recorded, to publish, to produce, and to travel around the world performing on different stages. Ambition might come in many different sizes; big or small. It might really be big and broad — like one wanting to be the biggest thing in the arts in Zimbabwe, the region and or even the world.
Ambition could be that push power; the brute spike one needs to feel so as to jump and move to the top.
If one is seriously interested in the arts then he/she needs to understand the sector first before plunging blindly in. One needs to know and understand the different disciplines or genres of arts that are practiced in Zimbabwe. One also needs to know which one of the several arts genres is best suitable for one’s own talents.
Don’t just plunge. Take your time. Know what you want to do. Have an idea of the opportunities in that sector. Ask yourself whether you want to sing or dance? Do you want to paint or do ceramics? Do you want to write or act? Once you have decided what you want then you need to focus. Don’t be a jack of all trades and master of none.
There are more than seven arts disciplines in Zimbabwe and these are literature, film, theatre, dance, visual arts, fashion, and poetry.
On fame:
Fame simply means being easily recognisable and well-known in public. Honestly, one doesn’t have to be an artiste to be famous in Zimbabwe, or anywhere in the world. That is an undisputable fact. However, it is easy to get famous through popular culture and the arts are part and parcel of popular culture.
Also one can be famous for the right reason — for talent and exceptional work, for positively shaking the world. One can be famous for the wrong things — drugs, sex and other scandals — in this case one becomes infamous.
Fame can be good. It is usually good. It can open a lot of doors and bring one closer to a lot of opportunities. Fame, if properly managed, can bring one comfort, riches and a lot of pleasure. But if poorly managed can ruin anyone and be a source of great discomfort. Fame has a lot of pressures and can be very stressful. It needs a cool head.
On money:
Is there money in the arts? Can one live comfortably through the arts? These are some of the most asked questions in the sector. And there are no easy answers to these questions. The general sentiment among many is that there is no money in the arts and those that belong to this school of thought are quick to throw a long list of artistes, good artistes who have long laboured in the sector but have nothing to show for their sweat.
I believe there is good money in the arts, unfortunately most of it is not going directly to the artistes themselves. The likes of Oliver Mtukudzi, Dominic Benhura, Alick Macheso and a few others are a living testimony that there is enough money in the arts for one to live comfortably. But how to get it is another question. Also a lot of foreign artistes are making a killing in Zimbabwe while locals look in envy.
Of course there is money in the industry. It all depends on where you are and what you are selling.
Online Reporter