ARTS: What to look out for in 2016

TODAY marks the 10th day of 2016 and as time continues to pass by, memories of the year gone by will gradually begin to fade as the world focuses on the reality of the present and the future.
Personalities, events, trends and milestones, among other things, might have captured the imagination of many last year, but that is all in the past.
The anticipation of what is to come going forward begins.
There are individuals, brands, gadgets, trends and cultures that will always have significant influence on society as a whole and The Sunday Mail Leisure took a look at some of those that are likely to be significant in 2016.
The melodies

In the past years, very few music genres dominated the local arts scene but with globalisation, all that has changed.
It remains to be seen which particular genre is going to be the taste of choice in 2016.Zim dancehall has been on the pinnacle for the past two years and if the last quarter of 2015 is anything to go by, these chanters seem unstoppable. There is a high probability that the genre will remain on top this year, especially among the youths.
Jah Prayzah spent the greater part of last year as the biggest artiste in the country with Killer T following close behind. But as the year came to a close, Winky D joined the elite league. Battle lines have been drawn in the race for dominance.
King of sungura, Alick Macheso remained largely in the background in 2015, but that might change this year as his long-awaited 10th album is set to hit shop shelves in the next few weeks.
There is no doubt if he releases the album, a lot will change in the showbiz industry as the “Mundikumbuke” hit-singer still commands a huge fan base.
If we were to use radio charts to gauge the popularity of musicians, Blessing Shumba and Simon Mutambi, who came out first and second respectively on Radio Zimbabwe’s Coca-Cola Top 50, would be the biggest artistes of 2015.
However, various factors come to play when it comes to measuring artistes’ popularity. These include show attendance, earnings, public demand, club playlists and public response, to name just a few.
Different radio stations tend to have different audiences, which means an artiste might be popular on a particular station and not have a huge fan base on another. This then makes the radio charts voting processes a bit biased.
Hot fashion trends

The local fashion scene has also been experiencing an evolution.
Of late, the Afro-urban trend has become dominant.The global fashion trends have been influenced by the ‘80s and ‘90s designs, from shoes, clothes to hairstyles.This is most likely going to be 2016’s fashion trend.
The fashion designer to watch out for this year is South Africa-based Thembani Mubochwa. He closed last year by parading his presidential collection which has been worn by the Environment, Water and Climate Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri.
He has managed to scoop several international accolades, including the Vodacom Durban July’s Classic Race Wear Male Award.Mubochwa dresses numerous local and international celebrities and with his creativity, designers who are willing to put out a challenge have their work cut out.
Partying 2016 away

On the live concert front, a monstrous gig is brewing. With the Harare International Festival of the Arts (HIFA) out of the picture this year, the Morgan Heritage show will certainly be the major event during the month of April.
Having postponed their show that had been slotted for New Year’s Eve, the show is now set for April.
The show is definitely something to look forward to.
Another event that should not be missed is the Harare International Carnival. lt realised massive growth during the last two editions. This year’s edition might even be bigger and better.
Mighty warriors to make us proud?
Moving on to sport, the major highlight is the 2016 Rio Olympics.
The Mighty Warriors will be taking part and this will be the the first time that the country’s football has ever been paraded at such a competition. The nation is certainly proud of that.
One of the world’s biggest rugby leagues, the Super Rugby, is just around the corner and will invade our shores for the first time ever. Two top Super Rugby teams, the Vodacom Bulls and the Toyota Cheetahs, will clash in an adrenaline-filled Lafarge Zimbabwe Champions Cup at the National Sports Stadium on February 6.
Most Zimbabweans only get to see rugby matches of such magnitude on television but this year, they will be afforded the opportunity to witness some of the best rugby players in the world battling it out on local soil.
Digital age here to stay
It is clear that cell phones have become indispensable, especially with social media platforms such as WhatsApp having become one of the main communication tools. In Zimbabwe, WhatsApp is the most popular social platform that is being used by most people.
Facebook might provide the perfect platform to post and discuss certain issues in the public domain but WhatsApp might just pull through this year as the main social platform for sharing information and holding discussions.
Local television is also set to change this year, with digital migration showing signs of coming to life. The first digital television station is set to be launched in March.
Digitisation will go a long way in improving the quality of viewing as well as increasing the number of television channels in the country.
This excercise is going to create room for 12 high definition (HD) television channels, of which six will be owned by ZBC while the other six will go to private broadcasters.Apart from those outlined here, there are loads of exciting things to look out for in 2016.