Online Reporter
Bruce Ndlovu Sunday Life Reporter
THERE was a time when a weekend in Bulawayo was almost guaranteed to feature a South African star.
Whether it was a house music sensation, a kwaito veteran or the latest amapiano chart-topper, promoters in the city regularly crossed the Limpopo to bring some of Mzansi’s biggest names to local stages. The arrangement benefitted everyone. Fans got to see their favourite artistes live, promoters made money and South African performers expanded their footprint beyond their borders.
Today, however, that once-thriving relationship appears to have cooled significantly.
While South African acts continue to enjoy immense popularity among local audiences, many Bulawayo promoters are increasingly reluctant to book amapiano stars, citing a growing list of no-shows, contractual disputes and alleged unprofessional conduct that has left some organisers counting heavy losses.
The shift has been particularly noticeable in the years following the Covid-19 pandemic, a period when several high-profile artistes failed to honour commitments in Zimbabwe despite reportedly receiving payments and travel arrangements.
Among the most notable incidents were the no-shows of amapiano heavyweights Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa, whose failure to perform at a scheduled event in Bulawayo sparked outrage among fans and promoters alike. The duo was later arrested following similar controversy at the Victoria Falls Carnival. Young Stunner has also been among the artistes whose failure to appear at local events left organisers and fans frustrated.
For Bulawayo’s entertainment industry, the growing mistrust between promoters and some South African acts has had far-reaching consequences. While local audiences remain enthusiastic consumers of amapiano music, many organisers now prefer to invest in local talent or pursue alternatives that carry less financial risk.
The result is that a city once known for hosting a steady stream of South African performers is seeing fewer of them crossing the border.
For promoters still recovering from the financial shocks of the pandemic era, the lesson has been a painful one: popularity alone is no longer enough. Reliability, they say, has become the most valuable currency in the live music business.
One local promoter, who requested anonymity, said the financial and reputational risks have become too great for many organisers to bear.
“For us, this is now a major risk. That is why you will hardly see the smaller promoters from Bulawayo inviting these amapiano acts despite the fact that they are very popular,” he said.
“Back in the day, you almost had a South African artist performing in the city every week. That is not the case anymore because after the Covid-19 pandemic, a lot of promoters ran into losses because of no-shows. A lot of promotion companies have been buried because of the debts that they accumulated during that time.”
According to the promoter, the consequences of a failed show extend far beyond refund demands.
“When an artist doesn’t show up, it comes with a lot of reputational damage for the promoter. Why should people believe you the next time you claim that you are bringing an artiste from South Africa? As a promoter, all you have is your name and when you lose that, so many avenues close for you.
“Artists know that no one blames them when they don’t show up, all the blame goes to the promoter.”
The promoter said organisers are often left to deal with angry fans and damaged property after a no-show.
“People don’t like being short-changed and cheated out of their hard-earned money. Very often when there’s a no-show, they’ll destroy the stage and other equipment or the venue itself and that comes out of the promoter’s pocket.
“In addition to that, you lose out on a lot of revenue from food and beer sales because when people find out that the artist is no longer coming they just lose interest and leave abruptly.”
Speaking on Eargound’s podcast, veteran promoter Chuck Nosis revealed that he had experienced these frustrations firsthand and believed some artistes simply do not appreciate the gravity of international bookings.
“Some South African artists are very rude, I’ll be very honest with you. The latest one is Uncool MC, who we are suing by the way. We are in court right now,” he said.
“Uncool MC had the nerve to say, ‘I’m tired.’ I have text messages on my phone showing he said he was tired because he had a show the previous night. This is not South Africa; this is an international show. We paid first-class tickets and had a major event waiting for him.
“We take a lot of backlash on social media and people were saying we didn’t pay. No, we did pay.”
Nosis said he encountered similar challenges when dealing with popular vocalist Daliwonga.
“The same thing happened with Daliwonga. Daliwonga lied about being at the airport and saying they were late. It’s
very unprofessional on the side of the artist because we as promoters get major backlash on that.”
However, Nosis said that artistes are not always solely responsible when things go wrong.
“Sometimes you don’t have to blame the artist. Sometimes the blame belongs to the production company or his management.
“After his missed gig I discovered that they owed him money. He was owed money from previous events. So, when Fiesta came up he probably asked himself why he should go. So it was a contractual issue between him and his team and it affected us. He didn’t show up for Jacaranda, and he didn’t show up for Fiesta two months later.”
Despite acknowledging the role of management disputes, Nosis said he was frustrated by what he viewed as a lack of professionalism within some corners of the industry.
“Most of these guys just lack common sense. Right now, there are so many promoters that want to book Daliwonga because we are holding him back because he owes me money.
“If he comes to Zimbabwe, I will arrest him. I have a docket in his name. The moment he lands at the airport we will nab him and he will end up singing for the inmates in jail.”
