adminBongani Ndlovu Showbiz Correspondent
HARARE-based DJ V, real name Valentine Tapfumaneyi, says international house music is slowly taking over the music scene in Zimbabwe with Bulawayo being the capital of the genre in the country. The DJ, who plays house music only during his sets, said Bulawayo artistes had the potential to develop the house genre locally and make it compete with Zimdancehall, only if they work together.
“Bulawayo is the house music capital of Zimbabwe and house musicians there seem not to realise the jewel they have. There’re many artistes and groups that can produce quality house music such as House Rebels and Djembe Monks. They only need to be united and work together to come up with a movement like what happened with Zimdancehall in Harare,” said DJ V.
The DJ who played at the Durban July horseracing event in South Africa this year will be in Bulawayo for a show at Club Eden tonight where he has promised revellers a strict house music affair. He said his passion for house music started in 2005 when he together with his late brother and cousin founded a group, Shumbatafari.
“I started deejaying when I was at high school after we together with my late brother founded a music group. The other guys were responsible for playing R&B, reggae and dancehall while I specialised in playing house and dance music. I loved the genre and never looked back ever since,” said DJ V.
He said their major breakthrough was in 2013 when they were resident DJs at a once popular spot – Rugby Bar in Harare. “Rugby Bar became the prime nightspot in Harare in 2013 as everyone loved the way we mixed different genres. From there, we managed to network with a lot of people who then hired us for various gigs and prestigious events including Big Brother Africa parties,” said DJ V.
As a result, they managed to build individual brands and when DJ V’s brother died in 2014, the group split to focus on solo projects. DJ V now plays at one of Harare’s leading spots, News Café which was recently opened. He has deejayed at international concerts including the Akon and Sean Paul Real deal concert and the 2012 Lion Lager Summer Beer Festival (P-Square) as well as numerous shows in South Africa.
Online Reporter