adminTOURING and entertaining other nationalities is on top of every ambitious artist’s wish list.
Such adventures carry lasting memories when professionally executed.
They enable artists to interact with new audiences, which is vital in growing their fan bases and appeal.
However, such tours can be nightmarish when artists engage fly-by-night promoters or crooks.
Bogus promoters, with a sweet tongue, have been preying on entertainers for ages.
Locally, top artists, including Alick Macheso, the late John Chibadura, Tongai Moyo (late), Allan Chimbetu and a host of other Zim dancehall and Zim Hip Hop artists have been duped by such questionable music promoters in foreign lands.
Yesterday, we carried yet another touching story involving South Africa-based Amapiano wheel-spinner, DJ Chiedza Mangena, aka DJ Chichi, who has become the latest victim of bogus promoters.
She was stranded in Nairobi, Kenya, after a music promoter, believed to be of Ugandan origin, sold her a dummy.
DJ Chichi told the Sunday Nation that she hooked up with Chris after he slid into her DM on Instagram.
She then referred Chris to her Dubai-based manager who was to draft a contract.
The wheel-spinner revealed that Chris wanted to rope her in during the tour of Guchi, a Nigerian artist.
However, she could not fly to Kenya on the first proposed tour dates.
After getting assurances from her manager, she then flew to Nairobi, where she discovered she was dealing with a crook.
She also bought her own air ticket but was never reimbursed.
In Nairobi, she discovered that Chris was a bogus promoter who even failed to provide her with decent accommodation.
She was also exposed to dubious men, which made her tour of Kenya turn into a big farce.
We sympathise with the talented entertainer, who was short-changed on her maiden tour of East Africa, but this should come as a lesson to fellow artists back home.
Artists should know their value and engage professional handlers.
While regional tours help artists to broaden their audience-building missions, artists should get paid first before they go on tour.
By so doing, this makes the tours enjoyable while bogus promoters can be easily exposed once they fail to meet the artist’s demands.
Artists should never be swayed by promoters with a sweet tongue as their services come first. They should also consider their safety, and reputation, before they embark on regional tours.
While DJ Chichi is the latest victim of such scammers, she needs moral support to overcome the trauma she faced.
By speaking her mind, DJ Chichi’s ordeal will certainly help fellow African artists, who are at risk of falling prey to bogus promoters.
She also deserves love and not ridicule because we can all be tricked by such fraudsters if we don’t do due diligence.
To the managers of artists, this should be a lesson to be thorough, and vigilant, when engaging foreign promoters.
In a nutshell, don’t trust fly-by-night promoters.
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter