adminSO much has been said in the past few weeks since the comparison between Mark Ngwazi and sungura maestro, Alick Macheso, first emerged.
It was all provoked by the two singers’ decisions to release their latest albums within a space of just a few weeks.
Macheso unveiled his latest album at a fully-subscribed venue at the Chitungwiza Aquatics Complex, where organisers ended up turning away some of the fans, to try and avoid a stampede.
Some analysts say it was the biggest unveiling ceremony of an album, in recent years with its significance being emphasised by the way fans defied the tough economic environment to come to the show, in large numbers.
Ngwazi unveiled his album at Bar Rogue, a very small setting, which is found at the Long Chen Plaza in Harare. However, despite the size of the setting, it was a successful ceremony and Ngwazi’s album is being praised for the way the emerging artist hit the jackpot, with a product which went beyond expectations.
That’s where the comparison started, with some arguing that Ngwazi’s album is a better product than the one which was offered by Macheso.
Many local producers, promoters and other stakeholders in the music industry have aired their views with some praising Ngwazi and others fighting in Macheso’s corner.
However, a disturbing trend has emerged with a group of people now suggesting that Macheso is past his prime and his latest album confirms what has been a downward trend for the sungura king. They have also suggested that Ngwazi is now a better musician than Baba Shero.
Of course, judgment on greatness cannot be determined just by one particular album, even though Michael Jackson’s Thriller proved that a single album can define a musician’s legacy.
It’s also fair to suggest that MJ never scaled the heights he reached, with Thriller, in the subsequent albums that he released in a career widely celebrated as one of the greatest, in terms of showbiz.
But, that doesn’t make MJ a lesser icon in the music industry and, even after his death, he is still celebrated as the King of Pop.
Macheso’s status, as the finest sungura musician, is secure.
It’s unlikely that we will ever see a sungura musician who is the best, in terms of the guitar which he plays, who is also the leading frontman of the group, who sings so well and is also one of the leading dancers in the group.
As an all-rounder, in terms of the package he provides, as an entertainer, Macheso is in a league of his own.
But, he is also human and it’s unfair to expect him to produce a gem of an album, every time he releases one.
Our take is that Macheso needs the competition from Ngwazi, and others, to keep pushing him to keep the standards, which we have always expected from him.
Rather than being a challenge to the king’s throne, Ngwazi is a prince who could actually make the King a better musician.
It’s not a coincidence that Macheso’s best days, and best albums, came at a time when he had competition from Tongai Moyo.
Ngwazi could be the artist who could make Baba Shero better.
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter