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Sophia Chese Arts Correspondent
In 2013 Alexio Kawara promised that he would release an album saying it would be a polished pro- duct.
Two years down the line, the musician has failed to drop the new project. Instead, he is piling the promises to have the album released “soon”.
Some critics have suggested that the musician fears to join the bandwagon of musicians that have released their albums and failed to make an impact on the local scene over the past couple of years due to stiff competition from Zimdancehall and established musicians.
Though his manager, Farirai Chavura, vehemently denies the claim, the musician seems to be struggling to come up with another song that surpasses “Shaina”.
Chavura admitted that the album release had been delayed beyond expectations but assured fans that it will be worth the wait.
“It is true, it has been a while since we promised a new offering to our fans. But, honestly, we are working on something that is of international standards, something that people will enjoy,
“It’s not like we are afraid that we will not be able to surpass the standards that we once set. It was Alexio who released that hit ‘Shaina’ and that means he can still match or surpass that standard. It is only that we don’t to give our fans a half-baked album so we are taking our time and once it is out people will see that it was worth the long wait,” she said.
Pressed to give the reasons why it is taking them so long to complete the project, Chavura they were working with a foreign producer whom she refused to mention saying he was the one delaying with the mastering.
“The album is done but since we mostly cater for an uptown market, we have engaged the services of a foreign producer who is supposed to do the mastering, so he is yet to work on it.
“All the 13 songs are done now and it’s just a matter of time, the album is potentially explosive I tell you,” she said.
Other critics have queried why, of late, local musicians have been going for foreign producers and Chavura maintained that it was for the best.
“It’s not like we are running away from our own producers. But we are were looking for the best and we just found it outside and nothing else,” she said.
Alexio has been sampling some of the tracks from the new album “Oyi” during his live performances and these have been well received.
One of the tracks is “Zvazvinhu”, which was released in 2013 when he announced the release of the album. It is a collaboration with Beitbridge- based ELL-T.
There is also “Chakaipa”, a collaboration with Roki whicjh is also proving popular during live shows.
In a previous interview, Alexio said the album was a gift for his fans who have stood by him during his 15 years in the industry.
It is yet to be seen if the album will be released this year or if fans must wait for another year.
Meanwhile, early this year Kawara rebranded his Thursday slots at the Zimbabwe Germany Society popularly known as “KuChina” to “KuChina Reloaded” and this has seen him sharing the stage with a number of artistes from different genres including Taririo NeGitare, Ex-Q, Sniper, Soul Jah Love and Roki among others and today he is set to collaborate with man of the moment Jah Prayzah in a show that promises fireworks.
Online Reporter