Flora Fadzai Sibanda, Chronicle Reporter
FOR the past 18 years a Bulawayo man, Derrick Tembo (32), has made a name for himself in the entertainment industry.

Tembo started dancing back in 2004 as part of a pantsula group. He partnered with his friends to form a group, Khangelani Abangane in Sounds and Africa (KAISA).

It was a 45-member group.

The 2007 economic meltdown hit them hard, forcing some members to leave the country.

Tembo looked for employment to make ends meet, but his mind was not in it. He knew he wanted to dance. He left his job and decided to recreate and rename the group Kooler Africa in Sounds and Arts (KAISA).

From 2007, Tembo says the journey has been a bumpy but interesting one as the crew has grown to 14 members and they have been to a lot of events including Intwasa Festival, Umthwakazi Festival, Miss Tourism Zimbabwe and on road shows with reputable companies.

He has also registered KAISA as a company. He sees the group members as more of entrepreneurs than entertainers.

Saturday Chronicle visited the entrepreneur at his home.

As we got near his house, loud house music was heard, and Tembo and his band members were rehearsing.

They were dancing like it was their last day on earth with no sign of fatigue from the group leader who has been dancing for the past 18 years.

“It has been a crazy 18 years. I have grown and matured in those 18 years. Looking back, KAISA is my baby and I have watched it grow. Right now, we are no longer a dancing crew, but a company. We are working towards entrepreneurship and hoping to go far.

“It has not been an easy 18 years. I almost let go of dancing so that I could look for a stable job.

However, if you love something it’s difficult to let go and move on. One thing I have learnt from this business is to be patient. Had it not been for patience I would not be here because there are times when business is slow. I also work with a great team.

“I have been part of different festivals such as Intwasa Festival and this has made me appreciate my talent and other people’s talent out there. It has also made me believe that a crew with local people from the hood can make it.

“Meeting other crews made me decide to venture into entrepreneurship with my crew. So, we try by all means to not share the money which we get from our shows.

“Rather, we bank the money for rainy seasons and to help grow the company. What we do is get fortnight rehearsal payments so that the crew does not go hungry and we can buy the basics,” said Tembo.

Tembo said the idea of KAISA was to keep the youth away from a life of crime.

He said: “KAISA is all about recognising local talent and trying to get youths off the streets so that they do not get involved in substance abuse. The company has birthed a lot of local artistes like Ras PK and Skool Kid.

“We are trying to create a platform for more local talent to showcase their talent through our new competition called Shakeit and Stompit, where artistes compete. The competition is mostly a way of paving the way for local artistes.”

Ras PK, a dancer at KAISA and an artiste, said he has been with the crew since it started.

“I have been with KAISA since 2004. I did leave for some time when the economy was hard to look for greener pastures. I came back as I could not survive being away from home. I am a flexible artiste as I dance and sing to any genre of music.

“I recently released Mama Don’t Cry as a tribute to all our crew members’ mothers. This song is dedicated to celebrating them and their support throughout these 18 years,” he said.

Flora Fadzai Sibanda, Chronicle Reporter
FOR the past 18 years a Bulawayo man, Derrick Tembo (32), has made a name for himself in the entertainment industry.

Tembo started dancing back in 2004 as part of a pantsula group. He partnered with his friends to form a group, Khangelani Abangane in Sounds and Africa (KAISA).

It was a 45-member group.

The 2007 economic meltdown hit them hard, forcing some members to leave the country.

Tembo looked for employment to make ends meet, but his mind was not in it. He knew he wanted to dance. He left his job and decided to recreate and rename the group Kooler Africa in Sounds and Arts (KAISA).

From 2007, Tembo says the journey has been a bumpy but interesting one as the crew has grown to 14 members and they have been to a lot of events including Intwasa Festival, Umthwakazi Festival, Miss Tourism Zimbabwe and on road shows with reputable companies.

He has also registered KAISA as a company. He sees the group members as more of entrepreneurs than entertainers.

Saturday Chronicle visited the entrepreneur at his home.

As we got near his house, loud house music was heard, and Tembo and his band members were rehearsing.

They were dancing like it was their last day on earth with no sign of fatigue from the group leader who has been dancing for the past 18 years.

“It has been a crazy 18 years. I have grown and matured in those 18 years. Looking back, KAISA is my baby and I have watched it grow. Right now, we are no longer a dancing crew, but a company. We are working towards entrepreneurship and hoping to go far.

“It has not been an easy 18 years. I almost let go of dancing so that I could look for a stable job.

However, if you love something it’s difficult to let go and move on. One thing I have learnt from this business is to be patient. Had it not been for patience I would not be here because there are times when business is slow. I also work with a great team.

“I have been part of different festivals such as Intwasa Festival and this has made me appreciate my talent and other people’s talent out there. It has also made me believe that a crew with local people from the hood can make it.

“Meeting other crews made me decide to venture into entrepreneurship with my crew. So, we try by all means to not share the money which we get from our shows.

“Rather, we bank the money for rainy seasons and to help grow the company. What we do is get fortnight rehearsal payments so that the crew does not go hungry and we can buy the basics,” said Tembo.

Tembo said the idea of KAISA was to keep the youth away from a life of crime.

He said: “KAISA is all about recognising local talent and trying to get youths off the streets so that they do not get involved in substance abuse. The company has birthed a lot of local artistes like Ras PK and Skool Kid.

“We are trying to create a platform for more local talent to showcase their talent through our new competition called Shakeit and Stompit, where artistes compete. The competition is mostly a way of paving the way for local artistes.”

Ras PK, a dancer at KAISA and an artiste, said he has been with the crew since it started.

“I have been with KAISA since 2004. I did leave for some time when the economy was hard to look for greener pastures. I came back as I could not survive being away from home. I am a flexible artiste as I dance and sing to any genre of music.

“I recently released Mama Don’t Cry as a tribute to all our crew members’ mothers. This song is dedicated to celebrating them and their support throughout these 18 years,” he said.