adminMathew Masinge
THE current generation of local music stars are a world away from scaling the heights which the likes of Oliver Mtukudzi and Thomas Mapfumo touched on the international market.
That is the contentious view of veteran music critic, Garikai Mazara, who made his name covering arts for the Sunday Mail.
It has torched a storm on social media.
The spotlight this week has been on Jah Prayzah, who is set to release two albums, on consecutive days, in Harare and Bulawayo, tomorrow and on Saturday.
But, Mazara says that despite the strides, which the likes of Jah Prayzah and Alick Macheso have made, they remain on the periphery, when it comes to transforming themselves into truly international artists.
Their hustle remains largely confined to the local territory.
Mazara feels these artists probably don’t have the right management and proper skills to propel them to have a stake on the international markets the way South African and Nigerian artists have done.
It’s something, according to Mazara, which Mtukudzi and Mapfumo did when they were at their prime.
“Mapfumo’s point, which is my point as well today, is that our musicians’ main weakness is playing to Zimbabwean audiences when they play abroad,” argued Mazara on his social media handles.
“Macheso playing before Zimbabweans in Johannesburg, Jah Prayzah playing for Zimbabweans in Australia, etc.
“But, with Oliver Mtukudzi, he played for white audiences. Or, if you want to put it more correctly, for cosmopolitan audiences.
“‘Live in San Francisco’ easily comes to mind.
“(Whether) he was performing in Sweden, Norway or Canada, Mtukudzi wouldn’t perform exclusively for Zimbabwean audiences.
“And he sang in our tongues, our languages.
“Ditto for Mapfumo, when he was still based in Zimbabwe, when he went to play overseas, he played for cosmopolitan audiences as well.”
Recently, Macheso performed at sold-out gigs in Botswana and South Africa.
The same happened when top artists Freeman, Nutty O, Killer T, Ex Q and DJ Kivo Santana Vybz attracted a full house in Birmingham, England.
Mazara feels unless these local artists work their way, to attract audiences which are not exclusively Zimbabweans, they can’t reach Tuku’s levels.
“Personally, I really don’t know where to place Jah Prayzah and his talents, musically that is,” he wrote.
“His videography and choreography is great, which somehow might cloud the LACK OF TALENT in his music.
“Until Macheso, Jah and Winky attain that level, of having Mwari Wenyasha being sung in Brazil by Brazilians, Tsviriyo being sung in Thailand by Thais or Kasong Kejecha being sung by Cameroonians, I will not even attempt to compare them to Mtukudzi.
“Even if they release three albums in one year.”
He feels Jah Prayzah’s recent video, Sarungano (featuring Feli Nandi), despite displaying flashes of brilliance, was probably borrowed from the movie, ‘12 years A Slave.’
Online Reporter