adminTafadzwa Zimoyo recently in Mauritius
An opportunity for local artistes to shine internationally has arisen following a call for musicians to submit top quality videos for consideration on MTV Base playlists.
Speaking during a press conference at the Africa Content Show Extravaganza held in Trou Aux Biches in Mauritius recently, Tim Horwood, VIACOM International Africa head of MTV Base said African countries should send their music videos via social media to the television channel.
“We understand that some countries now appreciate and understand the new genre of music what we call urban contemporary. I urge all African countries to send in their videos so that we can play them alongside international music on our channel,” he said.
Horwood said the videos should have good quality in order to meet the MTV Base standards.
“We have received a lot of videos from different countries but some of them they don’t meet the standards. The reason why we so request and demand quality is because they will compete with stars like Lil Wayne, Beyonce and Usher among others. To be honest we don’t play or air junk videos,” he said.
He said they also check artistes’ profiles to consider the videos.
“Yes quality is the main thing but we also have to check if the artiste is a big name in his or her country. Apart from being known the song should also be a hit. This then helps us to promote the video. I also urge musicians to take their time when shooting videos rather than just rush without creative mind. Play along the trends,” he said.
He said the channel is for Africans and by Africans.
“Many think that the channel is centred on Chris Browns, (or) Trey Songz but we do love our African content but only few countries like South Africa, Ghana and Nigeria among others are the ones dominating on the channel,” he said.
The dreadlocked DJ said the channel gives a lot of exposure to Africans.
“Look how Tiwa Savage, Davido and P-square started. A journey of thousand miles begins with one step,” he said.
He added that they only play urban-hip hop,R ‘n’B and afro-fusion contemporary.”
Journalists from countries such as South Africa, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Nigeria and Botswana among others attended the Multichoice show.
It ran under the theme, ‘‘Only The Best’’, in a bid to educate and empower the journalists on the launching of the campaign “Africa Arising” by Multichoice.
It was meant to inspire Africans to become involved in community based social uplifting projects.
Artistes such as Davido, Tiwa Savage, Mi Casa and Lola Rae performed during the show.
Online Reporter