Today at Hifa. . .

Entertainment Reporter
Dancehall fans are in for an exceptional treat today at the Harare International Festival of the Arts as some of the genre’s heavyweights in Africa will be showcasing their resolve in the much anticipated Dancehall Alliance at the ZOL Main Stage scheduled between 10pm and 11pm. Ghana’s dancehall and reggae iron lady, Kaakie, will be sharing the stage with Zimbabwe’s finest artistes in the name of Buffalo Souljah and Guspy Warrior.

Kaakie has the distinction of being a major reggae/dancehall award winner and she has shared the stage with a number of well known celebrities who include the likes of Keri Hilson, Bow Wow, Busy Signal, Demarco, Mavado, Kiprich and Tiwaa. Zimbabwe’s Buffalo Souljah needs very little introduction to dancehall lovers as he has won numerous accolades as a producer and an artiste including Channel O’s best dancehall musician whilst Guspy Warrior, who got his inspiration from Jamaica’s Sizzla Kalonji, is popular amongst his fellow countrymen for his hit song “Seunononga” which took national airwaves by storm.

Also on ZOL Main Stage is highly praised East African songstar Somi who is scheduled to perform from 7 to 8pm. Born in Illinois to immigrants from Rwanda and Uganda, the jazz songwriter has released The Lagos Music Salon last year as her major label debut on Sony Music which landed at number one on the US Jazz charts.

Somi will be joined on stage by alluring and critically acclaimed Zimbabwean singer and composer, Netsayi Chigwendere.

In the afternoon, between 12 noon and 1.30pm, poetry fanatics will have something to smile about as HIVOS Poetry Lab will be hosting the Slam the Page programme which will see the works of a DJ, musician, poet and writer being blended together to produce a matchless artifact.

Not to be spared are theatre followers as ZB Bank Reps Theatre will be playing host to comedies “Defending the Caveman” and “Pss Pss” which will start at 10am and 7pm respectively.

In the comedy “Defending the Cavemen”, comedian Tim Plewman will be donning caveman’s skins for the first time in Zimbabwe to add to his 1554 sold out performances of the longest-running and most successful solo comedy in South African history.

This creation is a mirthful and demonstrative comedy that explains why men and women see the world differently, and will have the audience looking at each other’s spouse with new eyes.