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BORROWDALE Racecourse came alive last Sunday with thousands of merrymakers converging for Unplugged, a monthly live music event that is emerging as one of the capital’s premier social gatherings.
With the gig headlined by Dr Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi, the line-up fused both the old and the new as upcoming artistes Norman Masamba, Shasha and Blacksight also shined on the day.
While the upcoming acts produced great performances, it was the legendary Tuku who roused the crowd to another level, belting out hits from his decades old catalogue. DJ L Roy came on and shut down the party in style with a solid set that had the crowd grooving to the various music genres he was playing.
Away from the stage, the most striking element of the event was the unique concept, which brings a relaxed and refreshing vibe. Not only do people bring their chairs or blankets to sit on but cooler boxes are also allowed, which creates a chilled picnic atmosphere.
This upmarket event is perfect for families who want to enjoy their drinks and food in a laid back setup, listening to good music vibes. A brainchild of two innovative women Chiedza Danha and Ellinah Chipumha, the event has witnessed tremendous growth over the past few months.
The Sunday Mail Leisure caught up with Unplugged Zim’s founders who gave more insight on the event.
“Unplugged came out of the shared love of music between two lifelong friends when we moved back to Zimbabwe from the UK and saw how much undiscovered talent there was so we committed ourselves to being a part of their discovery and growth,” said Danha.
“It is a monthly blankets and wine styled event that centres on music and I believe we have successfully created a lifestyle event that has become the calendar music event for Harare.”
The event which has been running since December 2013 seeks to provide a platform for upcoming and established talent where they share their craft with audiences in a conducive and supportive environment.
Danha said the event was also meant to increase the local consumption of home-grown music.
“Last Sunday was our 26th edition, which means roughly a total of 104 local artistes have graced our stage since each show usually comprise of around four acts,” she said.
It is hard to believe that when the event started less than 200 people were attending considering the numbers that are coming through these days.
“We’ve grown from just 159 people at our very first event to an average of 2500 each month with our target audience being aspirational Zimbabweans of all ages who have a keen interest in music and the arts.”
Unplugged has been held at various venues that include Borrowdale Country Manor and Palm Estates before moving to Borrowdale Racecourse.
“The move to the racecourse is not a permanent one by any means because this is a roving event and so we move around for our audiences to interact in new and picturesque spaces.
“Our biggest challenge has been with parking and the racecourse provides a decent solution in that regard but we will continue to move around,” explained Danha.
She said while their bias was towards Afro-jazz music, they welcomed all artistes with sophisticated sounds, which is which is why they have hosted artistes who sing hip-hop, dancehall and Afro-pop.
“We’ve had a plethora of artistes who include Gwenga, Simba Tagz, Edith We Utonga, Winky D, Jah Prayzah, Bryan K, Junior Brown, Tehn Diamond and Mokoomba just to name a few.
“For this edition as you can see we had our national treasure Tuku as the headliner as well as the endlessly talented Norman Masamba, who thoroughly roused the crowd, and an incredibly awesome new band called Blacksight.”
Danha’s “partner in crime”, Chipumha, added that they were happy with the massive turnout but highlighted that the growth of the event had also brought its challenges which they had to overcome.
“We have worked tirelessly to keep this event going because Unplugged was self-sponsored for over two years but that is only testament to our commitment to Zimbabwean arts,” said Chipumha.
“We have loyal Unpluggers who have supported us, as well as family and friends and their delight after every Unplugged is what kept us going and we foresee Unplugged transitioning into inviting regional acts. In the same way that Zim has lots of talent, so does Zambia and so does Mozambique and other countries in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Chipumha.
She added that while people often were concerned solely with established musicians, Unplugged looked beyond that and focused on raw talent and potential, one of the things that sets them apart from most events.
The future looks bright with the organisers looking to spread their wings and come up with other unique events under the Unplugged Zim banner.
“Unplugged Zim is an arts event company and Unplugged is our flagship event but we are already working on other niche events that will add colour to the local arts and social scene. Our focus is on quality and experience and that is the direction we intend to grow in. As two of the few local female music promoters, we take great pride in having created value for artistes of all types in a male dominated industry and we would love to see more women in this space,” said Chipumha.
Online Reporter