Zim hip-hop has no true stars?

Bruce Ndlovu
Last week Harare rapper MC Chita went on an expletive-laden rant as he complained about the line-up of this yearaï¿½ï¿½s Shoko Festival, which is stacked with performers from genres other than hip-hop.

This yearaï¿½ï¿½s festival, which begins on Friday, will be headlined by South African rap superstar AKA and will feature artistes from other genres that include the likes of Jah Prayzah, Winky D and the Bulawayo house duo of Skaiva and Rakeem.

The likes of Tehn Diamond will also feature to give the festival the much needed hip-hop flavour it has seemingly forsaken.

aï¿½?You guys claim to be about hip-hop but of the people you claim to be hip-hop from Zimbabwe, you only get two or three of them on payroll. So f** you Shoko Festival,aï¿½? he said in the rant.

However, those close to the organisation of the festival are claiming that it would have been folly to invite an all Zim hip-hop cast to the festival as the event has simply outgrown the countryaï¿½ï¿½s acts in that genre.

Simply put, the question is whether Zimbabwean hip-hop has any worthy superstars.

While ZimDancehall acts have managed to corner the market and make their own interpretation of the Caribbean born genre, Zim hip-hop still does not have the penetration that one would have thought a genre already with a laid international foundation should command.

Among the reason for this include the failure of the genresaï¿½ï¿½ protagonists to make music that resonates with the average urban music listener.

While dancehall sound and message is rooted in Mbare where most of its stars hail from, it has managed to win the ear of many youths from every corner of the country.

In contrast hip-hop seems to lack the grittiness that could make it attractive to the aï¿½?ghetto youthsaï¿½? that the dancehall stars have made a part and parcel of their songs and lyrics.

So after MC Chitaaï¿½ï¿½s rant, many just pointed out that the hip-hop genre lacks artistes that can headline an event on their own.

aï¿½?I donaï¿½ï¿½t think thataï¿½ï¿½s the case. Perhaps the organisers went with what works for them but that does not mean that is necessarily true. Hip-hop is still growing and gradually we will get there,aï¿½? he said.