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Arts Correspondent
Rising hip-hop musician RayKaz has doubled efforts to carve a solid career and image for himself by joining several artistes at Africa’s biggest music festival, the Acces Music Festival 2023 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, over the weekend.
Run by Music In Africa, Acces 2023 kicked off last Thursday at Warehouse in Dar es Salaam with the first night featuring Leo Mkanyia (Tanzania), Zolani Mahola & The Feminine Force (South Africa), Esinam (Ghana/Belgium), Balaa MC (Tanzania) and Kadilida (Tanzania).
Last Friday morning, the festival moved to Mlimani City Conference Centre for a raft of panel discussions, workshops as well as a keynote show by South African superstar Sho Madjozi.
Speaking on the sidelines of the festival, Raykaz emphasised the need for more than just performing as an artiste.
He stressed out the importance of learning the craft of managing arts as a business.
“My passion for music goes beyond making music,” he said.
“What good is good music when you don’t learn the fundamentals of management, because a holistic appreciation of music as both art and a business has been the missing link in several artistes, even back home in Zimbabwe.”
Apart from performances, the festival created a platform for didactic approaches that also taught artistes and arts practitioners through seminars, workshops as well and interaction with musicians and managers from all walks of life.
“I am heading towards recording and releasing an album as a major milestone next year and learning to strengthen my appreciation of musical fundamentals is important now more than ever,” said Raykaz.
Meanwhile, there was an air of magic at the same event when Zimbabwe’s promising music export Feli Nandi took to the stage and delivered perhaps the most solid and sterling performance of her career on the road.
In that hot, humid thick air of Dar es Salaam, even the gods of the land rose and soared to her music as she sang, trance-like and magically, into a divine frenzy that left the audience star-struck.
Haunting, determined and assertive, Feli lifted the crowds as the spirits sent her forth in a performance only interjected by her return to the land of the living where upon she reminded people, “My name is Feli Nandi and I am from Zimbabwe,” before she slipped back into the land of the gods and was again drawn by the spirits into the next song.
Delivering a masterclass that saw her justifying her Zimbabwe Music Awards win and her winning a slot at Acces 2023 uncontested, Feli spoke the language of perfection.
And how about the musicians under her hand?
The energetic team of young Zimbabwean men who moved to the pulse and rhythm of the art, daring the crowd to fixate on them, their craft and their dedication, Feli’s men delivered beyond expectation at the concert leaving all at the venue spellbound by a name they had never encountered, a name they shall forever never forget, a name that said, “You never saw me coming”.
Her real realm is in another firmament. In the pantheon of musical gods. And goddesses, she left the audience experiencing it all: goosebumps, shock, awe and confusion.
Who is this dreadlocked creature that the heavens had crafted and given to earth? Her outro was pure class. Sheer class. A perfect show-off.
With the instruments shut, quietened, leaving her lone voice. Feli showed that her ultimate gift is her voice — piercing proudly into the crowd. Acapella. Canyoning like the king’s horse, it ran amok amidst the audience. A beautiful sublime voice, soothing and warm and perhaps even shockingly disarming.
Feli showed that while there may be less regard for her craft in her native land, she is the next best thing based on nothing but talent.
Special mention of course to her drummer.
A strange vagabond driven by nothing less than madness who rolled and rode ensuring a mad sound-bed for a voice as royal as Feli’s. What a team What a talent.
It would also be myopic if we didn’t talk of other Zimbabweans at the festival.
In attendance was popular creative entrepreneur and digital creator Plot Mhako, who himself has acquitted himself well and represented the media of his nation.
It wasn’t an easy week for him having been called out by miscreants for being brazenly frank and upfront concerning how the media ought to be treated by musicians.
But can you get a good man down? Of course not.
And his Ear ground brand got the continental recognition that he only deserved.
Also too was Ano Shumba flying the red, gold green black, and white flag of the republic high and spelling Zimbabwe as a force to be reckoned with in the world of music and media on the continent.
Of course hope that Zimbabwe continues to shine and names like Feli start getting real respect at home as they get internationally.
What a nationality.
What a showing.
What a night!
Online Reporter