Jah Prayzah goes into hiding?

By Bongani Ndlovu

Jah Prayzah and his wife Rufaro have allegedly gone into hiding following the cosy leaked pictures between the contemporary muso and former Zifa boss Henrietta Rushwaya.

Pictures of Rushwaya snuggled on the bosom of Jah Prayzah (real name Mukudzeyi Mukombe) went viral on Wednesday, sparking speculation that the two were involved in an illicit affair.

It seems Jah Prayzah is fighting to save his marriage by taking his wife on an emergency holiday, if words by his manager Keen Mushapaidze are anything to go by.

Questioned about Jah Prayzah’s whereabouts yesterday, Mushapaidze said his artiste had gone on ‘holiday’ with his wife to celebrate an unspecified occasion.

“The couple is on holiday somewhere to celebrate something which I can’t reveal,” Mushapaidze said.

With a series of shows slated for Beitbridge and Masvingo this weekend, starting tonight, Jah Prayzah has assured fans that he will be in attendance.

On the leaked pictures which Jah Prayzah and his team claim were taken in 2013, Mushapaidze said he was not in a position to speak on behalf of his artiste as he was recently appointed manager.

“Those pictures were leaked by people who want Jah Prayzah not to concentrate on his career, but on things that happened two years ago,” Mushapaidze hurriedly said.

However, Jah Prayzah’s wife yesterday came out in defence of her husband in our sister paper H-Metro saying she was not moved by the pictures.

“Back then it got to me a bit, but I’ve since understood what it was about, we’ve since moved on from it. Mukudzeyi and myself are very much OK,” Rufaro said.

“At this time, I’m more worried about how he’s taking it all, especially with the way people have put it across. Otherwise we’re happy.”

Also speaking to H-Metro, Jah Prayzah yesterday dismissed the pictures saying they were irrelevant as they were taken two years ago.

“I believe this is one of the things that one has to face when in the eye of the public. What’s important is that the key people in my private life have been aware of the issue of Henrietta from 2013 when some faceless person tried to soil me on Facebook.

“I even addressed the issue in H-metro and there has not been a change in circumstances brought about by any of the pictures from 2013. So there’s no real worry on my end other than the fact that fans may be misled by those with ulterior motives,” Jah Prayzah told H-Metro.

Rushwaya on the other hand decided to politicise the whole issue claiming that the leak had been perpetrated by aspiring Zifa candidates.

“There was a belief that I was interested in the upcoming Zifa elections and someone stole the pictures and tried to blackmail me. But because I’m not participating in Zifa elections, I wasn’t worried and didn’t entertain any negotiations or discussions,” Rushwaya told H-Metro yesterday.

Like Jah Prayzah, Rushwaya advised rumour mongers to scout for fresh gossip saying the leaked pictures were stale.

“These pictures are from 2013 and at the time, Jah Prayzah was trying to establish himself as a consistent musician. I’m the one who supplied him with regalia he used at shows.

“The other picture where he’s trying the regalia should be complete with others taken at the same time at the same spot with Mayor (Wadyajena) who was also trying his clothes. By the way, I also did campaign regalia for Mayor,” the former Zifa boss said, somehow confirming her presence in the bedroom which Jah Prayzah was captured in.

She said it was unfortunate that Jah Prayzah had been caught up in the forthcoming Zifa election politics.

“People will have their own interpretation to say the selfie is wrong. They should just leave Jah Prayzah to concentrate on his career which is looking bright,” Rushwaya said.

When Jah Prayzah and Rushwaya were rumoured to be dating in 2013, Jah Prayzah was quick to quash the claims saying Rushwaya was a business associate.

“I’m a musician who’s also trying to get into other businesses and when I meet her, it’s strictly business. I’m also trying to come up with a clothing line – JP and she has some links that are useful for my project.

“I’ve no control over what people then conclude or assume, but at least my conscience is very clear,” Jah Prayzah was quoted saying in 2013.

Various comments on social media networking sites, Facebook and Twitter show that the artiste’s followers are still baffled by the whole fiasco. The Chronicle